Grey Huntsman

.....or poke it with a tape measure in this case.

 A common visitor in these parts is the Grey Huntsman spider.

They can grow as big as a hand span.

 Huntsman spiders are fast,

and hunt quite easily upside down on ceilings or walls.
They only seem to hang around for a few days, then they disappear.

Quite an impressive spider!


Sandi x

Blending In

A couple of  little spiders for you to look at today.

The first one is a flower spider. What unusual markings it has.

These guys usually sit inside a flower to ambush their prey.

The second one is a crab spider.

It would be very hard to spot sitting on a plant stem or the trunk of a tree.

I have a few more spiders to show you, but I will keep them for another day.
Cheerio,
Sandi x

A Rather Large Lacewing

I found this lovely lacewing (Nymphes myrmeleonides) recently. It had been attracted by the house lights.

These particular ones are sometimes mistaken for dragonflies.

You can see how they get their name 'lacewing' from their gauzy, net-like wings which are very richly patterned with veins.

I am constanly amazed by the variety of wildlife found in my garden, and hope you enjoy discovering them with me.

Cheerio,
Sandi x

A little Crabby

Walking along Currimundi beach one morning, we came across this little fellow.

Look at those amazing eyes!

It is a stalk-eyed ghost crab.

Look out Cricket.....it will grab your nose!

Cheers,
Sandi x

Wordless Wednesday

Cheers,
Sandi x

A little Longicorn

What a cute little face, can you guess what it is?


.......A longicorn beetle.

Cute little fella isn't he?

I love the camouflage colouring on this beetle.

......and the long antennae.

Dropping by

Frequent visitors to our garden are the colourful and raucous rainbow lorikeets.

Quite a large group arrived to tuck in to some sunflower seeds.

A bit of squabbling over getting a spot on the feeder.

Coral tree flowers are a favourite source of nectar for the rainbow lorikeets too.
We have several of these large trees in our yard adding a splash of red amongst the (almost) bare winter branches.
Hope you enjoyed today's post,
Sandi x

The Evening Brown

The 'Evening Brown' butterfly is cunningly disguised as a leaf.
Resting during the day on the ground with it's wings folded makes it difficult to detect......until you walk nearby. The startled butterfly will often land not too far from where it was sitting.......making a great game of hide and seek.

You can catch a glimpse of the beautiful outer wing colours above.

My book says,

'The Evening Brown does not visit flowers, but sucks juice from fermenting fruit'.

Mmm......I wonder if some of that juice is alcholic? Perhaps it is having fruit cocktails in the evening....

 

Cheers,
Sandi x

A Beautiful Beetle

How gorgeous is this little jewel of a beetle?

Shining in the sun like an irridescent christmas decoration.

I could not find the name of this one.
**Edited 17-2-14   I now know this beetle's name - (very rare apparently)
it is Spilopyra sumptuosa
a chrysomelid beetle.
Its host is the tuckeroo tree.

It was tricky taking a photo as it was a very busy beetle not wanting to stay still.

 

You can see that the beetle is quite tiny compared to the size of my fingers.

I am very lucky to have such treasures living in my backyard.

Until next time,

keep your eyes out, you may just find your own tiny treasure,

Sandi x

Purple Swamphens

Regular visitors to our garden are the Purple Swamphens.

They particularly love to stop off on their way through our yard to have a dip in the birdbath.

In sunlight, their plumage shines with an intense blue sheen.

......doing a little dance

Another one joins in for a dip.
I just love watching the antics of these colourful birds.

Sandi x

Wattle Pigs

One of my favourite little bugs are the 'Wattle Pigs'. It is a type of weevil (Leptopius).

As it's name suggest these guys feed on our native wattle tree leaves.

A kid friendly bug that doesn't bite and is fairly slow moving.

Wattle pigs have a bumpy hard shell covering their wings.

 

........and are well camouflaged to blend in with their surroundings.

Keep your eyes peeled, you never know what you may find in your garden.......

Happy bug hunting,

Sandi x

A Curious Caterpillar

Look at all those long hairs covering this little caterpillar.

It was quite a sight walking along.
** now identifed as the caterpillar of the  Lichen Moth Cyana meyricki  courtesy of Don Herbison-Evans from the Coffs Harbour Butterfly House.

Sometime later.........
Aha! That's what all those long hairs are for -
 to weave a protective shelter whilst it is pupating.
So neatly built.
What a clever little thing!

Sandi x

**Edited 24th June to add this photo
Photographer Dr David Britton, Australian Museum

This is what the little hairy caterpillar turns into!

Beautiful!

It's not easy being green

Having a cuppa on the verandah, I noticed a frog (trying to be inconspicuous) hiding amongst the agapanthus leaves.(photo taken in april) This little beauty is a 'Graceful Treefrog'.

It is amazing how they cling to the leaves with their padded toes.

I love the way they sit with their legs all neatly folded in.

Can you see Mr Roo in the background? He is quite used to me running off to get the camera to photograph the wildlife for the blog.......

Cheerio for now,
Sandi x