A giant dragon fly

While Chook- and dog-sitting at Bellthorpe this week, I saw this amazing dragonfly. Nowhere near water, it hung under a leaf on the path through the rainforest, and if it hadn’t moved when Gretchen Evans and I walked past, I wouldn’t have noticed it, as it blended so well into the background of sticks and leaves.

Others helped with identification, as I couldn’t find a similar image on the websites I usually consult. It is the Southern Giant Darner, Austrophlebia costalis, endemic to Australia. The wingspan was about 14 cm, and the body about 12 cm long.

Al Young says that the characteristics of this species are

• Its size – the largest in Queensland
• The eyes are in contact
• The leading edge of the wing has dark red numerous
  cross veins
• U-shaped white markings on the thorax
• Plain coloured abdomen

Apparently this species is not uncommon, and is usually seen hunting along fresh water streams. It is not endangered in any way. I was stunned by its size, and can only imagine with awe the huge dragonflies measuring up to 70 cm across which hunted along streams during the Carboniferous era, 300 million years ago.

(Article and photo by Glenda Walter)

THE MORETON BAY FIG TREE on HENRY STREET, TOOWOOMBA

The Moreton Bay fig tree at the east end of Henry Street, Toowoomba.

The two trees in the background are large Chinese elms

The Moreton Bay fig tree at the eastern end of Henry Street in Toowoomba is the finest specimen of its species in the city. The tree is on private Federal Defence Department land and should not be approached more closely than the gate, which anyway gives a very good view of the tree. The tree was planted by Eric Albury French of Toowoomba before he left to fight in the First World War, ‘to be remembered by’. Eric French became a Warrant Officer 2, fought in France, and returned safely from the war.

The tree is one hundred years old. The trunk is two to three metres thick, and the canopy is 27 metres wide and 24 metres tall.

Moreton Bay figs (aka Port Jackson figs in New South Wales) occur naturally along the east coast of Australia in wet and dry rainforest, and in south-east Queensland reach their furthest inland location along the Great Dividing Range. They are commonly massive and magnificent trees, typically with several short thick trunks arising from a wide spread of buttress roots. The trees generally develop low thick wide-spreading branches close to the ground and an immense rounded canopy of large leathery dark green leaves. Spherical green flowering bodies (syngonia) develop among the new leaves in spring, and ripen into edible mottled purplish fruits about two centimetres across in late summer.

The tiny seeds of Moreton Bay fig trees are spread by fruit-eating birds, bats and possums. They may either germinate in the ground (like this tree) or in the canopies of other trees, in which case they become strangler figs. The trees that develop from seeds that germinate in the ground vary considerably in form, sometimes with and sometimes without spreading buttress roots, some with single tall slender trunks, others with short thick trunks which branch into upward-spreading subsidiary trunks, and some growing into the more classical shape of this tree in Toowoomba.

Moreton Bay fig seedlings that germinate in the forks of other trees send down slender aerial roots to the ground which later thicken, branch and fuse together around the trunks of their host trees until they form such a tight outer layer that the host tree is eventually strangled and dies. Toowoomba’s climate is too dry for any of the native fig trees to develop prop roots descending from horizontal branches to the ground.

Moreton Bay fig trees are not only impressive and beautiful, but they are also very important sources of habitat and food for a wide range of local native fauna; they may also be hosts to epiphytic ferns and other plants. Whilst their leaves and fruits are consumed by a variety of insects and their dead wood by termites, their greatest ecological value is the ripe fruits which provide food for many species of native birds, bats and mammals, all of which spread their seeds.

Moreton Bay figs (and all other species of figs) have unique flower and fruiting bodies called syngonia. Syngonia are spherical, with an internal cavity lined with hundreds of minute male, female and sterile flowers. The cavity is connected to the outside by a narrow passageway lined with backward-pointing hairs. During the development of the syngonia tiny wasps which are specific to each species of fig enter them through the narrow passageway. Trapped inside, the wasps move around, mate, lay eggs on the sterile flowers and pollinate the female flowers (resulting in the seeds inside edible figs). The wasp grubs feed inside the ripening fruits then eat their way outwards, pupating under the skin before escaping as adults to seek out other developing syngonia to enter.

(Article by John Swarbrick)

Outings Report - Sunday 06 November, 2016

Dwyers Scrub                                                                                           (Report by Deb Ford)

Dwyers Scrub Conservation Park is on the eastern fall of the Great Dividing Range approximately 30 kilometres south-west of Gatton. The Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service brochure describes the park thus: ‘The area of semi-evergreen vine forest in the north-eastern corner has very high conservation values. The tall to very tall open forest and woodland communities occurring over the remainder of the park contain species of significance as well as providing habitat for animals.’ A biological assessment of the park has identified 335 different plant species through the different ecosystems.

The drive from Toowoomba, via Flagstone Creek, was accompanied by a ‘snow storm’ of Caper White butterflies (Belenois java). On arrival at our destination we found a cloud of these insects surrounding a completely defoliated tree – probably Capparis arborea – on which many pupae were visible on the underside of the bare branches. Albert Orr and Robert Kitching, on p. 155 of their book, The Butterflies of Australia, inform the reader that ‘males flutter around groups of pupae and mate with females soon after they emerge’.  This behaviour is probably what we were witnessing.

Eighteen Field Nats visited the endangered semi-evergreen vine forest in the north-eastern corner.  We met on the road that dissects the park from the north-west to the eastern boundary where we were joined by Paul Stevens and Ken Kennedy, volunteers from Lockyer Uplands Catchment Inc. (LUCI) who have been working to remove weeds from the vine forest. A daunting task indeed: Cat’s Claw Creeper (Macfadyena unguis-cati) and Madeira Vine (Anredera cordifolia) have smothered large areas of the canopy, and Lantana (Lantana camara) has invaded the under storey. It was heartening to see that where the canopy had been liberated from the clutches of the invasive vines new leaf is appearing, but the ground was carpeted with Madeira Vine seed-lings all waiting to re-colonise.

After inspecting a small part of the microphyll forest, Field Nats repaired to the home of local landowners, Peter and Elspeth Darvall, for morning tea. A generous spread had been laid on for us, which we enjoyed on their cool and comfortable verandah. The Darvalls moved their rustic home from Chinchilla, disassembling and numbering each piece, and re-erecting it in its present location. As well as volunteering in Dwyers Scrub, they also support the local flora and fauna through the Land for Wildlife program.

After leaving the Darvalls we travelled via East Egypt Road and Spinach Creek Road to reach our next hosts, Jim Kerr and Judy Whistler, at about noon. Jim and Judy’s property is located at some distance outside the southern boundary of Dwyers Scrub with Spinach Creek forming their northern boundary. A short walk afforded us a view north across the steep-sided creek gully to Dwyers Scrub, which could be seen on the summit of the opposite slope. Jim and Judy have fenced off the land leading down to the creek to aid regen-eration of vine scrub. The creek banks were badly eroded in the 2011 flood and extensive planting has also been undertaken for flood mitigation.

An unexpected treat, after a picnic lunch in the shade of Macadamia trees, was being able to view the beautiful art work of Jim and Judy’s friend, artist Irena Kobald. Irena creates and photographs beautiful, ephemeral designs using a palette of flowers, fruit, leaves, and stones, with a particular focus on the desert environment. 

Field Nats headed for home early in the afternoon, the general consensus being that it was too hot for further exploration.  Our thanks go to Dougal Johnston for organising the trip.

A small sample of plant species identified over the day:

Kennedy’s Road, en-route to Dwyers Scrub: Orange Flowered Mistletoe (Dendrophthoe glabrescens), Narrow-leaved Ironbark (Eucalyptus crebra), Silver-leaved Ironbark (Eucalyptus melanophloia).

Dwyers Scrub Conservation Park: Brush Coral Treee (Erythrina sp. Croftby), Chain Fruit (Alyxia ruscifolia), Currant Bush (Carissa ovata), King Orchid (Dendrobium speciosum), Leopard Ash (Flindersia collina), Red Ash/Soap Tree (Alphitonia excelsa), Robber Fern (Pyrrosia confluens), Rosewood (Acacia fasciculifera), Scrub Cherry (Exocarpos latifolius), Stiff Canthium (Psydrax buxifolia).

Jim & Judy’s property: Breynia (Breynia ooblongifolia), Native Holly (Alchornea ilicifolia), Red Kamala (Mallotus philippensis), White Cedar (Melia azedarach), White Fig (Ficus virens subsp. laceolata).

Fauna List (compiled by Al Young)

Bird List (Dwyer’s Scrub): Bar-shouldered Dove, Lewin’s Honeyeater, Eastern Yellow Robin, Eastern Whipbird, Grey Shrike-thrush, Cicadabird and Australasian Figbird.

 

Eastern Yellow Robin (Photo:Al Young)

Caper Female Whhite (Photo: Al Young)r

Bird List Other Areas (Stockyard Creek Road, Kennedy’s Road, East Egypt Road, Spinach Creek Road, Sawpit Gully Road.):

Crested Pigeon, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Pacific or Eastern Koel, Laughing Kookaburra, White-throated Gerygone, Lewin’s Honeyeater, Brown Honeyeater, Eastern Whipbird, Grey Shrike-thrush, Magpie Lark, Willie Wagtail, Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike, Olive-backed Oriole, Australasian Figbird, Pied Butcherbird, Grey Butcherbird, Australian Magpie, Pied Currawong and Torresian Crow.

Reptiles (Stockyard Creek Road): Common or Eastern Brown Snake (Pseudonaja textilis) (road kill) and Common or Eastern Bearded Dragon (Pogona barbata).

Mammals (Stockyard Creek Road): Red-necked Wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus) and Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor).

Butterflies (Dwyers Scrub CP). There was a profusion of Caper White Butterflies (Belenois java) in most areas during the outing, including Dwyers Scrub CP. The larvae feed mainly on Capparis spp and they will often de-foliate their host plants as was the case in Dwyers Scrub. A tree (Capparis sp?) near the road was almost completely de-foliated and there were numerous pupae, mostly on the underside of the defoliated branches.

 

Caper White pupae (close-up)

 

Caper White pupae on defoliated host tree 

 

 

 [Photos by Al Young]