January 2008
Wednesday, 30th January
Blue ants - Flower Wasps
This one is a strange beast. I've seen them around here a lot and have spotted them in the Blue Mountains (NSW) also.
The CSIRO Entimology department kindly identified it fo me as a species of Flower Wasp called Diamma bicolor, otherwise known as the 'Blue Ant'. Flower wasps include species in the families Scoliidae, Tiphiidae and Mutillidae and have flightless femails. Female Blue Ants hunt amongst the leaf litter for mole crickets, into which they lay their eggs. For more details see the Flower Wasp fact-sheet at the Australian Museum and the Blue Ants page at the the CSIRO.
They become very agitated when you approach, jumping and twitching angrily as they make a rapid retreat.
I also spotted another species of flower wasp today, but missed the pic. A large black male wirred up from the ground and landed on a leaf. It was a copulating with a flightless female. They were connected end-to end by the tips of their abdomens and the female just hung listlessly while the male flew her about.
Tuesday, 29th January
Gang Gang Cockatoos
Gang Gang Cockies often visit here, but usually they don't come close to the house. This cheeky pair dropped munched eucalyptus nuts all over my car.
Gang Gang Cockatoo (male)
Gang Gang Cockatoo (female)
Blue-tongue lizard
Blue-tongue Lizard
I've been noticing a suspicious lack of strawberries in the strawberry patch. Today I caught the culprit ... and relocated it to another paddock. He/she was about a foot long.
Friday, 11th January
Forest Raspy Cricket
According to the CSIRO department of Entemology , this is probably a Forest Raspy Cricket (Apotrechus unicolor) of the Gryllacrididae family.
It was an inch and a half long, and when I got close it reared up hissing and advanced toward me.
Thursday, 10th January
Hyacinth Orchid
Hyacinth Orchid
During high summer in the lowland forests and heathy woodlands of the Otways there aren't many plants in flower. The Hyacinth Orchid (Dipodium roseum) is the most spectacular exception, flowering from December through to April. This one is in the bush beside my bungalow. Apparently it has a tuber which was eaten by Aboriginal people.
It has no leaves and is a myco–heterotroph — obtaining its nutrition from a mycorrhizal fungus, which in turn obtains it from another plant. So as beautiful as it is, you have next to no chance of getting one to grow in your garden.
The host plant in this case is either Narrow-leaved peppermint (Eucalyptus radiata), Austral Grasstree (Xanthorea australis), Prickly Broom-heath (Monotoca scoparia), Prickly Tea-tree (Leptispermum continentale) or Heath Tea-tree (Leptospermum myrsinoides).
Monday, 5th January
Melanesia Beach
Melanesia and Joanna Beaches
I went walking along the otway coast between Melanesia and Joanna Beaches yesterday.
Wow, what an amazing coast! Unfortunately most of it is too scary to swim in. But on the bright side that means it isn't swamped with hordes of people.