WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society

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WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
WINTER Vol: 3/2018
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
Photos by Jessie Panazzolo

 Silvereye                   Purple-gaped honeyeater

Spotted dove                 Noisy miner

 Rainbow lorikeet
2                                                      Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
Contents
features                                                                                                                                   regulars
7       Into the chipper
        - Brendon Carrick                                                                                                                  5           From the President’s desk

11      Annoying insects
        - Suzanne Medway                                                                                                                   33          Book reviews

                                                                           7                                              22
18      Australia’s little and little-known
        adorable bees in the subfamily
        Euryglossinae
                                                                                                                                           32          UTS Scholarship

21      Australian wildlife heroes
        - Jessie Panazzolo
                                                                                                                                           34          Membership form

22      Timely quest for turtle
        conservation - Gemma Gillette

26      Balloons
        - Suzanne Medway                                              11                                                  26
28      Lord Howe Island - the
        woodhen

31      Platypus Alliance success
        - Suzanne Medway

                                                                                                                                           Suzanne Medway AM
                                                                                                                                           Editor, Australian Wildlife
                                                                      18                                                  28

                                                                      21                                                  31               Sabine Borgis
                                                                                                                                           Sub-Editor, Australian Wildlife

                                                          On the cover:

                                     WINTER Vol: 3/2018
                                                          Lucky Bay, Cape Le Grand National Park, Western Australia. In the past year alone, Australia welcomed around 8.8 million
                                                          international visitors who contributed $41.3 billion in spend. Of these visitors, approximately 5.5 million (about 68 percent
                                                          of international visitors) participated in some form of nature-based activity when they were in Australia. Tourism Australia says
                                                          they are actively involved in promoting the experiences that appeal to international visitors such as Australia’s world-class
                                                          natural beauty, but this does not extend to the protection and conservation of these areas as the responsibility of the sites
                                                          are with the various state and territory and federal government agencies that have responsibility for the natural environment.
                                                          The core principles of Ecotourism – apart from a nature-based focus – are: minimising environmental impacts, providing
                                                          benefits to local communities and (financially) supporting conservation projects and protected areas.
                                                          Tourism Australia advised that Australia’s world-class natural beauty is one of the key motivating reasons why international
                                                          visitors choose Australia over other destinations after ‘Safety & Security’ and ‘Value for Money’.

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                                                                                  3
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
Australian Wildlife
                                                                                                       is the official journal of the Australian Wildlife Society
                                                                                                         (Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia Limited).
                                                                                                  Founded in 1909, the Society is dedicated to the conservation
                                                                                                         of our unique Australian wildlife in all its forms.
                                                                                                         Print Post Approval No: PP243459/00117
           Conserving Australia’s Wildlife                                                                           ISSN 0155-266X
                    since 1909
                                                                                                                 Price $10 (for non-members)

            Membership                                                                   Contact                                                  Directors 2018
                Individual Members: $55                                                National Office                                                            Patron
                                                                                  Australian Wildlife Society
                  Family Members: $70                                                                                                             His Excellency General the Honourable
                                                                      (Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia Limited)
          (being husband, wife and children jointly)
                                                                                                                                                     Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd)
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                  (pensioner, student, child)                                    BRIGHTON LE SANDS NSW 2216                                                     President
                  E-mag Members: $30                                                    Tel: (02) 9556 1537
       (Australian Wildlife magazine will be distributed                                                                                                   Suzanne Medway AM
                                                                                     Email: info@wpsa.org.au
    via email as a pdf document - no hard copy of the
                                                                                 Accounts: accounts@aws.org.au                                Hon Secretary/Chief Executive Officer
                    magazine will be sent)
                                                                                  Editor “Australian Wildlife”:                                           Patrick W Medway AM
                Associate Members: $85
     (being schools or incorporated or unincorporated                                 suzanne@wpsa.org.au
                                                                                                                                                            Vice Presidents
        associations with a principal object related to                                 Website: aws.org.au
           conservation, nature study or education)                                                                                                Stephen Grabowski and Ken Mason
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             Add $40 for overseas postage
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             Three Year                                                                                                                                     Wayne Greenwood
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            Membership                                                                                                                                    Dr Clive Williams OAM
            Individual Members: $150
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          Add $100 for overseas postage                                                                                                  Vanessa Wilson - wildlife conservation and management

Notice to our members                                                                                   Our Mission
The Australian Wildlife Society (Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia Limited) is managed         The Australian Wildlife Society (Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia Limited) is an
and controlled by an elected board of ten volunteer directors. The Society is a registered              independent, voluntary, non-profit conservation organisation, formed in 1909, and
company limited by guarantee with ASIC and is responsible for complying with all its                    is committed to the preservation of Australia’s precious flora and fauna. We act as
regulations.                                                                                            a watchdog and provide advice to government agencies and institutions regarding
                                                                                                        environmental and conservation issues concerning all aspects of wildlife preservation.
Any member who might like to consider serving as a director of the Society is invited to                Our mission is to conserve Australia’s fauna and flora through education and
contact the national office for more details. The most important qualification to serving as a          involvement of the community. We are dedicated to the conservation of our unique
director is ‘a commitment to and love of Australian wildlife’.                                          Australian wildlife in all its forms through national environmental education programs,
The Society holds regular monthly meetings on the first Wednesday of each month in                      political lobbying, advocacy and hands on conservation work.
Sydney.
                                                                                                        Our Society has always known that a conservation battle is never really won until
The Editor would like to feature a member’s profile in the fortnightly email newsletter and             the victory is enshrined in legislation. We have always tried to convince politicians of
occasionally in our quarterly magazine. Members are invited to consider submitting a short              the necessity to include the preservation of Australia’s precious wildlife and its vital
article with a photograph for possible publication.                                                     conservation habitat in all their planning and environmental issues and discussions.

Articles and comments expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Editor, Society or members. Articles contributed from outside sources are included
for the reading enjoyment of members and to encourage discussion on different points of view.
Articles may be copied or quoted with appropriate attribution.

4                                                                                                                                                  Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
From the President’s desk
                               Suzanne Medway AM - President

         Did you know that there are over 30 million
         different species of insects on the planet,
         and they are just the ones that have been
         identified so far?

It is also estimated that insects make      recreation and tourism and 91 percent             up the remarkable scenery or engaging
up the most abundant biomass on             of them provide jobs.                             with our unique nature and wildlife
earth and, at any point in time, at least                                                     up close, visitors to Australia actively
ten quintillion insects are buzzing         With its vast and varied landscapes,
                                                                                              seek out our natural attractions and
and crawling around the planet. Now,        unique wildlife and white-sandy
                                                                                              participate in a variety of nature-based
that’s enough insects to bug anyone,        beaches, Australia is one of the most
                                                                                              activities.
but which insects bug you the most?         interesting continents in the world.
                                            From tropical islands to crocodiles,
Do you think that insects are nothing       sharks, and kangaroos, Australia is               Tourism is a major component of
more than a nuisance? Would you like        travel heaven!                                    the Australian economy. Tourism
the world to be free of these annoying                                                        Australia published an International
pests? Do you spray them, swat them,        Two out of three international visitors           Tourism Snapshot as at 30 September
or step on them at every opportunity?       to Australia enjoy our aquatic or                 2017. Australia welcomed 8.7 million
                                            coastal environments in some way –                international visitors as at the year
Before declaring war on every bug that      from scuba diving to simply going to              ending September 2017. These
crosses your path, why not try to learn     the beach and splashing about in the              visitors injected $41.2 billion into
something about their world? After          surf.                                             the Australian economy. Total
all, with a population that outnumbers                                                        international visitor spending in
humans by about 200 million to 1, you       Nature-based tourism forms a
                                            significant component of Australia’s              2017 was $41.2 billion.The Australian
can be sure that insects are here to                                                          Government estimates that by 2020,
stay!                                       visitor economy, ranking as one
                                            of the key motivating factors for                 the Australian tourism industry
On page 11 of this magazine is an           international visitors to visit our               should be worth up to $140 billion in
article on some of our most annoying        country. Australia’s combination                  expenditure. This growth will mainly
insects and why they are a vital part of    of a pristine natural environment                 be due to key emerging markets,
this planet’s ecology.                      inhabited by unique wildlife has                  including the China market, which is
                                            always been a key feature of Australia’s          estimated to be the most significant
Nature-based tourism                        tourism story and will continue to play           economic contributor to the Australian
I love travelling and wherever possible     a significant role. Whether it’s soaking          tourism industry by 2020.
try to learn as much about the native
wildlife of the country we are visiting.
I always hope to be lucky enough
to spot some species in their native
habitat.
Wildlife-based tourism is growing
rapidly worldwide as the number of
tourists continues to grow and we,
as travellers, seek out new and more
enriching personal experiences with
local cultures and wildlife.
The UN World Tourism Organisation
estimates that 7 percent of world
tourism relates to wildlife tourism,
growing annually at about 3 percent,
and much higher in some places, such
as UNESCO World Heritage sites. A
recent report shows that 93 percent
of all natural heritage sites support       Stokes Bay, Kangaroo Island. Photo: Tourism Australia

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                              5
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
There is one young lady who is doing               And now over 100 years later, our                  and Maritime Services and funding has
something about the impact tourism                 Society is again raising awareness on              been announced for protective wildlife
has on native wildlife. On page 21 of              the plight of koalas.                              fencing.
this magazine, learn about Jessie and
                                                   We were very excited to learn that                 The project has identified that there
what one person can do to encourage
                                                   there is a remnant population of koalas            is a healthy, expanding population of
positive and sustainable practices and
                                                   living on the outskirts of Sydney in               koalas in the region. The koalas north
to aid the conservation of local species
                                                   the south-west. In April 2016 the local            of Picton Rd from Wilton through
and communities. Jess believes we can
                                                   council commissioned a pilot study of              Appin to Campbelltown form the
discontinue supporting ventures which
                                                   koalas throughout Appin and Wilton.                largest disease-free population in New
supports the mistreatment of animals
                                                   Fifty-eight sites were surveyed by two             South Wales. Connected healthy
or environmental and community
                                                   wildlife ecologists, and eight koalas              corridors with safe road crossings
degradation. Upon realising this,
                                                   were found in a week. A koala was                  are critical to the survival of this
Jess’ conservation initiative ‘Heroic
                                                   found in every 15 hectares of habitat              population for generations to come.
Tourism’ was born.
                                                   surveyed, which indicates that there
Koalas and the Society                             could be more than 2,500 koalas in                 Wollondilly Council is requesting
                                                   habitats across the Wollondilly Shire.             a halt to any further progress of the
The first meeting of the Wildlife Life                                                                Wilton and Greater Macarthur growth
                                                   The result of this report was the
Preservation Society of Australia                                                                     areas until a comprehensive koala
                                                   foundation for the development of
Inc. (now named Australian Wildlife                                                                   plan of management is put in place for
                                                   the Wollondilly Koala Conservation
Society) was held at the offices of the                                                               South Western Sydney to protect New
                                                   Project, which is a working partnership
Royal Swedish Consulate on 11 May,                                                                    South Wales’ largest disease-free koala
                                                   between Wollondilly Shire Council,
1909. The koalas’ protection had been                                                                 population and their habitat that link
                                                   NSW Office of Environment and
one of the primary reasons for the                                                                    the Georges, Nepean, Cataract and
                                                   Heritage (OEH), University of Sydney’s
formation of the Society in 1909. It is                                                               Bargo Rivers.
                                                   Koala Health Hub, Conservation
of interest to note two of the matters
                                                   Volunteers Australia and Wollondilly
which occupied attention at this first                                                                The Australian Wildlife Society is
                                                   WIRES.
meeting. One was the necessity for                                                                    holding its annual ball on Saturday
protecting the rapidly disappearing                As part of the project, the partnership            7 July in the south-west region of
koala, and the other was a complaint               has been monitoring koala roadkill                 Sydney and has adopted the theme of
as to the use of potassium cyanide for             with several hotspots identified. This             the plight of koalas in the Wollondilly
killing marsupials.                                data has been provided to the Roads                Shire.

A dragonfly found in Frank Smith Park in Coromandel Valley, South Australia. Photo: Brendon Carrick

6                                                                                                            Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
Into the chipper
Brendon Carrick
As we know – and as has become all            extremely enjoyable. However, there         cockroaches, beetles, centipedes, and up
too clear to us – our actions, behaviours     are times at work that make me rather       to 20 geckos. I felt a bit down, knowing
and overall existence is a threat to the      disheartened and concerned. Last week       how all those creatures could have met
biodiversity, survival and wellbeing of       I was assigned to clear a dead eucalypt     their fate, but equally happy with the fact
wildlife on this planet.                      from a public bike track. When we           that I’d saved a bunch of them to pass
                                              arrived, we began bringing branches         on their genes and continue creating
In fact, just this year, scientists predict                                               offspring.
that nearly 60,000 species worldwide          and previously cut tree trunks over to
have already gone extinct. That’s an          the chipper. Because I’m extremely
                                                                                          The species seen here could be one
average of 150−200 species of plant,          curious and have always been one to
                                                                                          of three. It’s either a marbled gecko
insect, bird and mammal becoming              pull back the dead bark from a tree, I
                                                                                          (Christinus marmoratus), a variegated
extinct every 24 hours. Although              did so instinctively before chucking the
                                                                                          dtella (Gehyra variegata) or an eastern
extinction is a normal and fundamental        first log into the chipper. When I did,
                                                                                          tree dtella (Gehyra versicolor). These
part of life, human influence has now         a host of small creatures scurried away;
                                                                                          three species are extremely variable in
sped up this process 1,000 - 10,000           beetles, centipedes, a jumping spider
                                                                                          colour and patterning and are often
times what this rate was previously.          and two large geckos (like the one seen
                                                                                          unable to be differentiated from one
Unfortunately, here in Australia, the         here). Shocked, I quickly removed all       another based on appearance alone. The
rates are even worse than that of the         the animals I could and transferred them    University of Adelaide published a paper
global average.                               to a safe location. Genuinely rattled by    in the journal Molecular Phylogenetics
                                              the prospect of grinding up wildlife, the   and Evolution in 2013 which concluded
Australia’s extinction rate is higher than
                                              rest of my day consisted of scanning        that these geckos (the latter two of the
that of any other country. Thirty native
                                              over each branch, trunk and every piece     three) are two distinct types, as they were
mammals have become extinct since
                                              of bark I could rip off, to ensure no       originally thought to be a single species.
the settlement of the Europeans. In a
                                              creatures would be turned into garden       The two are, however, so genetically
global context, one out of three mammal
                                              mulch – even going as far as to stop        distinct, that visual analysis of their
extinctions in the last 400 years have
                                              my co-worker before he threw a huge         chromosomes alone is enough to reveal
occurred in Australia. Birds are also in
                                              log into the chipper. At the end of the     which species is which. All three geckos
danger, with 29 species going extinct
since settlement and over 100 becoming        day my tally of macro-sized creatures       are known to inhabit Queensland, the
endangered. Reptiles, amphibians,             included two adult female huntsman          Northern Territory, New South Wales,
insects, spiders and other invertebrate       spiders, countless Salticidae spiders,      Victoria and South Australia, where I
species are also disappearing at alarming     a trapdoor spider, a slater eater, native   found this guy.
rates.
Something significant needs to happen,
and it needs to happen now if we wish
our grandkids to be able to see the
world as we see it, and not one devoid
of animal and plant life. Although an
abstract concept, if this trend continues,
we and the wildlife on this planet will
all become extinct. Let us rejoice in the
time we have left with these creatures
and look into some of their stories.

This beautiful little fella (identified
as a male by his Hemipenal bulges),
along with his countless relatives,
were at the risk of being thrown into
an industrial wood chipper last week.
Sadly, many more met their fate that
day and will continue to. I currently
work for a company that specialises in
landscaping, gardening, public-space
cleaning, weeding and tree clearing. For
a nature lover like myself, I find working
outdoors in the bush around wildlife

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                            7
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
The Servaea incana jumping spider
                                                                                            takes advantage of the loose bark,
                                                                                            not only for protection from predators
                                                                                            and the harsh elements but as a nursery
                                                                                            for its young. When her offspring
                                                                                            emerge from their eggs, they too inhabit
                                                                                            the same tree as their ancestors, as will
                                                                                            their descendants for generations to
                                                                                            come. Like the jumping spider, the
                                                                                            huntsman will also utilise the bark, in
                                                                                            a way that ensures its colours have not
                                                                                            gone to waste. By camouflaging into his
                                                                                            surroundings, it becomes a fierce hunter.
                                                                                            Coupled with its flat body and very
                                                                                            quick demeanour, the huntsman is the
                                                                                            epitome of the perfect predator.

This ferocious, fearsome and                 from bushland to desert shrublands, and
frightening-looking beast is known as        is the most widely dispersed Missulena
the red-headed mouse spider (Missulena       species as the spiderlings are wind
occatoria). Imagine walking through          dispersed. Currently it’s thought that
the bush minding your own business           of 17 species existing within the genus
and having this fella spring out in front    Missulena, all but one are native to
of you bearing those massive fangs and       Australia. They usually prey on insects
striking redhead.                            and other spiders but have also been
                                             known to eat vertebrates such as small
This was a reality for my friend Kat, who    snakes, lizards and frogs. They also           This is ‘Seven’, the seven-legged
found him during a group rubbish clean-      have their own predators: centipedes,          huntsman. My girlfriend, Kelly, found
up in Watiparinga Gorge. Our spider          scorpions, parasitic wasps and                 her on a tree in our backyard. At this
friend was noticeably displeased with all    bandicoots. You might be curious as to         time, we had recently found a male of
the unwanted attention he was receiving,     why they’re called ‘mouse’ spiders. Well,      what looked to be of the same species
arching up and exposing his fangs as         it’s not clear, but as well as being alleged   and made a nice terrarium for him. We’d
if to tell us he wasn’t messing around.      eaters of mice and resembling mice in          been feeding him earwigs, flies, roaches
Male spiders of this species, however,       size, it’s thought that in lieu of digging     and slaters and he was living the life of a
are less harmful than their female           their own burrows, they’ll chase mice out      happy bachelor. We called him Gonzales
counterparts, who are known to produce       of burrows to save the time and effort. I      because he was speedy and didn’t
abundant amounts of an extremely toxic       know I wouldn’t stay and fight this guy        hesitate to pounce when there was food
venom – potentially rivalling that of the    or his massive girlfriend if I was a little    to be eaten. We decided to let Seven and
deadly funnel-web spider. Despite this,      mouse!                                         Gonzales meet, but this blind date was
only a small number of cases of serious                                                     less than ideal for these lovebirds. We
envenomation have been reported.             Many species cohabit within the same           awoke the following morning to find
Female spiders are also much larger than     niche. This means they share the same          Gonzales no longer with us, rolled up
the males with a very high level of sexual   food, space and nesting sites. Even            into a tidy little ball. Seven was looking
dimorphism exhibited. Females are also       species known to predate on each               plump and proud of herself and what
all black as opposed to varying colours in   other – such as this huntsman and              can only be assumed to be full of our old
males. It was thought initially that the     jumping spider – can be found living           friend, Gonzales. We let her free, back
two sexes were a different species until     harmoniously in the right conditions.          out into the wild (our backyard) and
they were seen many years later, mating      These two were both taking refuge under        come out five minutes later to discover
together. The species seen here is found     a piece of eucalypt bark in Laratinga          she was on her second course – a sweet
throughout South Australia, ranging          Wetlands, Mount Barker.                        dessert of European honey bee.

8                                                                                                  Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
With the common theme of large
                                                                                        females and tiny males throughout
                                                                                        this article, male readers might rejoice
                                                                                        in the fact that the males of this species
                                                                                        are the bigger ones. This is known as
This rather large spider is an             fire. The species name edulis literally
                                                                                        the bronze hopper (or the bronze Aussie
Australian golden orb weaver               translates to ‘edible’. The sheer size and
                                                                                        hopper, if you want to get all patriotic
(Nephila edulis). This species belongs     visibility of these spiders makes the
                                                                                        about it). Formally referred to as Helpis
to the Araneidae family and has a          fact they were the second Australian
                                                                                        minitabunda, it is an exceptionally rare
remarkably charming attribute. To          spider to be documented by a European
                                                                                        case in the world of spiders, where the
attract flies and other insects into her   naturalist more reasonable. Like the
                                                                                        females are usually the larger ones.
reach, she incorporates the smelly and     red-headed mouse spider, this species
                                                                                        Maybe this is because in this species
decaying remains of her past prey items    shows sexual dimorphism, the males
                                                                                        the males protect the nest during and
into her web. Once a prey item has been    of this species being almost invisibly
                                                                                        after the female lays her eggs. For
entangled, subdued and killed by the       small in comparison to the females.
                                                                                        reproduction to happen in the Salticidae
spider, it becomes the same thing that     It’s for this reason that the male must
                                           play it smart when attempting to mate,       world, the males must impress the
it was attracted to in the first place –                                                females with their often very complex
an odorous corpse whose purpose it is      having to wait for the female to be eating
                                           and distracted in order not to be eaten      and elaborate visual displays. Not only
to seduce other insects to their death.                                                 are the males often the glamorous ones
What may be a dark concept to us is        himself. In fact, the courtship between
                                           males and females of this species is         of the two (in this species the male
just everyday life for the golden orb                                                   possesses a set of elongated front legs
weaver. Because of the leftovers in the    almost exclusively initiated by an insect
                                           being trapped in the web. Talk about a       and vibrant head colours), but they
web, smaller species of spider will also                                                must also seduce the females with their
inhabit it. Known as kleptoparasites,      strange aphrodisiac! After mating and
                                           pregnancy are over, the female will lay an   sexy moves. They create vibrations,
these spiders have no adverse effects                                                   zigzagging dances and move their
                                           egg sack with, on average, 383 spiderlings
on the golden orb and are only there to                                                 limbs about in an orchestrated, often
                                           inside. The female only has to mate once
eat what’s left over. What’s even more                                                  seemingly choreographed fashion. The
                                           to produce multiple fertilised egg sacks
shocking is that due to the very strong                                                 males of this species are of no match,
                                           throughout her lifetime.
silk fibres of their web, the golden orb                                                looks-wise, to the peacock jumping
weaver spiders are sometime able to        This genus has been around for a long        spiders found in Western Australia.
catch small snakes, other reptiles and     time, with the largest spider fossil         Their visual beauty and large range
even small birds and bats. Species in      ever found thought to be a member,           of colours and complex courtship
the genus Nephila sure have an appetite,   excavated in China in 2011, dating back      behaviours have led scientists and
as do the indigenous people of New         to 165 million years ago. The scientists     entomologists to believe that jumping
Guinea, who will regularly eat these       who discovered her named the species         spiders have colour vision and eyesight
large spiders after roasting them over a   Nephila jurassica.                           comparable to our own.

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                          9
WINTER Vol: 3/2018 - Australian Wildlife Society
This dragonfly is known as
the Australian duskhawker
(Austrogynacantha heterogena). He
was found in the Mount Lofty Botanical
Gardens and demonstrated the fact
that dragonflies are very territorial.
This is an attribute which makes a
photographer’s job that much easier, as
they will often land in the same place
again and again. The male dragonflies
are territorial because the females prefer
a male who offers territory that will
ensure the survival and safe maturation
of her offspring. Things that make for
a good piece of dragonfly real estate
include clean, open water, certain types
of aquatic plants and areas that get direct
sunlight. This is because dragonflies,
like all insects, are cold-blooded and
require warmth from sunlight before
they can become active. Once the baby
dragonflies (nymphs) have hatched,
some species can remain in the water
for over a year, using gills to breathe and
feeding on other aquatic invertebrates,
small fish and even tadpoles. After
emerging from the water, they exist
for another month, spending most of
the time looking for a mate. When a
male dragonfly possesses a space that
another male desires, it is not a fight to
the death but an aerodynamic, nimble
and non-physical altercation where the
fastest and fittest individual will come
out supreme.

This beautiful common huntsman
lady was found, like a few of the other
creatures seen here in Watiparinga
gorge, in Adelaide. She was resting
on a piece of eucalypt bark looking
as though she’d been combined with
a kiwi fruit. Because the number of
species native to Australia is vast, often
it can be quite difficult to pinpoint the
exact species, due to the lack of accurate
documentation of these spiders.
Huntsmen have relatively long lifespans
in comparison to other spiders, with
some living for over two years. During
this time, they can have multiple sets of
offspring − often up to 200 spiderlings
at a time. Male spiders of the species
Heteropoda venatoria have recently been
discovered to make a sound when they
become aware of a female’s pheromones.
These sounds are called ‘stridulations’
and are the act of creating sound by          satisfying it is to the female, the higher   With every one of these creature’s
rubbing together certain body parts.          the likelihood of copulation. Even if she    populations declining since the
Among spiders of the genus Isopoda,           is uninterested, huntsman males are very     colonisation of Australia, I will leave you
the courtship is very long and involves       rarely attacked by the females, which        with a quote from Jane Goodall: “Only if
the male drumming his palps on the tree       happens to be a very common behaviour        we understand can we care. Only if we
trunk as a way of seducing the female.        seen in spiders. In fact, some species of    care will we help. Only if we help shall
The more complicated and rhythmically         huntsman live in large colonies.             all be saved.”

10                                                                                                Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
Blowfly

Annoying insects?
Suzanne Medway
I detest household bugs. Loathe             climate, the majority of insects are       plants. Gardeners love the big-eyed
them. There isn’t a word strong             located in the warm and moist tropics.     bug and praying mantis because
enough to describe how I feel about         Insects have adapted to a broad range      they control the size of certain insect
bugs in my home. That hatred                of habitats, successfully finding their    populations, such as aphids and
provokes guilt because I fancy myself       niche, because they will eat almost any    caterpillars, which feed on new plant
an environmentalist. As such, I’m           substance that has nutritional value.      growth. Finally, all insects fertilise
supposed to feel a kinship with all                                                    the soil with the nutrients from their
creatures.                                  Insects are crucial components of          droppings.
                                            many ecosystems, where they perform
Many insects are considered to be pests     many important functions. They             Economic Importance
by humans. However, insects are also        aerate the soil, pollinate blossoms,
very important for numerous reasons.        and control insect and plant pests.        Insects have tremendous economic
A brief look at just a few of the reasons   Many insects, especially beetles, are      importance. Some insects produce
these amazing creatures are essential       scavengers, feeding on dead animals        useful substances, such as honey, wax,
to life on Earth might well convince        and fallen trees, thereby recycling        lacquer, and silk. Humans have raised
you (and me) that insects deserve our       nutrients back into the soil. As           honeybees for thousands of years for
respect.                                    decomposers, insects help create           honey. The silkworm significantly
                                            topsoil, the nutrient rich layer of soil   affected human history. When the
Ecological Importance                       that helps plants grow. Burrowing          Chinese used worms to develop silk,
                                            bugs, such as ants and beetles, dig        the silk trade connected China to the
Insects can be found in every               tunnels that provide channels for          rest of the world. Adult insects, such
environment on Earth. While a select        water, benefiting plants. Bees, wasps,     as crickets, as well as insect larvae, are
few insects live in the harsh Arctic        butterflies and ants pollinate flowering   also commonly used as fishing bait.

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                          11
Insects as Food                                tiny bits.                                  love for that particular insect.

Insects, of course, are sometimes eaten        Some insects can perceive ultraviolet       Who hasn’t had an encounter with
by people, but they are the sole food          light, which is invisible to humans.        a mosquito? From the backwoods
source for many amphibians, reptiles,          Thus, what looks to us like a dull          to our backyards, mosquitoes seem
birds and mammals, making their                white butterfly is anything but dull        determined to make us miserable.
roles in food chains and food webs             to the male butterfly. Indeed, when         Besides disliking their painful bites,
extremely important. It is possible            seen in ultraviolet light, the female       mosquitoes concern us as vectors
that food webs could collapse if insect        has attractive patterns that are ideal      of diseases, from West Nile virus to
populations decline.                           for grabbing the attention of courting      malaria.
                                               males and also helps them see some
In some parts of the world, insects are        patterns on flowers invisible to the        It’s easy to recognise a mosquito when
used for food by humans. Insects are           human eye.                                  it lands on your arm and bites you.
a rich source of protein, vitamins and                                                     Most people don’t take a close look at
minerals, and are prized as delicacies         The eyes of many insects serve as a         this insect, tending instead to slap it
in many Third-World countries. In              compass. Bees and wasps, for instance,      the moment it bites.
fact, it is difficult to find an insect that   can detect the plane of polarised
is not eaten in one form or another                                                        Mosquitoes belong to the order
                                               light, enabling them to locate the
by people. Among the most popular                                                          Diptera, suborder Nematocera – true
                                               sun’s position in the sky – even when
are cicadas, locusts, mantises, grubs,                                                     flies with long antennae. Mosquito
                                               clouds hide it. Thanks to this ability,
caterpillars, crickets, ants, and wasps.                                                   antennae have six or more segments.
                                               these insects can forage far from their
Many people support this idea to                                                           The male’s antennae are quite
                                               nests and still find their way home
provide a source of protein in human                                                       plumose, providing lots of surface area
                                               unerringly.
nutrition. From South America to                                                           for detecting female mates. Female
Japan, people eat roasted insects, such        On the other hand, there are also           antennae are short-haired. Mosquito
as grasshoppers or beetles.                    some insect species that are incredibly     wings have scales along the veins and
                                               annoying, destroying our food, causing      the margins. The mouthparts – a long
Insects in medicine                            painful stings, transmitting diseases, or   proboscis – allow the adult mosquito
                                               making unbearable noises.                   to drink nectar, and in the case of the
Insects have also been used in                                                             female, blood.
medicine. In the past, fly larvae              Mosquitoes
(maggots) were used to treat wounds                                                        If mosquitoes disappeared from Earth,
to prevent or stop gangrene. Infection                                                     fish, frogs, lizards, spiders and other
of dead flesh causes gangrene.                                                             animals that eat mosquito larvae or
Maggots only eat dead flesh, so when                                                       adult mosquitoes would lose a food
they are placed on the dead flesh of                                                       source. Mosquitoes make up a small
humans, they clean the wound and can                                                       part of the diet of some, but others,
prevent infection. Some hospitals still                                                    like the mosquito fish or gambusia,
use this type of treatment.                                                                which specialises in eating the
                                                                                           larvae, might become extinct. But
Masters of flight, marvels of                                                              most animals already eat enough of
sight                                                                                      something else or could change their
Many insects are masters of flight.                                                        diet so that they wouldn’t go hungry
Consider some examples. Mosquitoes                                                         without mosquitoes.
can fly upside down. Some can even                                                         Mosquito larvae consume a lot of
fly through the rain without getting                                                       organic matter in wetlands, helping
wet – yes, actually dodging the                                                            recycle nutrients back into the
raindrops! Some tropical wasps and                                                         ecosystem, but other larvae and water-
bees buzz around at speeds of up to 72          Mosquito
                                                                                           dwelling creatures also do the same
km per hour. One monarch butterfly                                                         and could take over that job.
                                               Mosquitoes seem to serve no purpose
of North America logged 3,010 km on
                                               other than to annoy us. But from
its migration flight. Hoverflies can                                                       Adult mosquitoes feed on nectar as
                                               the mosquitoes’ point of view, their
beat their wings more than a thousand                                                      well as blood – in fact, nectar is all the
                                               purpose is to make more mosquitoes.
times per second – much faster than                                                        adult males eat – so some plants might
hummingbirds. Dragonflies can fly              But does the world need mosquitoes?         suffer due to lack of pollinators if
backwards, a fact that has stimulated                                                      mosquitoes stopped visiting. Though
the curiosity – and close study – of           For birds, fishes, frogs and other          this might alter things somewhat, the
researchers.                                   animals that eat them, their purpose is     plants aren’t necessarily crucial to the
                                               to provide a source of food.                ecosystem.
If you have ever tried to swat a fly,
you know that these insects have               Even the most avid insect-lover will        The most significant effect is that
exceptionally keen eyesight, which is          slap a mosquito without thinking            fewer people would die of mosquito-
coupled with a reflex that is ten times        twice. Sure, they all have a place in       spread diseases, so there would be
quicker than ours. Interestingly, the          the bigger scheme of things, but some       more humans on the Earth, especially
fly has a compound eye, containing             insects can be annoying. If it buzzes in    in countries that are already having
thousands of six-sided lenses, each of         your ears incessantly, persists in biting   trouble supporting their populations.
which works independently. Likely,             you, or takes up residence in your          But humans would be healthier, more
then, the fly’s view is broken up into         home, you’re probably not feeling the       productive, and not have to spend so

12                                                                                                Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
much time and effort caring for those        their animal host, meaning if your dog       are tiny enough to pass through the
who are sick.                                or cat has adult fleas living in its fur,    apertures in typical window screens.
                                             those adult fleas are doing their best to
So even though mosquitoes don’t seem         keep him infested with their offspring.      Sandflies, like other blood-feeding
to have a purpose other than to cause                                                     insects, are an essential part of the
us annoyance and misery, we can’t            Flea eggs, however, aren’t particularly      environment. They’re food for a lot of
just get rid of them right now without       sticky or well-suited for staying put, so    animals, and they help regulate animal
doing more harm to other species that        they mostly roll off your pet and land       populations.
are more useful.                             in a dog bed or on the carpet.
                                                                                          Flies
Fleas                                        Fleas lay a lot of eggs. Without
                                             intervention, a few fleas on your cat or
Fleas have (literally) plagued
                                             dog can quickly become a maddening
humankind for centuries, but how
                                             flea infestation that feels impossible to
much do you know about these
                                             defeat. That’s because fleas, like bed
common insects?
                                             bugs and other bloodsucking pests,
In a broad sense, fleas, like all species,   will multiply quickly once they’ve
simply fulfilled an available ecological     found a suitable host animal. A single
niche. It’s believed fleas were once         adult flea can lay 50 eggs per day if it’s
free-living, flying insects. Then they       well fed on an animal’s blood, and in
started living in the dens of small          its short lifespan can produce 2,000         Eye of a fly
mammals, feeding on the debris               eggs.
there. Eventually, they started feeding                                                   Flies (order Diptera) form one of
directly on the animal. They lost their      Fleas prefer humid environments, so          the five most diverse insect orders,
wings as they were no longer necessary.      anything you can do to dry out the air       including about 150,000 described
                                             in your home will help you win the           species in 150 families. It’s estimated
All organisms, including fleas, are part     battle against these bloodthirsty pests.     that there are 30,000 species of fly in
of the food chain. Whether animals,                                                       Australia, of which only 6,400 have
micro-organisms or fungi consume             Biting midges
                                                                                          been described.
them, they help keep nutrients flowing       Ceratopogonidae, or biting midges, are
through the system of life.                                                               Flies can be distinguished from other
                                             a family of small flies about the size of
                                                                                          insects because they have only one pair
Blood-sucking parasites are vectors          a pinhead. They are well-known for
                                                                                          of functional wings. Almost all flies
for pathogens. They may help spread          the severe reaction that some people
                                                                                          have mouthparts that are adapted for
disease to re-balance populations that       have to their bites. Often they are
                                                                                          lapping or piercing and sucking. A
are out of control.                          incorrectly referred to as sandflies.
                                                                                          significant component of the world’s
                                             More than 200 species of biting midges
Fleas are infamous for their role in                                                      fly fauna is unique to Australia. Flies
                                             are found across Australia, but only a
transmitting the Black Death. During                                                      are found everywhere and often
                                             few cause a severe nuisance to humans.
the Middle Ages, tens of millions of                                                      abundantly in Australian terrestrial
                                             Biting midges may attack exposed
people died of the plague, or Black                                                       ecosystems.
                                             skin in large numbers, and their bites
Death, as it spread across Asia and          can be irritating and painful. Only          They perform important ecological
Europe. Cities were particularly hard        the females bite, using the blood they       functions such as nutrient recycling,
hit. London lost 20 percent of its           obtain as a protein source to develop        predation and pollination, and their
population to the plague in just two         their eggs.                                  larvae are often parasitoids of other
years during the mid-1600s.                                                               insects.
                                             These annoying insects are found in
It wasn’t until the dawn of the 20th         almost any aquatic or semiaquatic            Many species of fly are regarded as
century, however, that we identified         habitat throughout the world, as well        a nuisance, including the bush fly,
the cause of the plague – a bacterium        as in mountain areas. Females of most        mosquitoes, sandflies and blackflies.
called Yersinia pestis. What does            species are adapted to suck blood from
this have to do with fleas? Fleas carry      some host animal for reproduction.
the plague bacteria and transmit
them to humans. An outbreak of the           The bite of midges in the genus
plague often kills a large number of         Culicoides causes an allergic
rodents, particularly rats, and those        response. In humans, their bites can
bloodthirsty, plague-infected fleas          cause intensely itchy, red welts that
are forced to find a new food source –       can persist for more than a week.
humans. And the plague isn’t a disease       Biting midges use highly specialised
of the past, either. We’re fortunate         mouthparts to grasp your skin,
to live in an age when antibiotics and       puncture a hole in you, spit some
good sanitation practices keep plague        saliva into the wound, and feed on
deaths to a minimum.                         your blood. The discomfort arises
                                             from a localised allergic reaction to
Fleas lay their eggs on other animals,       the proteins in their saliva, which can
not in your carpet. A common                 be somewhat alleviated by topical
misunderstanding about fleas is that         antihistamines.
they lay their eggs in your carpeting
and furniture. Fleas lay their eggs on       The smaller members of the family            Sandfly

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                             13
Biting flies include horse flies, deer
flies, and other members of the
Tabanidae family. Biting flies feed
on mammal blood, usually during
the daylight hours, which is precisely
when you are likely to be outdoors
enjoying yourself. Repellents do little
or nothing to stop their feasting since
flies primarily use visual clues to find
their targets.
Flies are responsible for the
transmission of a wide variety of
disease-causing micro-organisms in
humans and animals. Most of these
diseases are absent from Australia,
with exceptions such as dengue fever
and some types of encephalitis.
House flies are one of the most
common insects on the planet. They
breed and feed in filth, including
garbage, faeces, and rotting or spoiled
food. Poor sanitation and ripped
screens and unsealed cracks in
windows and doors can lead to house
fly infestations.
Ants
Ask any insect enthusiast how they
became so interested in bugs, and
they’ll probably mention childhood
hours spent watching ants. There’s
something fascinating about social
insects, especially ones as diverse and
evolved as ants, the family Formicidae
(order Hymenoptera).
Ants thrive throughout the world,
living everywhere except Antarctica,
Greenland, Iceland, and a few isolated
islands. Most ants live underground or
in dead or decaying wood. Scientists
have described nearly 9,000 species of
formicids.
                                           Fire ant
Ants play an important role in the
environment. Ants turn and aerate          and male reproductives, called            also feed on nectar or honeydew, the
the soil, allowing water and oxygen        alates. Winged queens and males           sweet substance exuded by aphids, and
to reach plant roots. Ants take            fly in swarms to mate. Once mated,        they often tend aphid colonies. Some
seeds down into their nest to eat the      queens lose their wings and establish     ants garden, using gathered leaf bits to
nutritious elaiosomes that are part of     a new nest site; males die. Workers       grow fungus in their nests.
the seed. These seeds often sprout and     tend to the colony’s offspring, even
grow new plants (seed dispersal).          rescuing the pupae should the nest be     The complete metamorphosis of an
                                           disturbed. The all female workforce       ant may take from six weeks to two
It’s easy to recognise ants, with narrow                                             months.
                                           also gathers food, constructs the nest,
waists, bulbous abdomens, and
                                           and keeps the colony clean.
elbowed antennae. In most cases,                                                     There are 1,300 ant species known in
when you observe ants, you are only        Ants perform important tasks in the       Australia, but there are relatively few
seeing the workers, all of which are       ecosystems where they live. Formicids     that we commonly see as pests. These
female.                                    turn and aerate the soil, disperse        include the Argentine ant, black house
Ants live underground, in dead wood,       seeds, and aid in pollination. Some       ant, bull ant, carpenter ant, coastal
or sometimes in plant cavities. Most       ants defend their plant partners from     brown ant, flying ant, fire ant, garden
ants are black, brown, tan, or red.        attacks by herbivores.                    ant and ghost ant. Some people can
                                                                                     become allergic to Jack jumper ant
All ants are social insects. With few      Feeding habits vary in the ant family.    stings, and this has become the subject
exceptions, ant colonies divide labour     Most ants prey on small insects or        of medical research in Tasmania to
between sterile workers, queens,           scavenge bits of dead organisms. Many     develop a desensitisation program.

14                                                                                          Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
Bed bugs                                   its way into your home.                     brown. Australian cockroaches are
                                                                                       larger and brown overall. American
                                           Adult bed bugs live about ten months,       cockroaches are large and black.
                                           though some may live substantially
                                           longer.                                     The mere mention of cockroaches
                                                                                       brings about a strong reaction in many
                                           Bed bugs locate their warm-blooded          people. However, the fast-moving,
                                           hosts by detecting exhaled carbon           shiny, black or brown cockroaches
                                           dioxide. The hungry pests can also          commonly encountered by people
                                           sense warmth and moisture from the          in their homes are almost never
                                           bodies of potential victims. Once the       native Australian cockroaches, but
                                           bed bug pierces the skin of a human         introduced pests.
                                           or another host, it injects salivary
Bed bug
                                           fluid to prevent blood from clotting        The reality in Australia is that none
A pest of the past? Not anymore. Bed       as it drinks. This fluid may cause an       of the 400 or so native species is a
bugs are making a comeback. People         itchy, allergic reaction on the skin of     serious pest. Native cockroaches are
associate this biting pest with filthy     the victim. Bed bugs have a habit of        an important part of the food web in
living conditions, but bed bugs are just   leaving several bites in a line along       many natural habitats, being eaten
as likely to live in clean, uncluttered    their host.                                 by invertebrates as well as mammals,
homes.                                                                                 frogs and reptiles. To repel predators,
                                           Bed bugs hide in the folds, crevices,       some species produce a pungent smell.
Increasing numbers of bed bug              and seams of upholstered furniture          Some of the wood-eating cockroaches
infestations have been reported in         and mattresses.                             also play an important role as
Australia, often in accommodation                                                      decomposers.
venues such as backpackers’ hostels        They depend on humans, pets, or other
and motels. Bed bugs can be                animals for their food, so a suitable
                                                                                       Because cockroaches eat a wide range
transported long distances in the          host must be available for regular
                                                                                       of food, including rotting garbage,
seams of clothing, luggage, bedding        blood meals. Once these pests find a
                                                                                       it is believed that they spread some
and furniture. Adult bugs can survive      meal ticket, they move in for good.
                                                                                       diseases to humans including
more than a year without a blood meal.     But why do we need bed bugs? Some           salmonella and gastroenteritis. The
                                           species of ants feed on bed bugs, as        cockroach can also harbour viruses
The adult bed bug is oval, flat and                                                    such as the poliovirus. Recent studies
                                           do a few spiders. Some entomologists
only about 6 mm long. Bed bugs                                                         have indicated cockroaches can also
                                           agree that, if they could, they would
lack wings, so you won’t see them                                                      cause allergies.
                                           wave a magic wand and eliminate bed
flying around your bedroom. They
                                           bugs.
use a proboscis to penetrate the skin                                                  Like the household fly, the cockroach
of their host. Adults are brown, but       Cockroaches                                 will eat virtually anything ranging
appear reddish-brown when engorged                                                     from food spills on a kitchen floor to
with blood. Young bed bugs look like                                                   faecal matter. Ingested bacteria can
smaller versions of their parents. First                                               survive in the cockroach’s digestive
stage nymphs are colourless; with each                                                 system, sometimes for months or even
moult, the nymph darkens. White                                                        years, and are passed in its droppings.
eggs measure less than 1 mm in length                                                  Cockroaches will vomit and defecate
and may be laid singly or in clusters of                                               on food, and it is thought that disease
up to 50 eggs.                                                                         may be transmitted to humans when
                                           Cockroach                                   humans eat food contaminated by
Although you won’t usually see bed                                                     cockroaches.
bug activity during daylight hours, you    Cockroaches are an ancient group,
may see other signs of bed bugs. As        having remained relatively unchanged        Recent research suggests that the
nymphs moult, they leave behind their      for hundreds of millions of years.          cockroach may also be associated with
shedding skin, which accumulates           They have a flattened body, long            human allergies.
as the population rises. Bed bug           antennae and bristly legs. They have
excrement appears as dark spots, and       specialised sensors called ‘cerci’ (which   A cockroach infestation can be treated
crushed bed bugs will leave bloody         are like rear-mounted antennae) that        with a combination of good hygiene
marks on bed linens.                       make them acutely aware of their            practices and insecticide.
                                           surroundings. Any sign of danger            A female cockroach lays between 10
Bed bugs feed on the blood of warm-        sends them scuttling away.
blooded animals. They usually feed                                                     and 40 eggs at a time. On average,
at night, often on people asleep in        There are around 4,000 species of           the female can lay around 30 batches
bed and unaware of the insects biting      cockroach worldwide and about 450           of eggs in her lifetime. The hatched
them.                                      species in Australia, but very few          young look the same as adult
                                           are pests. The three main types of          cockroaches, but smaller and without
A few bed bugs can become a massive        cockroaches commonly found in               wings. Depending on the conditions
infestation quickly. One female            homes and businesses in Australia           and species, a cockroach can live for
bed bug may produce up to 500              include the German cockroach,               up to 12 months. These insects thrive
offspring during its lifetime, and three   Australian cockroach and American           in warm, humid conditions. This is
generations can live per year. Imagine     cockroach.                                  why buildings in the northern parts
how many bed bugs you’d have in a                                                      of Australia are particularly prone to
year if just one reproductive pair finds   German cockroaches are small and            infestations.

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                     15
Cockroaches prefer to live in kitchens      on the host, ticks crawl upward on
and other food preparation areas so         the host’s body looking for a place to
they can feed off food spills and have      attack.
access to water. Hiding spots for the
household cockroach include cracks          Ticks have four distinct stages of
in walls; confined spaces, such as          development: egg – larva – nymph
behind the refrigerator; in a pantry        – adult. Larvae, nymphs and adult
or underneath a stack of magazines,         females must have a blood meal from a
newspapers or cardboard boxes; any          host. After the blood meal, larvae and
furniture items that are generally left     nymphs drop off the host and rest in
undisturbed; kitchen cupboards; below       the environment as they develop into
sinks; around water heaters; in drains      the next stage; adult females drop off
and grease traps, and in gardens.           the host and lay eggs. The whole cycle
                                            usually takes about a year.                Mud-nest wasp
Ticks
                                            Though it might be hard to see from        Ten of the species, the social native
                                            our perspective as a blood host, ticks     bees of the genera Tetragonula and
                                            do serve an important role in the          Austroplebeia, have no sting. Of the
                                            ecological system. Every organism          remainder, which live solitary lives,
                                            serves a purpose, and the lowly tick is    none are aggressive, and most cannot
                                            no exception.                              use their sting on humans because
                                            So, why do we need ticks? First,           they are too small to do so. Larger
                                            and perhaps most apparent, ticks           examples of Australian native bee
                                            are food for other animals. Reptiles,      are capable of stinging if handled or
                                            amphibians and birds all consume           squashed.
                                            ticks in quantity. They are an essential   The stings of most Australian native
                                            food source for animals that forage        species of bee will cause relatively
Tick
                                            for sustenance in the places where         minor discomfort to most people – and
                                            ticks live (which is almost everywhere,    last only a few minutes. However, they
Ticks are actually not in the class
                                            really).                                   may sting more than once and can
Insecta but Arachnida, subclass Acari
(mites and ticks), so they are more                                                    cause an allergic reaction – increasing
                                            Second – and this may not help
closely related to spiders.                                                            effect associated with repeated
                                            ticks gain your support – ticks host a
                                                                                       exposure to the antigen.
Ticks are bloodsucking parasites.           remarkable variety of other organisms,
There are at least 74 species of ticks      namely micro-parasites. Ticks carry        Australian native bees do produce
in Australia, but only a handful of         viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and other     honey, but not much as they are
these are known to bite people. In          microscopic life wherever they go.         relatively primitive bee species. In
the humid coastal region of eastern         While we’d prefer that they didn’t,        cool-climate areas of Australia, all the
Australia, almost all tick bites on         since many of these stowaways are the      honey the bees produce is needed by
people are from the Australian              very source of our tick-borne illnesses,   the swarm to live through winter.
paralysis tick, which is considered         in the grand, ecological scheme of
the most medically important. It            things these micro-organisms are part      Collecting honey from Australian
can cause paralysis by injecting            of the diversity of life on Earth.         native bee nests can cause many of
neurotoxins into its host. It is usually                                               the bees to drown in spilt honey. The
                                            And third, by virtue of their blood-       honey is tangy in comparison with
found in a 20-kilometre wide band           draining and disease-causing ways,
following the eastern coastline of                                                     commercial honey taken from the
                                            ticks help control the populations of      European honey bee. The bees store
Australia. Within this range, the tick      their larger hosts. We understand
is most frequently encountered by                                                      their honey in small resinous pots
                                            concepts like carrying capacity and        which look like bunches of grapes.
humans and their pets. As this area         population control when we study
also contains the majority of Australia’s   predator−prey relationships, but we are    The different species of Australian
most densely populated regions,             less sympathetic to the tiny parasites     native bee have different habits and
incidents of bites on people, pets          that serve the same purpose.               preferences in gathering pollen, so
and livestock are relatively common.                                                   some species are better pollinators of a
Paralysis ticks are found in many           Don’t hate the ticks; they’re just doing   given plant than other species.
types of habitat, particularly in areas     what they’ve been doing for tens of
of high rainfall. The natural hosts         millions of years. If you don’t want       Bees perform a task that is vital to the
for the paralysis tick include koalas,      them feeding on you, be sure to take       survival of agriculture: pollination.
bandicoots, possums, kangaroos and          precautions to avoid tick bites.           In fact, one-third of our global food
reptiles.                                                                              supply is pollinated by bees. Simply
                                            Bees and Wasps                             put, bees keep plants and crops alive.
Ticks occur in moist, bushy areas.                                                     We need good, clean food, and so do
Eggs are typically laid in leaf litter or   Australia has over 1,500 species of        our pollinators.
mulch. Ticks are not very mobile;           native bee. Bees collect pollen from
larvae, nymphs and adults climb onto        flowers to feed their young. Wasps and     Australia’s early European settlers
the grass and the foliage of low bushes     flies do not do this, although they may    introduced European honey bees
where they wait for passing hosts           be seen eating pollen, so identification   to ensure a good supply of honey.
(animals or people) to feed on. Once        is not always easy.                        Naturally a few escaped and they

16                                                                                            Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018
Blue banded bee

are now wild throughout most of              many black, yellow and orange               In early summer wasps, like bees,
Australia’s southern states. Honey           combinations to give a warning that         pollinate plants and flowers as they
bees play an important role as               it possesses a potent sting and you         feed on nectar. If we were to eradicate
pollinators of crops and wildflowers.        should avoid it. Interestingly, only        all wasps, it would cause more
But some wildflowers have suffered           the females have a sting, and the           problems than it would solve. So,
from the presence of honey bees as           wasps have no branched or plumose           wasps do serve a purpose, and despite
native bees can only pollinate these         hairs on any part of their body. The        being a problem at certain times of the
flowers. Some native bees use a unique       family Vespidae contains 324 species        year, they are a beneficial insect.
pollination technique required by            of mostly social wasps and is the
certain flowers called buzz pollination.     best-known group as it includes most         But European wasps, for example,
Honey bees do not use this technique         major stinging pest species. Wasps          are threatening the survival of the
and remove pollen without pollinating        live in large colonies underground or       endangered ptunarra brown butterfly,
the flowers.                                 cavities in trees and buildings. Nests      endemic to Tasmania and restricted
                                             consist of a paper comb and envelope        to subalpine tussock grasslands. The
Honey bees defend their nest                 built inside a subsoil chamber. Each        wasp populations have exploded due
aggressively. If a bee is driven to sting,   nest can have one to many hundreds of       to milder winters and they are basically
the action is fatal as it rips out the       individual wasps. The nest structure        picking off the butterflies as they
bee’s lower abdomen. The sting, with         varies by species but usually consists of   emerge.
venom gland pumping, is left in the          layers or combs which are sometimes         So, have I changed your mind about
victim.                                      spiralling. It can be covered by a layer    annoying insects?
                                             of paper-like material to help protect
The Australian hornet (superfamily                                                       The presence of annoying insects,
                                             larval cells from weather exposure.
Vespoidea) is a solitary insect, forming                                                 combined with the negativity fostered
                                             The nest will have one fertilised queen
small nests against buildings and other                                                  in our culture through the media has
                                             and a population of workers (many of
structures. The adult wasp feeds off                                                     alienated us from having experiences
                                             these suppressed queens). Adults feed
flower nectar, while the larvae are fed                                                  with the 98 percent of insects and bugs
                                             on nectar but hunt caterpillars to feed
caterpillars captured by the female.                                                     that are not a bother. Of course if you
                                             larvae. Food is masticated and fed
The superfamily Vespoidea is one of          progressively to larvae in the nest.        are a gardener, aphids, plant hoppers,
the largest in Australia with over 5,000                                                 stink bugs, pear and cherry slugs
species ranging in size from 1 to 40         They give a very painful sting when         (sawfly larvae), and cabbage white
mm.                                          defending the nest and recruit other        caterpillars can be quite bothersome.
                                             nestmates to join the attack via            But we can encourage some of the
Its colours are usually bright with          pheromone secretions.                       beneficial insects that eat them.

Australian Wildlife Vol 3 - Winter 2018                                                                                       17
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