Corunastylis superba, not only new to me, but rare as...

Corunastylis superba the "Pink Midge Orchid". This species is rare as hen's teeth. According to Alan Stephenson, this species is only known from a few sites, and we tried most of them on Sunday, and we found one plant in flower, and a seedling. That's hardly a good prospect for survival, is it?

Corunastylis superba - click to enlarge image

Note the extremely long "hairs" on the labellum. 

From straight on, you can see the labellum is relatively wide.

My Orchid-chasing colleagues Colin and Mischa Rowan

have more images of this species.

 *****

This next photo has been turned slightly, to straighten the flower

to make it look right.

(Please ignore the rough "filling in" of the corners.)

Just check out the details of the flower.

It has a very long lateral sepals, which are divergent

but pointed out and down,

unlike many of the other species which have the sepals 

curved up in the air.

 This is the same plant (the only one we found).

The colour is completely natural, as I was not using a flash.

 Here it is again, with a slightly lighter background 

to help you see it better.

And now for something completely different - a large green Katydid.
It looks upside down, because that's how these creatures like to hang out. Apparently they assume this position if calling to their partners (stridulating).
Note the very long antennae. The tips are marked on the image.

Katydid - a large green specimen.

This is possibly the Common Garden Katydid - Caedicia simplex.*** If it isn't then it is pretty close to it. The main query in my mind is that this insect was on top of the Sandstone Ridge above Bulee Gap, between Nerriga and Sassafras, on "Main Road 92", in low heathy shrubbery over sandstone rock shelves. Hardly "Garden" habitat.
*** Dr Dave Rentz advises: "It's probably an Elephantodeta or, perhaps, a Tinzeda. Definitely not a Caedicia". Thanks Dave.

Mongarlowe Midge Orchids

Yesterday Alan Stephenson took me and Barry from ANOS Illawarra to Mongarlowe looking for Corunastylis. A long way to go to see small flowers, but it was well worth it. They are native Orchids, after all.

Some of these plants are quite dark.

The Labellum is a deep purple colour.

The sides of the plant have red lines along their contours

just as does Cor. sagittifera (from Medway)

and the related Cor. plumosa from Tallong.

 This is a very fresh flower head.

One bud is yet to open,

I have marked with yellow dots the flowers in this one image.

Hard to see, but interesting to see so many together.

With the profusion of these plants, it is worth noting that

Corunastylis oligantha is named the Mongarlowe Midge Orchid

We saw other species of Corunastylis as well, and I will post about them in the coming days.

Sunset of a beautiful day

On Wednesday we were granted a beautiful sunset.

it was not a spectacular sunset, full of brilliant contrasts, etc.

It was simply one of the prettiest skies I have seen in a long time.

Tonight I can report that Brendan and I finished the re-cladding of my house. There are trim details to finish, and walls to be painted, but I can at least say we have got to the final corner, so the whole house is now re-clad, and insulated, and repaired as we went along.

Many thanks Brendan -  for your help.

I shall post a few "milestone" images from our journey through this long process - but not tonight.

Balmy Days in Robertson

The last few days at Robertson have been truly balmy.

And they have been heavenly days for the local birds. 

The Brown Cuckoo-Doves have been around and calling.

This afternoon, one was drinking 

from the roof of the Shipping Container 

which we are using as a storage shed. 

Brown Cuckoo-Dove on powerline at George's place

Silvereyes were busy looking for Aphids 

amongst the dense shrubbery below the house.

Aphids under leaves of a Camellia

 A male Golden Whistler perched boldly in an Acacia mearnsii 

lower down the yard. 

Here is a previous photo - not great, 

but it shows the colour well enough.

Golden Whistler - male

A Shining Bronze-Cuckoo called prominently 

for about 15 minutes at mid-morning. 

We even saw the bird clearly for a few moments. 

A rare clear viewing for these normally secretive birds

(at least hard to see in a rainforest habitat).

The Black Cockies have been around for the last few weeks, 

and the youngsters keep up their incessant nagging squarks.

As Brendan says, its something only a parent could love

(and even then, its pretty hard to put up with, surely?)

2 Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos flying from a Pine Tree

I mentioned that the insects have been around in masses, 

as you might have noticed from the aphid photo.

This one was a big surprise. 

Brendan found it underneath a piece of plywood, under the house.

This is a King Cricket.

I have only seen one once before, in a rotted log up on Knights Hill.

So it was a surprise to find it under my house.

They seem to like dark, moist places to hang out in.

King Cricket - note the spurred legs, and large body.

After a full day "on duty" Lena decided she needed a rest.

Lena - asleep in the afternoon sun

Who am I to tell her she hadn't been working THAT hard?

Citrus Caterpillars - two types.

My friend Phillip walked up to me the other day with an old "pot" (a plastic garden pot) and said "These are for you".
Thanks Phillip!

Inside the pot were three leaves from various citrus plants (Lemons or Mandarins probably). Each had a Caterpillar on it.

One was a caterpillar of the large Orchard Swallowtail Butterfly. I have blogged about the remarkable defensive strategy of these Caterpillars before.

I knew that the brown and white one 

was a juvenile of the same species

as the large green caterpillar.

2 caterpillars of the Orchard Swallowtail Butterfly.

But I did not know what this other one is.

I had never seen this species before.

Caterpillar of Dainty Swallowtail Butterfly 

It is a 5th instar stage of the larva (Caterpillar)
of the Dainty (or Dingy) Swallowtail Butterfly
Papilio anactus 

Dainty Swallowtail Butterfly - Caterpillar

 Click to enlarge, to read the captions

Here is an image of an interesting "exchange" between these caterpillars.
They had been wandering around the work bench and got to the edge at the same time and the same place.

Click to enlarge the image

"Back off, Big Guy".

Orchard Butterfly caterpillars - 2 species.

Post-script: Phillip was a little concerned that I might photograph these Caterpillars and then squash them (as "pests"). I might have done so, too, except that I know Phillip would feel bad about that "result".

As it transpired, I decided to release them onto my own Lemons and Mandarins.

Then I read up about the little dark caterpillar and discovered (to my surprise) that it is a native Butterfly (Caterpillar). For that I can thank the good folks at Strathbogie Ranges who have presented a slide-show showing the caterpillar forming its chrysalis.

We do have some native Citrus plants in Australia, and since European settlement, we have planted out many non-native Citrus trees, which fact has advantaged these Butterflies. They have managed to greatly expand their range, since we have generously provided them more food (in areas outside their original range).

The Orchard Swallowtailed Butterfly is an import. EDIT: In fact that is not correct. Barbara has pointed out that "Common & Waterhouse in "Butterflies of Australia" do mention the fact that it occurs in New Guinea and adjacent islands but as far as I can make out it is native to Australia." You may see her comment and my responses in the "comments" below.

But they are so spectacular, I let both those caterpillars go free, as well. 

And, as I indicated, there is a question of trust - for Phillip. 

Besides, he would probably never bring me any more interesting specimens again, if I had betrayed his trust.

Thanks Phillip.

All this effort to build a new home for a Peron's Tree Frog

Is this intended to be a new home for a Peron's Tree Frog?

Well Brendan and I didn't think so, when we were working on it yesterday. We thought we were removing the old (very old) weatherboard cladding, insulating the wall, in anticipation of re-cladding the wall with new HardiPlank cladding (weatherboard replacements).

But this frog knew what it liked. 

A large green sheet offering 

wonderful protection from prying eyes

- until we disturbed it.

Peron's Tree Frog on the side of my house (being repaired)

The Frog had snuck in over night, and Brendan found it the next morning, safely tucked out of sight behind the green "sarking". The frog climbed out from behind the sarking when I tried to photograph it in the hidey-hole it had found.


Incidentally, if you click to enlarge the image, you will see (just see) why this frog is sometimes called the "Emerald-spotted tree Frog". Hardly a distinctive feature when one can just make out the tiny spots, with a close-up image. The name Peron's Tree Frog (Litoria peroni) works or me.

 Here is a close-up of his left hind foot and one of his front toes.

Tree Frogs have these amazing toes, with large pads

which allow them to climb so well - even on glass.

Hind foot of Peron's Tree Frog

Here is a close-up of the distinctive eye

It always appears to have a cross-cut mark in the pupil.

My Blogging colleague Martin has written

a brief but observant post about the eye of this species.

Note the ear and eye of Peron's Tree Frog

Clearly it could not safely stay hanging on to the wall during the day. And we needed to do some more renovation and refurbishment work. So I tried to persuade it to move, which it did, by jumping down to the ground.  Then it hopped quickly away into the safety of the dense cover of shrubbery of my garden.

 Just for the record, this is how the wall looked after the day's work.

New cladding over a fibre-glass insulated wall, 

with "sarking" for additional weather-proofing. 

"Sarking must be impermeable to liquid moisture

yet still allow the free flow of water vapour 

from the inner surface of the cladding".

The new HardiPlanks are then freshly painted.

For those patient readers who have been following the gradual development of my home renovations, we are now on the final wall, and ought be finished the actual "construction phase" shortly.

On your bike, Brown Pigeon!

Ok, there is no longer a bird called a Brown Pigeon on the official taxonomic bird lists in Australia.  It is a Brown Cuckoo-Dove, Macropygia phasianella 

To me it will always be a Brown Pigeon, because that's the name I grew up knowing it as, and because that's such a good name for it. Look at the head - it is 100% a "pigeon's" head. And what colour is it? Well, "brown" is almost an understatement. But it is brown, not green or blue or yellow, or anything else.

Brown Cuckoo-Dove - note head shape and soft feet

Pigeon or Dove? 
The bird we all know in the cities of Australia as a "pigeon" is officially the Rock Dove. That birds has a shorter tail, admittedly, and is a ground feeding bird, but both it and today's bird are undeniably pigeons. Similar head, and same soft feet (note image above). But in Australia we tend to use the name "dove" for the smaller, long-tailed varieties (of Pigeons), such as the Peaceful Dove. Some are ground feeders, others are not.


There are other Pigeons, larger birds, which feed on native fruits in the Illawarra rainforests. Those are exclusively birds of the tree tops. As they travel long distances between clumps of fruit-bearing trees, they are capable of flying very fast, for long distances. Just a few days ago by Bob McInnes,  reported to me a flock of 50 or so Topknot Pigeons at his place at Knights Hill. I have only ever seen just a few of these birds flying high and fast over Robertson, heading down to Kangaroo Valley. Occasionally I have seen them feeding in the tops of the rainforest below Lees Road Lookout. They are very partial to the fruit of Cabbage-tree Palms, which grow freely in the rainforests of the Illawarra and Shoalhaven districts.


Anyway, the taxonomists have a rule that any bird which is found in Australia, but is also found outside Australia, must be called by the accepted international name. There may be a question of "precedence" involved (which name was "first recognised" - by which they mean in the Scientific Literature). In the case of many Asian birds, they were known from there before they were known (in Europe obviously - because that's where the scientific naming authorities were). So the group of "pigeons" with long tails tended to be called "Cuckoo-Doves". Linnaeus named this one, and his Latinised name for it translates as "Pheasant Dove". This group of Doves (there are several closely related species) were first described from Ambon, in Indonesia. So, the name "Brown Cuckoo-Dove" is wrong in so many ways. But it is the official name, OK?


Now, what's this about the Bike?

Well, last Thursday a Brown Cuckoo-Dove had landed on the railing of my back deck, just outside the kitchen. Brendan was sitting out on the deck, and he whispered to me, as loudly and urgently as he could whisper (without disturbing the bird), "get your camera". I had no idea why, but I soon found out.

This is a male Brown Cuckoo-Dove.

It had landed on the hand-rail of my back deck.

You can note the subtle grey toning on the back of his neck.

Brown Cuckoo-Dove - male

By contrast, the female has a more bright reddish-brown (cinnamon) colouration on her head and neck.

Brown Cuckoo- Dove - female (note the reddish neck)

She was perched on top of my Barbeque hood, but it was quite safe.

That shot shows you the very long tail.

It also shows you how long-tailed birds can sit on the ground

(well, on a flat surface anyway)

without beiong troubled by their long tails. 

Rosellas does exactly the same thing. 

They both lean forward, and hold the tail flat.

Back to the discussion of what was going on last Thursday.

Both birds then moved around the side of my house, 

(still on the deck handrail).  

Then the male decided he quite liked my Bike's handlebars.

Brown Cuckoo-Dove - pair. Male on bike handlebar, female on post.

Both birds sat there quietly for some time, 

and then they spotted Lena (the dreaded "Attack-Schnauzer") 

who was going for a walk at the front of the house.

You could not find a more placid dog (and a more short-sighted one)

than Lena.

But the Brown Cuckoo-Doves didn't know that.

Hence the alert look on both of their "faces".

Lena wandered off on her walk, and the birds then relaxed.

This species is a regular bird around Robertson, but I have never had them perch around the house before. I hear them in the rainforest trees, and occasionally see them fly past. My friend George sometimes feeds grain to the wild birds at his place, and he gets them there as regular visitors. 

But George lives over on Fountaindale Road, and there is a subtle climatic and habitat difference between my street and his, on the next ridge east from here. Fountaindale Road is one ridge closer to the coast than my street. Therefore, they get slightly more fogs over there than I do, and probably 5 inches (125mm) more rain per year. Significantly, his road is lined with Lilly Pilly trees (Acmena smithii), which is a berry-producing tree. So the habitat suits these birds ever so slightly more than my place. 

My dominant trees are Blackwood Wattle and Sassafras. They are both dry seed producers, not berry producers. So my place is a better habitat for Wonga Pigeons than the Brown Cuckoo-Doves. 

Many people in Robertson do not realise that a difference of less than one kilometre can make a subtle, but significant difference in rainfall and climate - resulting in a habitat change. But the Pigeons of Robertson know the difference.

Tiny spotted-leg Assassin Bug, on Sundew

As yet I have been unable to get an ID on this little bug.*** DJW edit: My Aussie Nature Blog colleague Boobook  has come to my rescue - it is called a Drosera Bug.... Of course it would be called that! Many thanks Boobook.
All I know is that it is clearly an Assassin Bug. (Closely related, it seems, but not quite what I thought it was.) But on the few sites I have found so far which cover Australian Assassin Bugs, I have found nothing like it.

The first image is of the stem of a "Forked Sundew"  Drosera binata

This plant has fibres, each with a dot of glue and enzymes

with which it dissolves its insect prey.

Looking closely, you will see a bug with a red mark at the back of the head,

and spots along the wings.

What I first noticed was that this insect (just over 1 cm long)

was able to walk along this plant without getting caught by the sticky spots. 

It has long legs, holding itself above the sticky dots.

Presumably it is attracted to the Sundew in order to feed on smaller insects

trapped by the Sundew.

Click to enlarge the image.

A tiny spotted Assassin Bug (sp???)

Note the red colour of the insect, and its white legs, with red spots.

It is camouflaged with the red spots on the Sundew.

Click to enlarge the image.

This Assassin Bug uses its long legs to walk above the sticky dots of the Sundew.

 This is a closer image of the Assassin Bug's head.

Click the image to enlarge it.

Any help or suggestions would be welcomed - even giving me the name of an expert to whom I might refer this to would be appreciated.
DJW edit: Further to Boobook's name suggestion (above), there are far better photos of Drosera Bugs and also good information here, on Myrmician's Flickr Site.

I believe this is a Midge. The antennae are really prominent.

They look like a pair of fans spread widely.

This insect is fatally trapped by the plant.

You can see that a fresh insect like this would be perfect "prey"

for the Assassin Bug to simply walk up and 

drain the juices of the trapped insect.

Click to enlarge.

Midge (???) trapped on the Sundew.

PS: Can you find a better reason for linking with fellow Nature Bloggers?
My ID question was answered within hours. Thanks Boobook.

Fringed Midge Orchid - Corunastylis fimbriata

I was shown this plant the other day, by my new-found colleague who spotted the beautiful Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly.


It is easily enough recognised, as the Fringed Midge Orchid, Corunastylis fimbriata.

It is just coming into flower along Tourist Road, Kangaloon.

Corunastylis fimbriata

The flower stems are about 30 cm tall(approx 1 foot in the old money). The flowers are not large, unless you are comparing them with the other minuscule Corunastylis I have seen recently. Then this one is a giant - but only then.


The "labellum" is noticeably hairy, and the labellum is so lightly "hinged" that the labellum flutters in the breeze, or if you blow on it.

If you study the photo (click to enlarge it) you can see that the dorsal sepal is also hairy, and even the petals (on the side of the flower) are hairy too.
This contrasts with the recent photos of Corunastylis plumosa and C. sagittifera.

A bulldozer of the Insect World

I have a certain fascination with Weevils. The large ones, such as this specimen, are easy to see, and relatively slow moving, so they are photographable. Just.

This one would walk relatively quickly from any leaf or branch on which I put it. So I resorted to putting it on my hand. Even then, it walked straight off the edge of my hand. I let it go, because it was so determined to escape.

 This is a Black Leaf-rolling Weevil

Black Leaf-rolling Weevil.

What surprised me about this specimen was that it lacked the long "nose" which I associate with Weevils. This Weevil has a double line of special reinforcing on the short "rostrum". It is clearly built for heavy-duty work. The antennae, come out from the "rostrum" in typical Weevil fashion. But the rostrum is very short, and heavy, with mouth parts very prominent.

Click to enlarge the head, rostrum and mouth parts.

Rostrum and mouth parts of Black Leaf-rolling Weevil

Here is a more usual Weevil, with a long rostrum.

I don't know exactly what the Weevil on today's story (in the first two photos) does with the leaves it apparently rolls, but it strikes me as being built like a virtual "bulldozer". That is especially true when comparing this heavy built insect with the Butterfly, from yesterday.

Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly - in Kangaloon

This afternoon, I was down on Tourist Road, in Kangaloon, when I spotted a fellow sufferer - a person wandering along alone; looking at the ground; with a camera in hand.


Naturally we hit up a conversation, and shared some tips about what to see, where. Orchids, mostly, but also other things too. It's nice to share ideas and experiences.


Anyway, my colleague has sharper eyes than I do, and she spotted this wonderful Butterfly. Chequered Swallowtail  (Papilio demoleus)

Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly

It was remarkably tame, and allowed us to take many photographs.
Don Herbison-Evans comments: "Usually seen rapidly flying in one direction at a constant height, they only occasionally land, and catching one is a real thrill." So I consider myself lucky to get so close to this one.

Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly -  a lovely creature

 The Chew Family Brisbane Insects and Spiders site notes the lines on the abdomen of this Butterfly as distinctive. I was pleased to be able to get this image, from the side.

Abdomen of the Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly

Here one can see something of the underside of the Butterfly's wings. 

It was a large Butterfly, and it is related to the familiar Orchard Butterfly.

That ought give you some sense of the size.

Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly - underwings

Then when I returned home, I received an email from another friend and Orchid colleague, Kirsten, who had been to the Brindabella Ranges (beyond Canberra) last weekend. She had found the same Butterfly as I had just photographed.


Clearly, there is a seasonal factor which produced the result that two separate observers, several hundred kilometres apart, were able to approach this normally unapproachable Butterfly. The Butterflies do not read Don Herbison-Evans' website.

Kirsten's photo of the Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly

 This image by Kirsten shows the 

diagnostic "eye spot" which is yellow and blue.

The Chew Family describes it as a "peacock eye mark" on the underwing.

Kirsten's Chequered Swallowtail Butterfly on a Thistle plant.

This Butterfly is an international species.
I am not sure if it is introduced, or native with a wide distribution. Looks like it is naturally occurring, especially as Kirsten found it in the Brindabellas, and I found it in Kangaloon on native grass. There are few introduced Butterflies expected in either locality.

Stairway to Heaven is a left-handed spiral.

If there is a God, who designs the beautiful details of nature, then he is sinister creator.


"What's that?"

Spiranthes australis - a gorgeous jewel of an Orchid

Well, one of his most exquisite "creations" must surely be this little pink jewel of a flower - the "Ladies Tresses Orchid", Spiranthes australis.

But look at it in detail.

Spiranthes australis - has a left-handed twist

It might be a spiral "stairway to heaven", but it has a reverse twist - it ascends in an anti-clockwise direction. God must have been a left-hander.


Therefore, if he exists, he is, by definition, sinister.

A full stem of Spiranthes australis

Surely this is proof that God is a sinister being?

I contend that this obvious fact is suppressed, 
in a "Conspiracy of Silence",

as a result of collusion between 

the Botanical Scientists, the Music Industry and the Church.

*****

Footnotes to my outrageous syllogism.

A. "Stairway to Heaven": "Viewed literally, the stairway to heaven reference would seem to suggest a Biblical allusion to an actual ladder ascending to heaven. It is, after all, an often-used theme in literature and song,"

Jimmy Plant's song lyrics have been subject to much interpretation, but few will have been as outrageous as the foregoing syllogism.

B. "Sinister": "In the Middle Ages it was believed that when a person was writing with their left hand they were possessed by the Devil. (This was uncommon, particularly as there were fewer literate people). Left-handed people were therefore considered to be evil.

1. Threatening or portending evil, harm, or trouble; ominous: a sinister remark"

C. God. "God is most often conceived of as the supernatural creator and overseer of the universe."

D. Conspiracy of silence  "The expression conspiracy of silence, or culture of silence, relates to a condition or matter which is known to exist, but by tacit communal unspoken consensus is not talked about or acknowledged. Commonly such matters are considered culturally shameful."
E. Botanical silence. The Botanical authorities, make no reference to the anti-clockwise direction of the spiral of this plant genus. It is called "Spiranthes". Perhaps it ought have been called "Antihelicia" or "sinistrahelicia"?

E: Tongue-in-cheek:  "The ironic usage (of that term) originates with the idea of suppressed mirth — biting one's tongue to prevent an outburst of laughter."

The Tallong Midge Orchid.

Corunastylis plumosa, the Tallong Midge Orchid was in flower today. Actually we only found a single plant, but it is at least "a" record.
 

Tallong Midge Orchid - Corunastylis plumosa

The back story of this is that Alan Stephenson and I have been to the moss-covered rock shelves at Tallong each February and March since 2007, looking for the Tallong Midge Orchid. Each time we found other Corunastylis species, but not the elusive Corunastylis plumosa.


We felt that perhaps we had been too late (in those years). So this year, we decided to go to Tallong on the first weekend of February.

This plant has a very restricted distribution, being known only from these few hillsides in Tallong, these days. It was originally reported from Kurnell, in an area of coastal heathland. But Kurnell has been turned into Oil Refineries and houses.
Today the Tallong Midge Orchid is listed on the Endangered Species list of NSW as "critically endangered". It is listed as "Endangered" on the Federal Endangered Species list under the EPBC Act (under the old name, of Genoplesium plumosum). 
And so it ought be.

Today, at Tallong, the weather was stinking hot, probably 35 degrees, with a hot north-westerly wind blowing. After heavy showers over the last few evenings, it was very humid. With the weather "against us", and not being able to find any Midge Orchids at all, and felt very discouraged. 

Habitat of the Tallong Midge Orchid.

We decided to try looking in another patch of this low twiggy heath-shrubbery, across the road. 

Kunzea shrubbery.

As we walked down the hill, to cross to the opposite hillside, I suddenly spotted this purplish Midge Orchid. Instead of growing in under the Kunzea plants, as we were told they like to do, this plant was growing right out in the open, in a patch of moist grass.

Immediately we got out the 10 power hand lenses, with which to confirm the critical details of the flower anatomy, and to confirm the identification of this plant as the long-awaited Tallong Midge Orchid, not another species in that genus.

• it has a clean edge to the dorsal sepal (far left of image), not a ridge of stiff fibres.
• the labellum is heavily fringed, and is dark purple on top.
• the base colour of the plant is green, but it is heavily striped purple. It is considerably darker in overall appearance than the closely related Corunastylis sagittifera (which is primarily a yellow-green flower, with some darker elements). (Compare this image). C. plumosa is not as dark as some other species of Corunastylis.
• the lateral sepals are 'horn-shaped", as is its cousin, C. sagittifera.
• Alan measure the plant at 178mm, with the flower spike itself being about 25mm long.

Rear of flower - Corunastylis plumosa

This is my favourite image of this rare plant.

Corunastylis plumosa - the Tallong Midge Orchid.

This plant is so uncommon that, from a quick Internet Search I could only find two images of this species, taken by John Briggs, the Threatened Species Officer of DECCW, for the Southern Tablelands region. Hopefully after tonight, it will appear more easily from a Google Image Search.