Mount Gravatt Environment Group

By: Michael Fox

One of my real pleasures with Bushcare is sighting wildlife to add to add to our Flora and Fauna of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve.

Today’s special find is a Swamp Wallaby Wallabia bicolor. For years I have been getting reports of wallabies in the Reserve and Roly Chapman Bushland Reserve across Klumpp Road. So it was a particular pleasure to sight this visitor this morning while doing Bushcare near our 2018 National Tree Day planting.

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See a small cloud of Dainty Swallowtails Papilio anactus doing a bit of speed dating in the sun above our National Tree Day planting was very special.

I had to wait patiently till this cute specimen decided to pose for me.

Dainty Swallowtail caterpillars like Orchard Swallowtail Papilio aegeus feed on our backyard citrus. So please be patient with your caterpillar friends who will only eat a few leaves and reward you with beautiful new butterflies to brighten your garden.

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One of the curious creatures we found is a Wattle Notodontid Moth Neola semiaurata caterpillar. When disturbed the caterpillar will “ferociously” react by raising its tail with its horn and eye patches.

The caterpillar was feeding on Large-leaf Hop Bush Dodonaea triquetra. The caterpillars also feed on Brisbane Fringed Wattle Acacia fimbriata at the same site.

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The Magpie Moth Nyctemera secundiana caterpillar is a useful weed controller feeding on invasive weeds like Climbing Groundsel Senecio scandens*. This specimen was doing useful Bushcare work feeding on Cobblers Pegs Bidens pilosa*.

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A Two-tailed Leaf Beetle Aproida balyi was also found feeding on Cobblers Pegs. An attractive bright grass-green with dark brown edges and characteristic horns.

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We stopped for a coffee at the Love Well Project after Bushcare. Above us a Channel-billed Cuckoo Scythrops novaehollandiae was screaming for food from its Torresian Crow Corvus orru “parent”.

Channel-billed Cuckoos lay their eggs in the nests of other species and depend on those birds to hatch and feed their chicks. In this case a pair of Torresian Crows are playing host to this chick that is already larger than its “parents”. The Crows average size: 50cm, while the Channel-billed Cuckoo has an average size of 62cm.