Niagara Dam

In 1897 Niagara Dam was built in a small rocky gully near Kookynie as a water supply for people and trains but its purpose was never fulfilled because underground water was found at Kookynie. It is now a heritage site.

Niagara Dam

We camped at Niagara Dam and walked the two signposted walks around the dam and out to the breakaway. One of the information boards promised the common Sand Goannas but of course we didn't see one, but we did see lots of flowering plants and beautiful old mallee trees.

There is an introduced species in the dam and noone knows how it got there. They are yabbies (Cherax destructor) from the eastern states and they are surviving very well.

Dam wall, Niagara Dam

A wall intended to prevent debris from entering the dam after a heavy rain event.

White Cypress

Breakaway area

Breakaway area with quartz in the drainage line. It is a goldmining area.

Nullarbor insects

A tiny spider hiding on a lichen covered tree knot

Insect on a saltbush

Blue butterfly

Lerp on a leaf

I think this might be an exoskelton left when the insect outgrew it.

A plant survey (and more)

I was helping with a plant survey on a private property near Bannockburn, west of Geelong, but I might have been a little distracted by the insect life.

Common Jassid Eurymela fenestrata

Caterpillar of the Senecio Moth (on what's left of a Senecio leaf)

White-banded Grass-dart Taractrocera papyria on Pink Bindweed

We found a few special plants amongst the flowering grasses. Now I have to get the microscope out to try and identify said grasses.

Pussy-tails Ptilotus spathulatus

Curved Rice-flower Pimelea curviflora

Insects of the high country

These are a few of the insects and spiders we found in the alpine pastures around Falls Creek last weekend. Identification pending at the moment, except for the brilliant Spotted Mountain Grasshopper Monistria concinna.

Watching a wasp

Last year a new limestone track for the dairy cows was formed on our farm and it hasn't totally compacted as yet. The wasps know it. There were quite a few digger wasps flying low over the track and the surrounding pasture, some digging test holes, some digging real holes.

The wasp buzzes very noisily whilst in the hole then backs out quickly and deposits the excavated soil a short distance from the hole. This one had several paralysed caterpillars stashed on grass clumps close to the hole, ready to bury when the digging is complete.

Unfortunately I didn't have the time to stay and observe the end of this particular event - we had to pack up to go back to Geelong.

Jezebels and painted ladies

In my suburban garden a butterfly or two occasionally wander through but here on the farm it's lovely to see them in numbers flying low over the grass.

The most common are the male Common Browns and the Cabbage Whites but I've seen a few Painted Ladies and several Spotted Jezebels on the Agonis in the garden (see below). The flowering Agonis is attracting a lot of native bees, flies and beetles.

And this Mantis Fly arrived inside with the washing off the line. I took it outside to have its portrait taken and then let it go.

Small residents

Here are a few of the insects I've found in the last week or so. The first is a a tiny, metallic Green Long-legged Fly from the Dolichopodidae family, possibly Austrosciapus. They are quite 'flighty' but when disturbed have a habit of returning to the same bunch of leaves. They shine brilliantly in the sunlight.

This little egg-shaped object was on a leaf near the fly. I've no idea what it is but I like the symmetry.

And last week I found this large, very large, stick insect at Wonthaggi. Only a mother could love that face.

Buffalo jumping with hoppers

Almost every tree or shrub that I looked at on Mt Buffalo had a hopper hiding on stems and leaves. They're tricky little critters to photograph because they duck and hide the minute a lens appears. Several of these were easy because they appear to have been caught in spider webs. The last one, a vision in white, had just emerged from its previous shell and was gathering strength.
I'd be grateful if anyone could identify any of these.