By: Michael Fox
Autumn is a wonderful time for Bushcare. Beautiful cool days among the trees surrounded by bird song.
Jake found a Common Crow Euploea core butterfly caterpillar exploring the Coral Berry Rivina humilis weed he was removing. Common Crow caterpillars feed on a range of native and exotic plant species however Parsonsia vines are preferred. Male Common Crow butterflies scratch the leaves with their claws and collect pyrrolizidine alkaloid that are used in breeding and also provide protection: Golden Orb Weaver Spiders Nephila maculata release unharmed individuals high in alkaloids. (Orr and Kitching)
Wood eating fungi
It is great to see nature is working 24/7 to build on our Bushcare work. Larger woody weeds that are too big to pull out, like Indian Hawthorn Rhaphiolepis indica, are cut and poisoned leaving a stump. That is where nature takes over with fungi breaking down the dead timber.
Mount Gravatt Environment Group 