Butterflies of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve · Butterflies of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve 12 March 2016 Butterflies - ver 3.0 Page 1 of 30 Mt Gravatt Environment Group –

Butterflies of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve

12 March 2016 Butterflies - ver 3.0 Page 1 of 30 Mt Gravatt Environment Group – www.megoutlook.wordpress.com

Compiled by Michael Fox www.megoutlook.wordpress.com/flora-fauna/butterflies/ © 2015 Creative Commons – free use with attribution to Mt Gravatt Environment Group

Hesperiidae Hesperilla ornata Spotted Sedge-skipper Wingspan: Male 30mm Female 35mm Caterpillar food plants: Saw Sedge Gahnia aspera Males hilltop

Hesperiidae Ocybadistes walkeri Greenish Grass-dart Wingspan: Male 20mm Female 20mm Caterpillar food plants: Grasses Blady Grass Imperata cylindrica Guinea Grass

Panicum maximum (Weed)

Male sex brands

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Hesperiidae Trapezites iacchus Brown Ochre Wingspan: Male 33mm Female 34mm Caterpillar food plants: Wattle Mat-rush Lomandra filiformis Creek Mat-rush Lomandra hystrix

Spiny Headed Mat-rush Lomandra longifolia

Males hilltop

Hesperiidae Trapezites symmomus Splendid Ochre Wingspan: Male 42mm Female 46mm Caterpillar food plants: Wattle Mat-rush Lomandra filiformis Creek Mat-rush Lomandra hystrix Spiny Headed Mat-rush

Lomandra longifolia




Lycaenidae Candalides absimilis Common Pencil-blue Wingspan: Male 30mm Female 31mm Caterpillar food plants: Tuckeroo Cupaniopsis anacardioides Easter Cassia Senna pendula (Weed) Golden Rain

Koelreuteria elegans (Weed) Female (left)

Lycaenidae Candalides erinus Small Dusky-blue Wingspan: Male 22mm Female 22mm Caterpillar food plants: Dodder Laurel Cassytha pubescens




Lycaenidae Catopyrops florinda Speckled Line-blue Wingspan: Male 22mm Female 22mm Caterpillar food plants: Poison Peach Trema tomentose Native Mulberry Pipturus argenteus

Speckled Line-blue from top side. Note the tails resting on leaf. Caterpillar with attendant ants on food plant Trema tomentosa. Speckled Line-blue caterpillars are not dependent on the presence of ants.




Lycaenidae Jalmenus evagoras Imperial Hairstreak Wingspan: Male 32mm Female 37mm Caterpillar food plants: Sickle Leaved Wattle Acacia falcata Early Black Wattle Acacia leiocalyx

Imperial Hairstreaks mating. Caterpillar and chrysalis with attendant “Kropotkin” ants – Small Meat Ant Ants provide protection in return for sugary fluids secreted by caterpillar. Kropotkin is a reference to Russian biologist Peter Kropotkin who proposed a concept of evolution based on “mutual aid” between species helping species from ants to higher mammals survive. Imperial Hairstreaks will only return to breed where both caterpillar food plants and the ants are present.




Lycaenidae Leptotes plinius Zebra Blue, Plumbago Blue Wingspan: Male 22mm Female 23mm Caterpillar food plants: Plumbago zeylanica (native) Plumbago auriculata (exotic) Plants not found in Reserve. May be in surrounding gardens.




Lycaenidae Psychonotis caelius Small Green-banded Blue Wingspan: Male 30mm Female 32mm Caterpillar food plants: Soapy or Red Ash Alphitonia excelsa

Caterpillar on Red Ash




Nymphalidae Acraea andromacha Glasswing Wingspan: Male 53mm Female 56mm Caterpillar food plants: Spade Flower Hybanthus stellarioides Corky Passion Vine

Passiflora suberosa (Weed) Males Hilltop

Nymphalidae Danaus plexippus Monarch or Wanderer (Introduced) Wingspan: Male 93mm Female 92mm Caterpillar food plants: Balloon Cotton Bush Gomphocarpus physocarpus (Weed) Red-headed Cotton Bush Asclepias curassavica (Weed)




Nymphalidae Doleschallia bisaltide Australian Leafwing Wingspan: Male 70mm Female 80mm Caterpillar food plants: Love Flower

Pseuderanthemum variable

Drinking nectar with proboscis.




Nymphalidae Euploea core Common Crow Wingspan: Male 69mm Female 72mm Caterpillar food plants: Monkey Rope Parsonsia straminea and other Parsonsia spp.

Male sex brand Caterpillar and chrysalis




Nymphalidae Hypocysta adiante Orange Ringlet Wingspan: Male 24mm Female 32mm Caterpillar food plants: Kangaroo Grass Themeda triandra

Mating




Nymphalidae Hypocysta irius Orange-streaked Ringlet Wingspan: Male 33mm Female 35mm Caterpillar food plants: Various grasses Family: Poaceae




Nymphalidae Hypocysta metirius Brown Ringlet Wingspan: Male 31mm Female 31mm Caterpillar food plants: Graceful Grass Ottochloa gracillima




Nymphalidae Hypolimnas bolina Common or Varied Eggfly Wingspan: Male 76mm Female 86mm Caterpillar food plants: Love Flower

Pseuderanthemum variable

Females are variable, photos show a female

Nymphalidae Junonia villida Meadow Argus Wingspan: Male 40mm Female 43mm Caterpillar food plants: Trailing Speedwell Veronica plebeia Star Goodenia Goodenia rotundifolia




Nymphalidae Melanitis leda Evening Brown Wingspan: Male 60mm Female 63mm Caterpillar food plants: Native and non-native grasses Blady Grass Imperata cylindrica Kangaroo Grass Themeda triandra Barbed Wire Grass

Cymbopogon refractus Guinea Grass Panicum maximum Summer/winter and wet/dry season forms have different colours and wing edge shaping.

Caterpillar




Evening Brown cont. Upperside colours (left) Underside (right) Evening Browns rarely sit with wings open … we normally just see a flash of orange as these butterflies swarm out of the grass when distrubed.

Nymphalidae Phaedyma shepherdi White-banded Plane, Common Aeroplane Wingspan: Male 55mm Female 57mm Caterpillar food plants: Chinese Elm Celtis sinensis (Weed)




Nymphalidae Polyura sempronius Tailed Emperor Wingspan: Male 70mm Female 80mm Caterpillar food plants: Acacia spp. Chinese Elm Celtis sinensis (Weed) Status: Uncommon but widespread

Chrysalis (right) looks like a miniature watermelon.




Nymphalidae Tirumala hamata Blue Tiger Wingspan: Male 72mm Female 72mm Caterpillar food plants: Migrant species – no food plants found in Reserve Alkaloid sources: Parsonsia

Female (left)

Male (left)

Male sex brands




Nymphalidae Vanessa itea Yellow Admiral Wingspan: Male 50mm Female 50mm Caterpillar food plants: Native Mulberry Pipturus argenteus

Males hilltop




Nymphalidae Vanessa kershawi Australian Painted Lady Wingspan: Male 43mm Female 47mm Caterpillar food plants: None identified in Reserve.

4pm resting for night

8:30am warming in sun ready to fly




Papilionidae Graphium sarpedon Blue Triangle Wingspan: Male 57mm Female 60mm Caterpillar food plants: Hairy-leaved Lollybush

Clerodendrum tomentosum Camphor Laurel

Cinnamomum camphora (Weed) Puddling – drinking water from ground Males hilltop

Mating




Papilionidae Graphium eurypylus Pale Triangle Wingspan: Male 59mm Female 62mm Caterpillar food plants: None found in Reserve Chrysalis found on Soursop – a fruit tree planted in the reserve.




Papilionidae Papilio aegeus Orchard Swallowtail Wingspan: Male 102mm Female 108mm Caterpillar food plants: Backyard citrus Crow's Ash Flindersia spp.

Male (left)

Female laying eggs (right)

1st & 5th stage caterpillar (left) Chrysalis (right)




Papilionidae Papilio anactus Dainty Swallowtail/Dingy Swallowtail Wingspan: Male 67mm Female 72mm Caterpillar food plants: Backyard citrus Native Citrus spp.

Caterpillar







Pieridae Appias paulina Yellow Albatross Wingspan: Male 55mm Female 55mm Caterpillar food plant: Alchornea ilicifolia Native Holly

Female




Pieridae Belenois java Caper White Wingspan: Male 55mm Female 55mm Caterpillar food plant: Brush Caper Berry Capparis arborea

Pieridae Catopsilia pyranthe Lemon Migrant Wingspan: Male 58mm Female 58mm

Caterpillar food plants: None identified in Reserve




Pieridae Delias nigrina Black Jezebel Wingspan: Male 34mm Female 35mm Lifespan (adult) – 2 to 6 weeks Caterpillar food plants: None identified in Reserve

Male – upper side (left) underside (right)

Female (left)

Scales (right) – thousands of scales create spectacular colour schemes.

Butterflies use sharp claws to scratch leaves and taste the leaf species.




Pieridae Eurema brigitta No-brand Grass-yellow Wingspan: Male 33mm Female 36mm Caterpillar food plants: Fishbone Cassia

Chamaecrista nomame

Pieridae Pieris rapae Cabbage White (Introduced) Sometimes confused with Cabbage Moth Plutella xylostella Wingspan: Male 44mm Female 44mm Caterpillar food plants: Common Peppercess

Lepidium africanum (Weed)





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Butterflies of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve · Butterflies of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve 12 March 2016 Butterflies - ver 3.0 Page 1 of 30 Mt Gravatt Environment Group –