| It's possible 20 different species can look identical (needing dissection to differentiate); as such many id's here don't go to species level |
| Stat' |
| Thumbnails: 1652. 299 native species (9 introduced) listed, with 240 natives (6 introduced) from Ellura |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Cockroaches (Blattodea); 18 species, 15 from Ellura - Giant Cockroach (Blaberidae); 2 species from Ellura | Clear Rimmed Native Cockroach Calolampra sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m a f r | The 1st two specimens were recorded on the same day at Ellura. Notice the 3rd specimen (Adelaide Hills) has more transparent edges, and a black streak down the side. All 3 specimens have different ventral patterns on their abdomen. We're not sure if these are different species or variations on the same species. Also notice the white face markings, these are not reflections but white pigment ~21mm long Imaged 5 in Sep(1), Oct(1), Nov(1) & Dec(2) | |
| Bark Cockroach Laxta sp | Na e m a | Imaged 2 in Sep(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Cockroaches (Blattodea); 18 species, 15 from Ellura - Cockroach (Blattidae); 9 species, 7 from Ellura | Oriental Cockroach Blatta orientalis | If a | Imaged 1 in Oct | |
| Shining Cockroach Drymaplaneta communis iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Matthew Connors for confirming the id of this species for us Females ~13 to ~26mm long, smaller than Males at ~27mm to ~32mm. From the iNat link you'll find Matthew Connors gives a great description of the difference between some Drymaplaneta sp. and this species. On there he shows how the back legs of males are important to separate the species (normal legs for D. communis, very wide rear legs for D. semivitta). We have only found Drymaplaneta communis males, but it's possible the females may be D. semivitta (regionally introduced from WA). S14 is notable in that the white band follows all the way round the edge and joins at the rear end. This possibly indicates she's a different species. Of S14, Matthew said "Yes I think tentatively these are D. communis. I have not heard of or seen any D. semivitta with white on the abdomen" Imaged 15(3M,12F) in Jan(2:1M,1F), Feb(1F), Mar(1F), Apr(2F), Jun(1F), Aug(1F), Sep(1F), Oct(2:1M,1F), Nov(2F) & Dec(2:1M,1F) | ||
| Tortoise Cockroach Euzosteria cf subreflexa | Na e m | Imaged 2 in Sep(1) & Oct(1) | ||
| Black Cockroach Platyzosteria sp ES01 | Na e m | Imaged 2 in Jul(1) & Aug(1) | ||
| Mallee Woodland Cockroach Platyzosteria sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matthew Connors for identifying this species for us This is the biggest cockroach we've every seen! 48mm long!!! Also it's a male and the females are usually larger! Matthew said "Completely apterous + angles of ninth tergite sharp + tarsal claws strongly asymmetrical + femoral comb well-developed" Imaged 2(2M,1J) in Jun(1:1M,1J) & Nov(1M) | ||
| Mitchell's Diurnal Cockroach Polyzosteria mitchelli iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Djari Sabutaro for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm Nymph. Another large cockroach in adult form. Very bright yellow stripes. This was found by the Bioblitz team at Yookamurra Sanctuary. Imaged 1J in May | ||
| Small Cockroach Temnelytra sp | Na e m | Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Apr(1) | ||
| Desert Mid-lined Cockroach Zonioploca medilinea iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you David Rentz & Matthew Connors for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Record in SA on Atlas: David says in his book "A distinctive species: No other has a single midline stripe". Imaged 13(3J) in Jan(1), Mar(3), Apr(2), Aug(1J), Sep(2:1J), Oct(1), Nov(2:1J) & Dec(1) | ||
| White-banded Cockroach Zonioploca sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~13mm long female, ~15mm long male. Normally females are larger. This is possibly individual variation. Used to think these were Zonioploca latizona, based on the images in Rentz's book, but it's WAY too small. Z. latizona females are ~23mm. They also have a ventrally yellow thorax, unlike the black here. Other differences include the entirely red legs and black head & face of these. Imaged 3(2M,1F) in Aug(1F), Oct(1M) & Dec(1M) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Cockroaches (Blattodea); 18 species, 15 from Ellura - Wood Cockroach (Ectobiidae); 6 species, 5 from Ellura | Brown Balta Cockroach Balta sp ES01 | Na e m | Imaged 3 in Mar(1), Apr(1) & May(1) | ||
| Western Ectoneura Cockroach Ectoneura tepperi iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line Imaged 2 in Apr(1) & May(1) | |||
| Small Golden Cockroach Ellipsidion sp | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| The Coulon Paratemnopteryx couloniana | Na e m a |
~22mm long Imaged 7(1M,2F) in Jan(2) & Nov(5:1M,2F) | |||
| Desert Para Cockroach Paratemnopteryx sp | Na a | Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Oct(1) | |||
| Net-wing Cockroach Stenectoneura cf margarita iNaturalist | Na e m a | ~7.5mm long. Note the very clear pronotum shield & elytra. A very small, thin cockroach with large cerci. Also note the pale band on the head, with black face. Imaged 3 in Feb(1), Mar(1) & May(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Cockroaches (Blattodea); 18 species, 15 from Ellura - Termite (Termitoidae); 1 species from Ellura | Termite Termitoidae sp | Na e m a |
These have now been placed in the Cockroach order Blattodea. Imaged 18 in Jan(1), Aug(2), Sep(3), Oct(4), Nov(5) & Dec(3) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura | |||
| Beetles have mandible mouth parts. They also have their forwings hardened (called the Elytra). Juvenile beeltes are larvae, all soft, looking nothing like their parents. True Bugs, which can look similar, have a proboscis as their feeding apartus, and have membranous trailing forwings, only hardened at the front. Juvenile hemipterans are similar to their parents, smaller with no wings, but often wing buds. | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Ant-like Flower Beetle (Anthicidae); 2 species from Ellura | Hairy Ant-like Flower Beetle Anthicidae sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~3mm long. Notice the long notched antennae. Mark said his id was a bit tentative. Imaged 4 in Feb(2), Mar(1) & Nov(1) | |
| Brown Ant-like Flower Beetle Chileanthicus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Augusto Degiovanni for identifying this species for us At only ~3.5mm these are very small beetles and easily confused with ants to the naked eye. Notice the interesting rear leg spurs; they can only be seen at certain angles. Augusto also said "This genus was created by Werner 1966, before the species of this new genus were inserted in the Formicomus = Anthelephila. In 2009, Kejval revised the genus where in addition to having redescribed existing species, he also described 30 new species many of them from Australia." Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Diving Beetle (Aquatic: Dytiscidae); 4 species from Ellura | Orange Sutured Diving Beetle Allodessus bistrigatus iNaturalist | Na e m | ~3mm long. The two indented lines, or sutures, along the top of it's shoulders from the pronotum to the elytra are diagnostic. Imaged 3 in Mar(1), Apr(1) & Dec(1) | |
| Padded Diving Beetle Eretes australis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura & Saida Noor
for confirming the id of this species for us After the heaviest rainfall since June 2019, we found a large number of these in early Feb 2020. The males have padded feet, shown here, used to hold onto the female when mating. The female we measured was slightly smaller than the male, with the female being ~13mm & the male being ~15mm. There did seem to be a lot of size variation in specimens we saw. They can fly, and breath air, taking a bubble of air with them when diving to the bottom of a water source. They are very fast swimmers. They have hair on their middle & hind legs that act link fins. When out of the water these hairs collapse into a row along the edge of each leg. The patterning on their elytra seems to vary quite a bit, but there always seem to be a solid black mark about midway down the elytra, along with 2 or 3 rows of small black marks (mixed in with light & dark patches) that aren't very obvious in the live specimens. Compared to other diving beetles, the head does seem more prominant/protrudes from the body. Pronotum shape is also useful to help with diagnostics. The male feet seem unusual, but are similar to some other diving beetles. The Pictorial Guide to the Diving Beetles of SA says "A distinctive species, unusual in having the surface punctuation on the prothorax much smaller than on the wing cases.", which is quite obvious here. Imaged 9(5M,3F) in Jan(2M), Feb(3:1M,2F), Mar(1M), Jun(1F), Jul(1) & Aug(1M) | ||
| Green Diving Beetle Onychohydrus scutellaris | Na e m | Always amazes us how we find water born animals on Ellura; a semi-arid environment. Unfortunately we found this one dead, but am happy to use it to help your identification process ~30mm long, with strange "flippers" on it's front legs. Imaged 1M in Sep | ||
| Predacious Diving Beetle Rhantus suturalis | Na e m | ~13mm long. Found worldwide, and the first live diving beetle we've found. Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Water Scavenger Beetle (Aquatic: Hydrophilidae); 2 species from Ellura | Dark Crawling Water Beetle Enochrus sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Matthew Pintar
for confirming the id of this species for us ~5mm long. Note the lack of hairs on the legs typically associated with water beetles. These can't swim, but crawl like an ordinary beetle. Imaged 1 in Jun | |
| Thick-thighed Water Scavenger Beetle Hydrophilus brevispina iNaturalist | Na e m | ~30mm long. Found 2 dead in the watertank overflow. Very dark green, with very thick hind legs. No significant punctuations that can be readily seen thru the detritus. A very large triangular scutellum. Surprisingly not related to Diving Beetles Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Large Auger Beetle (Bostrichidae); 1 species from Ellura | Twig Borer Beetle Bostrychopsis jesuita iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Adam Yates for confirming the id of this species for us A cylindrical black beetle. ~13mm long, with a downward pointing face (reminiscent of a broad-nosed weevil). Distinctive 2 rows of horns on it's pronotum. Imaged 4 in Feb(2), Oct(1) & Dec(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Jewel Beetle (Buprestidae); 8 species, 5 from Ellura | Tree-top Jewel Beetle Castiarina alternozona iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~20mm long. Has a golden lustre to the pronotum. Blue sheen under, and the obvious red on black stripes above. This is one specimen, found dead back in Jan 2010. However, rephotographed it this year to publish on here. However, it's become very dirty over those 10 years; so have used the best of both photo sets. Peter Lang on his web site says "This is a seldom-encountered species endemic to SA and largely confined to the higher rainfall areas with Stringybark forests in the southern Mt Lofty Ranges, and to southern Kangaroo Island. The scarcity of specimens may be due in part to it feeding out of reach in tree canopies." Mark said "A Buprestid that is extremely rarely encountered! An awesome find and a great specimen too!" Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Apr(1) | ||
| Black-necked Jewel Beetle Castiarina atricollis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ralph Foster & Dr Peter Lang for confirming the id of this species for us A small Jewel Beetle at ~12mm long. It's exoskeleton is primarily purple! There can be some variation on pattern & shading of the yellow to orange with these. Import aspects to look for at the spikes on the trailing edge of the elytra & the shape of pronotum. The pronotum is quite barrel shaped here. They also like certain plants, this one was found in Senna flowers. Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| Chinnocks Jewel Beetle Castiarina chinnocki iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ralph Foster & Dr Peter Lang for confirming the id of this species for us A small Jewel Beetle at ~11mm long. It's exoskeleton is primarily gold, with green metallic legs & upper body! These are quite hairy underneath compared with our other Castiarina Jewel Beetle. This one was found in Sugarwood Flowers (Myoporum platycarpum) Imaged 2 in Nov | |||
| Maroon-highlighted Jewel Beetle Castiarina parallela iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Anthony Paul for confirming the id of this species for us As can be seen, this was found in a flowering Fringe-myrtle (Calytrix tetragona) bush. We didn't have a chance to capture, nor measure, it before it dropped out of sight. Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| Bidentate-pronotum Jewel Beetle Chrysobothris sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Stephan Gottwald
for identifying and Dr Peter Lang & Joshua Basham
for confirming the id of this species for us ~7.5mm long. We confused this for a Melobasis sp. Superficially they are incredibly similar to the 2 Melobasis that we photographed. There are a lot of differences when you look more closely. The face is less hairy, antennae shorter, elytra more rugose, elytra quite pointy at the front, BUT most importantly about half the size of the other two. To highlight the differences between this & Melobasis, Stephan said "The anterior femora have a noticeable inner spine" (it's visible in the antenna shot). Further Peter said "The shallowly depressed, differently-coloured fovae on the elytra (pinkish in the first image here) are characteristic of the genus." Peter just contacted us to let us know he's assigned a moniker to these of Chrysobothris sp. Bidentate pronotum. He said "I was excited to find that it breeds in the roots of Westringia rigida where it is associated with root galls, although there is evidence that it must use at least one other genus as well ... Your specimen matches C. sp. Bidentate pronotum on a good number of traits ... These include: the weakly bilobed sides of the pronotum (seen best on the first image DSC02773E), the generally coppery coloured underside (DSC02778E), the rather simple puncturation on the front of the head (DSC02770E), and its relatively small size (c. 7.5 mm long) ... DSC02769E best shows the terminal ventral segment (apical abdominal ventrite). Based on that, I think your specimen is a male. The apex is shallowly incised between the tooth at each corner (in the female it seems to be slightly convex between the teeth). Also there is no sign of a median thickening ridge (associated with female) on any part of the centre line of that apical ventrite." Imaged 1M in Jan | |||
| Speckled-eye Jewel Beetle Ethonion leai iNaturalist | Na c | Thank you Dr Peter Lang for identifying and Stephan Gottwald
for helping with the id of this species for us Must be very small as these are full sized crops. The eyes looked like attached pollen but they are inside/a part of the eye. There are a number of genera that look superficially similar; eg Agrilus & Diphucrania. Peter said "White scale-hair patches mostly confined to inner halves of elytra." | |||
| Metallic Jewel Beetle Melobasis soror ssp soror iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter Lang for identifying, Mark Hura, Stephan Gottwald
& Joel DuBois for confirming and Allen Sundholm OAM for helping with the id of this species for us ~12 to 14mm long. They quickly dropped off the bush onto the ground when felt threatened. Seems to have a metallic blue body. We thought this was Melobasis propinqua but Allen indicated that there are several similar species requiring microscopic examination to separate to species. He also said "Melobasis propinqua does not have the distinct costae on the elytra, is more rounded generally, and is much more hirsute ventrally". Stephan said "I think nervosa species-group". Peter said "I think that this is the species that I treat as Melobasis sp. Senna on my website": Buprestidae of South Australia As you can see, this Stephan's comment that it belongs in the nervosa species-group. We Found 4 in two Senna artemisioides bushes during the day in Sept. Imaged 2 in Sep | |||
| Giant Jewel Beetle Temognatha heros iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Martin Lagerwey, Mark Hura, Joshua Gan, Patrick Wake & Paul M Hutchinson for confirming the id of this species for us Males we found were ~45-50mm long, while the female was ~54mm long. A huge beetle, the biggest we've ever seen. They are reported to be up to 60 - 80mm long. The female seemed to have slightly smaller antennae segments. Males have a darker patch on the front of the their pronotum; but we didn't find this very obvious. It's interesting to note there are no obvious ocelli, yet they fly extremely well. Notice the asymmetric venation in the elytra of S2 & S5. We noted the front edge of the elytra on the males we found was quite angular; while on the one female was rounded. We thought this might be a gender variation. We discussed this with Peter Lang, who kindly examined 10 female & 10 male specimens and conclude "that the male/female difference you noted on the margin of the elytron (= 'epipleuron') was just an individual variant."; as all but one female he examined also had the angular 'epipleuron' (along with all males). We also learnt a new term for the front margin of the elytron Imaged 6(4M,2F) in Jan(1F) & Feb(5:4M,1F) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Soldier Beetle (Cantharidae); 3 species, 2 from Ellura | Orange-headed Soldier Beetle Chauliognathus granulatus iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: Notice the differences between the 2 species. This one has broken black bands around the abdomen, the black marking on the back of the shield is quite different and it has orange legs (not black). This one also has orange head, not black. Imaged 11(5M,6F) in Mar(9:3M,6F), Apr(1M) & May(1M) | |
| Black-headed Soldier Beetle Chauliognathus sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Not only do these have a black head, the elytra is also black. The other soldier beetles here have green elytra. We had always thought S1 was a male due to the spot on it's pronotum; differentiating the genders. But we not think, due to body shape, it's a female. As such, this highlights the variability of the pronotum pattern with this genus. Now you may wander why so many photo's are taken of insects copulating. It's because it allows us to see differences in gender (both size and markings) Here we are able to deduce the female is larger. Notice all of these Chauliognathus sp have hairs growing out of the elytra. Imaged 3(1M,2F) in Mar | ||
| Pale-legged Soldier Beetle Chauliognathus sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na m | Imaged 1F in Mar | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Ground Beetle (Carabidae); 18 species, 16 from Ellura | Ant-nest Beetle Arthropterus sp iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us 12-13mm long. A very distinctive honey brown beetle with very wide, thin, antennae. It also has wide thin legs and elytra (wing covers) that are shorter than the body. The are 3 pairs of protrusions around it's mouth; pincer like mandibles followed by increasingly larger adaptions (the Maxillary Palps & Labial Palps). While not seen very often, they are probably a lot more common than the low number sightings suggest. They live in ant nests excreting chemicals that trick the ants into thinking they are queens. As such, the ants actually raise their offspring, all the while the beetle is feasting on the ants. They are scientifically interesting due to the rapid rate in which they can adapt to new species of ants. Due to the complex nature of ant pheromones, etc, we can guess that there is a separate species of Arthropterus for each species of ant. Due to the size of this one, we can guess it's a parasite of Inch ants (Myrmecia sp). Imaged 8 in Feb(2), Nov(3) & Dec(3) | ||
| Green Ground Beetle Carenum elegans iNaturalist | Na e m r | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us S1 was ~18mm & S2 ~22mm. S9 years later, ~21mm long. We often find the colourful, metallic ground beeltes in pairs; with one larger than the other. We guess the smaller is the male & larger the female. There are no external visual clues as to any difference apart from size that we can detect. While they look ferocious we found they weren't at all aggressive. We wouldn't recommend people pick them up to test the theory; if they did bite we imagine it'd draw blood and be very painful. We thought this was C. habitans. Mark said "Common and widespread species in riverland area of SA, NSW and Vic. Differs from C. habitans in more rounded prothorax, and elytra being more rounded on sides (habitans is almost parallel) and tapered much more evenly to the shoulders. Legs (particularly hind tibiae) much more slender in elegans than habitans." Imaged 9 in Feb(1), Mar(1), Oct(4) & Nov(3) | |||
| Blue Ground Beetle Carenum speciosum iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Connor Graham for confirming the id of this species for us We found two of these dead near the caravan when we arrived one day. Both looked identical, but quite different sizes. One being ~25mm long, with the smaller one (shown here) at ~20mm. Imaged 2 in Feb | |||
| Green Sheen Ground Beetle Carenum subcyaneum | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us What first grabbed our attention to this black beetle was the bright green line all around it's circumference. As it turns out, it's whole body reflects green, but the lip around it's edge makes it look like a green line. At first we thought it was a huge ant as it was moving pretty quickly across our camp ground. Imaged 1 in May | |||
| Blue Waxy Ground Beetle Cerotalis sp ES01 | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us ~16mm. One of the diagnostics of this genus is the single setae (hair) above the eye. Notice the shallow central line on the pronotums, and blue/purple ventral colour. Imaged 3 in Oct(1) & Dec(2) | |||
| Lined Waxy Ground Beetle Cerotalis sp ES02 | Na e m | ~17mm. Notice the deep, almost most cleft like, line down the centre of the pronotum; as well as the blue/purple ventral colour. Imaged 2 in Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Black Waxy Ground Beetle Cerotalis sp ES03 | Na e m | ~14mm. One of the diagnostics of this genus is the single setae (hair) above the eye. Apparantly "The genus urgently needs a revision, as identification of species is almost impossible." But for now the ventral colour and depth of line in the centre of the pronotum are all diagnostic to separate out species, even if we don't know which is which. The single setae/hair above the eye is diagnostic for the genus, as are the >4 marginal punctures on the margin of the elytra (which are difficult to see in photographs). Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Ground Beetle Chlaenius darlingensis | Na m | Imaged 1 in Mar | |||
| Tiger Beetle Cicindelini sp | Na r | Imaged 1 in Jan | |||
| Green Sheen Ground Beetle Conopterum superbum | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us Normally we find so much of our wildlife is tiny. It makes sence that to survive in our harsh semi-arid environment "tiny" means less resources required to thrive. AND THEN we get a whopper like this! A staggeringly large beetle at ~32mm long! That's 8, yes folks EIGHT, times bigger than the Bulbous Antennae Clerid Beetle we just published .... Mark said "They are fairly widespread right across the Mallee areas from Eyre Peninsula through to Victoria." Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Australasian Panagaeitid Ground Beetle Craspedophorus australasiae | Na e m | Imaged 3 in Feb(1), Jul(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Domino Ground Beetle Homethes sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 2nd Record in SA on Atlas & 1st Record in SA on iNat: ~7mm long. Mark was surprised at the limited records on-line and said "Interesting - they are certainly fairly abundant " Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Bombardier Beetle Pheropsophus verticalis | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| Google-eyed Ground Beetle Scopodes sp iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us ~3.5mm long. Imaged 6 in Mar(1), Apr(1), Jun(1), Oct(1) & Nov(2) | |||
| Striped Ground Beetle Trigonothops cf sp ES01 | Na e m | ~10-11mm long (head & body). Notice the long sparse hairs on the elytra (wing covers), pronotum (back/thorax shield) & head ... well on most of it's body actually; almost like spines rather than hairs. They also have an unusual spur on their front legs. Beetles often have spines coming out of their legs, but beetles in this tribe (Amblytelini) have an indent in the leg and a hook; as can be seen in the photos. Imaged 5 in Mar(2), Jul(1), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Brown Ground Beetle Trigonothops cf sp ES02 | Na e m | This one is a bit larger at ~13mm long (head & body). Notice the long sparse hairs on most of it's body; almost like spines rather than hairs. They also have an unusual spur on their front legs. Beetles often have spines coming out of their legs, but beetles in this tribe (Amblytelini) have an indent in the leg and a hook; as can be seen in the photos. Imaged 4 in Apr(3) & May(1) | |||
| Crossed Ground Beetle Trigonothops cf sp ES03 | Na e m | Notice the long sparse hairs on most of it's body; almost like spines rather than hairs. They also have an unusual spur on their front legs. Beetles often have spines coming out of their legs, but beetles in this tribe (Amblytelini) have an indent in the leg and a hook; as can be seen in the photo. This specimen has a smaller pronotum (back shield), which may make it a different species (perhaps Dystrichothorax?) Imaged 2 in Oct | |||
| Patched Ground Beetle Trigonothops sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Kimberi Pullen for identifying and Thomas Mesaglio for helping with the id of this species for us ~7.5mm. The setae on the pronotum is diagnostic. Imaged 1 in Dec | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Longhorn Beetle (Cerambycidae); 19 species, 14 from Ellura | Unequal-lined Wattle Longhorn Beetle Ancita anisoceroides iNaturalist | Na e m |
Female ~10.5mm, male ~8mm. We found a pair mating in a Hard-leaved Wattle (Acacia sclerophylla var sclerophylla), one of the few to be in fruit this year. Up until recently we were experiencing the worst drought in 20 years. Now we are the 5th driest year after a deluge a couple of weeks ago. There were others in the same bush mating, but they dropped to the ground before we could catch them. To the naked eye these looked grey, the brown lines weren't visible. Unfortunately the photo's make them look much blacker. Imaged 2(1M,1F) in Nov | |||
| Acacia Longhorn Beetle Ancita sp | Na a |
Imaged 2 in Apr(1) & May(1) | ||||
| Slender Mallee Longhorn Beetle Aposites sp iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us S1 & S2 are ~26mm long. Specimen 1 has antennae length of ~26mm & S2 ~28mm S1 & S2 were found on the same night at the outside light. Thinking they were the same, didn't photograph the second specimen as rigorously. They are probably 2 different species. The antennae length suggests both are males (ie extends beyond the elytra). The body length compared with wings & their antennae joint near the base are different. They also have slightly different markings on the thorax. Mark said "Can rule out A. pubicollis as the abdomen doesn't extend past the elytra (among other obvious differences) and we can rule out A. lanaticollis as this is a small, light coloured species which is quite distinctive from the ones we have in the mallee. A. gracilis can also be ruled out - it is very similar to A. lanaticollis but even smaller. This leaves us with A. macilentis and A. niger. From the descriptions, there is not a lot separating them other than the form of the pronotum. The type of A. macilentis has the pronotum quite conical with only a slight swelling near the centre, whereas A. niger has the pronotum quite expanded about the middle, before being contracted before the base, where it again flares out fairly distinctively." "In general they seem to share more in common with A. niger, despite their size (A. niger type is only 18mm compared with A. macilentis 26mm)." Imaged 7(5M,2F) in Feb(3M), Mar(1F) & Dec(3:2M,1F) | ||||
| Wattle Longhorn Beetle Bethelium diversicorne iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Francesco Vitali for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long Imaged 1 in Feb | ||||
| Callitris Longhorn Beetle Cerambycidae cf sp ES01 | Na e m |
Thank you Greg Baker & Andy Szito for helping with the id of this species for us We were inspecting a recently fallen, dead, callitris tree. Marie noticed a grub inside a broken twig. Given callitris has natural invert inhibitors, we were surprised. We prized it out and were *VERY* concerned it looked a lot like European House Borer (Hylotrupes bajulus); or EHB for short. We posted on the Amateur Entomology Australia facebook group and Andy Szito (WA DPIRD) suggested we contact Greg Baker at SARDI. We sent it off to Greg for confirmation, who then sent it off to Andy for DNA testing. Fortunately it wasn't EHB. It didn't match any known species in the DNA database, but was "most likely another Cerambycidae spp". This specimen was ~13mm long. Imaged 1 in Jul | ||||
| Longhorn Beetle Cerambycidae cf sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m |
~20mm long pupa. As yet, we don't know anymore about the taxon of this beetle. Hopefully it'll hatch and we can get an id from the adult that emerges. It's possibly one we've already identified elsewhere. Imaged 1J in Sep | ||||
| Desert Longhorn Microtragus mormon iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Almost spider like with very long legs and antennae. Note the odd shaped compound eyes and 2 pair of ridges along it's back. The middle ridges start with small horn like projections. It's covered in fine hairs, not visible to the eye, which enhance the white patches on the rear ridges. We found a second, dead, specimen and thought the light colour was due to fading in the sun. But have since seen a photo of a live specimen which was also very light. So the overall colour can go from dark brown to pale grey. Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Nov(1) | ||||
| Grass Longhorn Oebarina ceresioides iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~12mm long Thanks to Ian Gibbins for his help translating the latin name to English. We incorrectly interpreted "ceresio" to mean "deadly" where as "ceres" relates to wheat & grains. Imaged 1 in Mar | ||||
| Spotted Hairy Longhorn Beetle Opsidota infecta iNaturalist | Na e m f |
Thank you Francesco Vitali for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~18mm long. With the 3 specimens we caught in one night there seems to be some variation in the amount the abdomen protrudes past the elytra, but not overall length. The spots on the thorax are made by hair, and so variations in colour, shape & quantity can be accounted for by age & wearing. The vague patterns on the elytra may be due to transparency of the underlying body (but didn't manage to see it with elytra up to prove this). These patterns are quite variable. Also note with longhorns that the antennae are often 2 dimensional. As such, some photo's of them appear thin/thread like. Others a thick heavy serrated appearance, where the antennae are at 90 deg. This is because the serrations are plate like and nearly invisible from the edge. As such, it's a good idea to get plenty of photo's of the antennae from different angles to get the correct shape of the segments. Imaged 10 in Jan(2), Feb(6) & Nov(2) | ||||
| Eucalypt Longhorn Phoracantha semipunctata iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us Unfortunately we only found a dead shell. Note the four trailing spines on the elytra (2 per elytron). Imaged 1 in Feb | ||||
| Feather-horned Longhorn Beetle Piesarthrius laminosus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Francesco Vitali for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long with very long thin wide filaments on the antennae. It's difficult to determine how long the antennae are. Superficially they are a bit over 12mm long. However, the end segment has 2 filaments, of ~5mm long. So really the antennae are ~7mm, with 5mm of filament nearly doubling their length. The filaments vary in length, with the middle being the longest at ~7mm, and both edges being ~5mm. As with many longhorns, the eyes are heavily indented and wrap around the antennae base. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Feb(1) | ||||
| Braconid Mimic Longhorn Proagapete sp | Na e m |
Similar Species: Red Braconid Wasp (Braconidae sp ES01) Imaged 1 in Nov | ||||
| Copper-wire Longhorn Beetle Prosoplus sp | Na e m |
~7mm long. Named as we've only ever found it on Copper-wire Daisies. Imaged 2 in Oct | ||||
| Silver-side Longhorn Beetle Rhytiphora lateralis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Boris Büche & Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Record for SA on-line: ~15mm head to tail & each antenna is additionally ~18mm long. Unfortunately we found it dead in a cob-web. But in very good condition and worth posting here. Notice the very hairy antennae. Stunning silver patches running down the side of the elytra. Boris highlighted a very similar species, Rhytiphora fraserensis. He pointed to a paper highlighting, amoung other things, the ochre stripe on the pronotum; missing in R. fraserensis. This can be found via the iNat link. The automated counter shows taken in Jan, but that was because we've been dealing with illness and photographing was delayed. Imaged 1 in Jan | ||||
| Tea-tree Longhorn Rhytiphora obliqua iNaturalist | Na a |
1st Live Photo on-line: ~16mm head to tail & each antenna is ~22mm long. Marie found it drowning in a bird bath. We were surprised at the difference in colour between wet & dry. After a day in an insect box came back to life and started walking around, so was released. Notice the very hairy antennae. In terms of colour, it's an odd mix of chestnut to silver grey patches. It's spine/horn placement is important diagnostically, as are it's antennae & eye shape. Imaged 1 in Nov | ||||
| White-marked Hairy Longhorn Beetle Rhytiphora posthumeralis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Allen Sundholm OAM for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 1st Record in SA on Atlas: ~17mm head to tail, with antennae ~13mm long. Came to a night light on 1st January. We photographed both sides to ensure the white splash was consistent and not a aberration. Very hairy, with the white splashes hidden in the dorsal view. Imaged 1 in Jan | ||||
| Lycid Mimic Longhorn Stenoderus suturalis | Na e m |
Similar Species: Four-ribbed Lycid Beetle (Porrostoma sp) Typically Longhorns are very consistent in their colours & pattern. However, these can have orange or black faces & can have the side black stripe missing, as shown here. This colour form were previously considered a different species and were then synonymised with S. suturalis. Imaged 1 in Nov | ||||
| Striped Longhorn Beetle Syllitus cf microps iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us Shown are 2 females, not copulating. The male is smaller, hidden above. Imaged 4(1M,2F) in Nov | ||||
| Black-waisted Longhorn Beetle Uracanthus griseus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Thaddeus Charles Jones for confirming the id of this species for us At ~25mm long, this is the longest longhorn we've come across to date. It had serrated antennae that don't quite extend past the body. As with many longhorns, the eyes are heavily indented and wrap around the antennae base. This specimen got caught in a red-backs cobweb. It was lucky to survive, but we couldn't get all the cobweb off it's antennae & feet. In time it should be able to peel it off. Imaged 3 in Nov(1) & Dec(2) | ||||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Leaf Beetle (Chrysomelidae); 15 species, 12 from Ellura | Flea Beetle Aporocera cf viridipennis | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Tiny Leaf Beetle Bruchinae sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Ken Walker for helping with the id of this species for us Only 2mm long Imaged 13 in Mar(1), Oct(9), Nov(2) & Dec(1) | ||||
| Metallic Dodonaea Leaf Beetle Callidemum hypochalceum | Na e m f | Similar Species: Rainbow Darkling Beetle (Chalcopteroides sp ES01) Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us ~8mm long Imaged 12(2M,2F,1J) in Jan(2:1J), Feb(2:1M,1F), Mar(1), Apr(1), Aug(1), Sep(2:1M,1F), Oct(2) & Nov(1) | ||||
| Orange-marked Black Leaf Beetle Ditropidus pulchellus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying and Martin Lagerwey & Nick Monaghan for confirming the id of this species for us ~4mm long. We suspected this might be Ditropidus pulchellus. Most images of D. pulchellus have a red pronotum though. This one also seems to have a slightly different scutellum. We were wondering if these differences were gender based. Nick suggested it could be a regional variation. Martin agreed and said "I would expect regional or genetic variation. Gender dimorphism is minimal in this species although pronotum colors do vary by gender in Cryptocephalinae including a few Ditropidus and a few Aporocera." Martin also said "There is nothing else close in the Victorian Museum collection." Imaged 1 in Nov | ||||
| Maroon Eboo Beetle Eboo sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Paul Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us ~4mm long with a maroon metallic sheen to it's body & orange legs. Imaged 6 in Mar(1), Apr(2) & Nov(3) | ||||
| Green Eboo Beetle Eboo sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Paul Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us ~4mm long with a green metallic sheen to it's body & orange legs. Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Apr(1) | ||||
| Scat-mimicking Leaf Beetle Faex aemula iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for confirming the id of this species for us ~5mm long Imaged 1 in Nov | ||||
| Tortoise Beetle Paropsis aegrota iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us Imaged 1 in Aug | ||||
| Dotted Paropsine Leaf Beetle Paropsis carnosa | Na e m | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us In relation to the difference between Paropsis & Paropsisterna sp, Martin said "Paropsis has some verrucae (bumps) on the elytra. They also usually have randomly placed elytral puncturation and margin of pronotum is crenulate (wavy) or acervate. Paropsisterna have smooth elytra without bumps and with punctured aligned in ten neat rows. The edge of the pronotum is entirely smooth. These features should be considered together. There are other more reliable differences underneath, which is rarely seen in photographs." Imaged 1 in Oct | ||||
| Pink Desert Leaf Beetle Paropsis roseola iNaturalist | Na e m | ~8mm long. Notice the emarginate eyes. It's pink pronotum is diagnostic, and they love mallee gum. Also, notice the feet. They have pads (all leaf-beetles do) to help them suck onto leaves - hence the name. Imaged 1 in Dec | ||||
| Eucalyptus Variegated Beetle Paropsisterna cloelia iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Martin Lagerwey for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 4(1M,1F) in Sep(3:1M,1F,1E) & Oct(1) | ||||
| Striped Leaf Beetle Paropsisterna intacta | Na a | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us Not only did Martin supply the id for this stunning little beetle, he also very kindly supplied the specimen on his last trip to SA. While this is the usual colour/pattern, Martin has found them without any spots on the pronotum, nor strips on the back (elytra). Imaged 1 in Feb | ||||
| Variable Leaf Beetle Paropsisterna variabilis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for confirming the id of this species for us ~10 mm long. All leaf beetles have "suction" pads on the bottom of their legs/feet. To help hold onto slippery leaves. Were were able to show this here. Imaged 1 in May | ||||
| Fireblight Beetle Peltoschema orphana | Na e m | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us Imaged 1 in Aug | ||||
| Leaf Beetle Trachymela sp | Na e m | Thank you Martin Lagerwey for identifying this species for us Imaged 1 in Feb | ||||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Clerid Beetle (Cleridae); 4 species from Ellura | Spiny Clerid Beetle Eunatalis spinicornis | Na e m | ~24mm long, weighed 190 mg and has hairy eyes. As with other clerids, this is a hairy beetle. It looks very similar to some longihorns, but the antennae are quite short in comparison. Longihorn antennae tend to be positioned above the body, whereas this specimen was quite intent on keeping them hidden. The antennae have a pointed tip and is possibly referenced in it's name. Ian Gibbins translated "spinicornis" for us to mean "spiny horns". Antennae are often refered to as Horns (eg long-i-horns). Ian also indicated "Eunatalis" more or less means "of true birth". It's description, by Gerstmeier & Seitner, mentions "E. spinicornis differs from all other species by the dentate elytral apices". 'Dentate', meaning tooth-like, 'Elytral' meaning of the wing covers & 'Apices' meaning tip. Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Apr(1) | ||
| Variegated Clerid Beetle Lemidia variegata iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Janet Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~5.5mm long. Very Velvet Ant like with the naked eye, but on closer inspection with the camera we can see the antennae & body shape are quite different. The whole upper aspect of the body is heavily punctuated. Underneath it is smooth and black. The pronotum has 2 small longitudinal ridges. Imaged 3 in Mar(1) & Apr(2) | |||
| Green Metallic Clerid Beetle Phlogistus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Justin S. Bartlett for confirming the id of this species for us ~6mm long. Metallic Green covering, including legs. Very hairy, typical of clerid beetles. Even has long hair extruding from the eyes. Found in Melaleuca lanceolata flower during the day. We thought this was Phlogistus schulzi, but Justin said "Your species appears to belong to a complex of Phlogistus species that all have bicoloured protibiae and a weak pronotal sulcus (as in the type species, Phlogistus instabilis). Phlogistus schulzi does not belong that that complex . . . . it has a more rotund and smooth pronotum and distinctive shallow but uniform elytral punctation. Unfortunately, you just won't get a species ID on this, partly as there are so many similar-looking metallic green species in this genus, and partly as it is covered in powdery frass of some kind." Imaged 1 in Feb | |||
| Bulbous Antennae Clerid Sedlacekvia sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: This is a rare find. We thought it was Sedlacekvia tanamica, but Mark suggests it might be an undescribed species. That's not to say it is rare, but doesn't seem to be found by people very much. Very little is known about them. To the naked eye it looks just like an ant, but because it was on concrete the large antennae stood out and we thought it was a small Ant-nest Beetle. But closer inspection shows quite different antennae, bulbous rather than filamented. At only 4-5mm tip to tail, it's fairly small. Overall it is dark brown and hairy, with dark red patches on it's shoulders. Not well studied, there have been records of the genus in NT (near Uluru), Victoria & NSW; along with this one & some Mark found in SA. Mark said " the elytral apices are interesting. The apices in S. tanamica are attenuated, whereas in S. kinchegaensis they are rounded. Mine are definitely rounded and the 2 elytrons meet neatly together at the apex when closed. Yours appears somewhat in between - rounded but also slightly attenuated, not to the extreme of the type though: https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/specimens/1023001 This is one of the things I mentioned earlier about having one or only a few specimens in a type series - you can't really gauge the range of variability. Other differences between the 2 include the punctures on the humeral angles (shoulders) of the elytron - bare in S. tanamica but regularly punctured in S. kinchegaensis and pronotum with a small bare, shiny patch on S. tanamica, but densely punctured throughout on S. kinchegaensis." Mark found one over near Bakara in Dec. Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Ladybird (Coccinellidae); 5 species, 3 from Ellura | Transverse Ladybird Coccinella transversalis iNaturalist | Na e m a f c | Thank you Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us Orange lady beetle with black wavy blotches. Thanks to Reiner Richter for identifying the larva for us Imaged 15(1J) in Feb(1), Mar(1), Apr(1), May(1), Jun(2), Jul(1J), Sep(2), Oct(4) & Nov(2) | ||
| Large Spotted Ladybird Harmonia conformis | Na a | Imaged 11 in Apr(1), Jun(1), Aug(1), Sep(2), Oct(3) & Nov(3) | |||
| Spotted Amber Ladybeetle Hippodamia variegata | If e m |
As it's name suggests, a very variable species. Usually with white stripes on it's pronotum, but sometimes not. Introduced from Europe and used as a biological control of cotton aphids in crops, it is now wide spread and an environmental pest. Our apologies for the moth scales interfering with these photo's. They were shed in the container by the previous occupant, not part of this species. Imaged 6 in Mar(1), Nov(4) & Dec(1) | |||
| Striped Ladybird Micraspis furcifera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Reiner Richter, Mark Hura & Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us Eggs, ~1.5mm, Larvae ~6mm & Adults ~5mm long. Pale yellow lady bug with black stripes. Or is it black with yellow stripes The markings on both adults and larvae are quite variable even when on the same bush at the same time; let alone across the country. The main variation is the amount of black vs yellow. The patterns follow the same general outline (but lines can be thicker/thinner or partly missing). We can't tell the difference between the genders, but one we captured laid eggs in the pot, so knew was female. The eggs are yellow; laid vertically. We were surprised when photographing the female that she has emarginate eyes! We've never seen inverts actively helping each other in a civilised manner until the other day. For the first time we found these Ladybird larvae; on a Kidney Saltbush. When we turned the larva over to get a ventral shot, one of the adults we caught at the same time ran over to help right it. When we did the same thing to the adult, this same larva came over to the adult to help it turn back the right way! Photgraphed in Jan, Feb, May, Nov & Dec. Imaged 31(1F,2J) in Jan(3), Feb(5:2J), May(1), Nov(2) & Dec(20:1F,17E) | |||
| Citrus Whitefly Ladybird Serangium maculigerum iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you (LadyRobyn) for confirming and Reiner Richter for helping with the id of this species for us Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & May(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Belid Weevil (Curculionoidea: Belidae); 5 species from Ellura | Spotted Belid Weevil Rhinotia niveopilosa iNaturalist | Na e m f | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Imaged 3 in Nov | |
| Red Belid Weevil Rhinotia scalaris iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 5 in Jan(2), Feb(1), Sep(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Hairy Belid Weevil Rhinotia sp ES03 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Boris said "Most similar to Rhinotia ursa - different by bicoloured hair." Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Red-nosed Belid Weevil Rhinotia sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~12mm long including rostrum. Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Sutural Belid Weevil Rhinotia suturalis iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Anthony Paul for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 7 in Feb(1), Mar(2), Oct(3) & Dec(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Straight-snouted Weevil (Curculionoidea: Brentidae); 1 species from Ellura | Straight-snouted Weevil Brentidae sp | Na e m | Tip to tail this little fella is only 2mm long! Tiny Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Sep(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - True Weevil (Curculionoidea: Curculionidae); 15 species, 12 from Ellura | Fin-faced Weevil Acantholophus planicollis iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long. Notice the butterfly shaped shield on it's face, creating fins that cover the eyes. The only specimen we found was dead unfortunately. Mark said "Your specimen closely matches Waterhouse's (1854) description. He mentions features such as the tubercles and granules as well as the colouring being somewhat variable, but the diagnostic features of your specimen fits with his description." Imaged 1 in Sep | ||
| Riverina Weevil Amycterus riverinae iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~15mm long. All those dimples have a single short stiff hair coming from the middle. Almost like a spine. They eat seeds and other plant matter. Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Mar(1) | |||
| Broad-nosed Weevil Cubicorhynchus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us We thought it might have been Cubicorhynchus setosus, but Boris, on Bowerbird, said "NOT setosus (setae too short). 3 similar WA species at least. Species-level ID would need male sexual characters; this weevil assumed female (slightly convex belly)." ~14mm long, covered in short, down-curved, hairs. Notice the unusual little horns on it's face. Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Variable Hidden-snout Weevil Decilaus cf variegatus iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: White Pebble Weevil (Elaeagna squamibunda) Thank you Otto Bell for confirming the id of this species for us ~5mm long. While it did occasionally have it's snout protruding, as soon as we turned the light on, or it saw motion, it tucked it up, so couldn't get a shot of it. Otto said "Nice find. One of the true Decilaus, maybe D. variegatus although can't be sure." Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| White Pebble Weevil Elaeagna squamibunda iNaturalist | Na e m r | Similar Species: Variable Hidden-snout Weevil (Decilaus cf variegatus) Thank you Boris Büche for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Between ~5 to ~7mm long. When feeling threatened they tuck their rostrum well into their chest & curl up. Regardless their legs are large for their body size. Their body reminds us of the surface of a golf ball. We believe the black mark on this one (on it's side in the profile shot) is where the scales have been "worn"/scraped off, showing the actual under colour (dermis?) is black. As such, black marks like this aren't diagnostic, but damage. We were fairly confident of our genus id, but thought the colours were a bit different to this species. Boris said "In Lea (1913), considerable variability in scale colour described for the species." Imaged 5 in Feb(1) & Oct(4) | |||
| Horned Weevil Encosmia cornuta iNaturalist | Na a | Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Eucalypt Weevil Gonipterus sp iNaturalist | Na e m a | The larva create a faecal shield to help protect from predators. They skeletonise gum leaves. Imaged 12(1M,1F,6J) in Jan(1J), Apr(1), Jul(1), Sep(2:1M,1F), Oct(1), Nov(1J) & Dec(5:4J) | |||
| Wattle Pig Leptopius cf duponti | Na a | Thank you Boris Büche for helping with the id of this species for us Imaged 4 in Oct(1), Nov(2) & Dec(1) | |||
| Crusty Barrel Weevil Medicasta sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Jul | |||
| Chevron Weevil Ophryota cf squamibunda iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Samuel Brown for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long. It's difficult to be sure of species as the other Ophryota species (O. hystricosa & O. rapax, O. subangulata) are not well known. We are confident it's not O. nodosa. Samuel thought it a reasonable id. Imaged 2 in Feb | |||
| Elephant Weevil Orthorhinus cylindrirostris iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Samuel Brown for confirming the id of this species for us A well known Weevil. They are quite large at ~20mm long. They have 4 pairs of tufts that look like horns along their backs, to the top of their head. A very long thin snout and long legs. Their legs have spurs, underneath the thighs, just above the knees. Probably used to aid in gripping to branches, etc. They seem to vary in colour from brown earthy tones to quite light, but always with a vague, angled stripe across their backs. Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Horse-nosed Weevil Pelororhinus crassus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us A medium sized weevil at ~14mm long weight ~0.1gm. The antennae point back slightly, rather than foreward like many other weevils. Covered in very short coloured scales, with long hairs around the muzzle. Very long legs and large feet that can hold onto glass, just. This specimen flew past us straight into a senna bush ~5m in front of us. Beetles fly quite differently to flies. Much slower, quite combersome, with the body hanging. Shape is very important to weevil identification; much more than colour. Notice the way the pronotum is extended over the head, and the way the head indents (in profile) to make a face and separate muzzle. Broad-nosed weevils have a straight line from the forehead to the tip of the snout. This is probably male because of the less humped back. The face is diagnostic and leads to this species. The body colours & patterns are a bit variable. Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Elegant Weevil Pelororhinus facetus iNaturalist | Na e m |
~13mm The "face" has a build up of scales. Unfortunately the 2nd one was covered in cob web, making it difficult to see. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Barrel Weevil Perperus sp | Na e m | Imaged 8 in Feb(1), Apr(2), Jun(1), Sep(1) & Oct(3) | |||
| Sitona Weevil Sitona discoideus | If e m | Imaged 3 in Oct(2) & Nov(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Skin Beetle (Dermestidae); 1 species from Ellura | Varied Carpet Beetle Anthrenus verbasci iNaturalist | If e m a | Similar Species: Brown Globular Springtail (Symphypleona sp ES01) Thank you Lila (FairyPossum) for confirming the id of this species for us A small beetle, ~3mm long, that has cost millions to protect against severely damaging the world's museum specimens. Imaged 7(1J) in May(1J), Sep(1) & Oct(5) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Click Beetle (Elateridae); 8 species, 4 from Ellura | Shielded Click Beetle Agrypnus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | ~8-9mm long. The ventral shot is very important here. When comparing the holotype images of species in this genus on-line very few have cut outs in their exoskeleton underneath for antennae and front leg protection. These cut outs/indents seem quite variable amoung the different species; to the point they don't exist in some. We could find any that match our two specimens so think ours are undescribed. Imaged 4 in Mar(1), May(1), Jun(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Lovely Red Click Beetle Austrocardiophorus amabilis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Laurie Cookson for identifying and Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: 1st Record in SA on Atlas: ~4-5mm long. Laurie said "Small, pronotum roundish shape. While some species are all brown or all black, some have distinctive colour patterns like this one. It is Austrocardiophorus amabilis. Elytra basal third red, postmid transverse white oval spots." Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Red Click Beetle Elateridae sp ES02 | Na a | Imaged 1 in Dec | |||
| Black Click Beetle Elateridae sp ES03 | Na e m a | Imaged 7 in Apr(4), May(1) & Dec(2) | |||
| Brown Click Beetle Elateridae sp ES04 | Na a | Imaged 2 in Dec | |||
| Small Click Beetle Elateridae sp ES05 | Na e m | ~7mm long Imaged 3 in Feb(1) & Mar(2) | |||
| Click Beetle Monocrepidius basalis iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 2 in Sep | |||
| Large Click Beetle Pseudotetralobus sp | Na m | The antennae of the males are diagnostic for this genus. Imaged 1 in Feb | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Clown Beetle (Histeridae); 2 species from Ellura | Horned Matchhead Beetle Pheidoliphila carbo iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Michael Caterino
for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: 1st Atlas record since 1910: ~3mm long. Notice the Charcoal body, leafy legs and orange hair tufts on the shoulders. The head is able to retract all the way in to form a strong protective shell. Imaged 2 in Apr | |
| Clown Beetle Saprinus laetus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying and Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us Quite small @ 4.5 to 7mm, with large mandibles, for it's size, and wide legs clearly used for digging. Very metallic blue/green back/elytra and metallic yellow/gold shield/pronotum. Club like antennae. Notice the body is covered in scores & pits almost sculptured; these are the same on all speciemens so conclude they are not damage marks. The dirt on specimen four (S4) highlights the edge of the elytra quite well. The scores mentioned above are diagnostic and referred to as streaks or stria. Here there are 4 with the 1st (inner) being short, with the other 3 being longer. Go to the iNat link to see a link to a more detailed description. Boris id'ed our S6, we consider the other specimens we've photographed to be the same (even with the large size differences). Imaged 12 in May(3), Aug(2), Sep(1), Oct(1), Nov(3) & Dec(2) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Short-winged Flower Beetle (Kateretidae); 1 species, none from Ellura | Short-winged Flower Beetle Kateretidae sp iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying this species for us These are not often observed in Australia, with only 2 genera known. Imaged 1 in Jul |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Stag Beetle (Lucanidae); 1 species from Ellura | Black Stag Beetle Figulus regularis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~15mm long. These have a smooth ribbed elytra and are quite hairless. This one has a broken head/face, so it's difficult to discern facial features. Imaged 1 in Dec |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Net-winged Beetle (Lycidae); 3 species, 2 from Ellura | Long-nosed Lycid Beetle Porrostoma rhipidium iNaturalist | Na e m f r | Thank you Boris Büche & Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Male are ~13mm to ~15mm long. Imaged 8(6M,1F) in Oct(6:4M,1F) & Nov(2M) | |
| Four-ribbed Lycid Beetle Porrostoma sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Lycid Mimic Longhorn (Stenoderus suturalis) Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Boris said "Note straight costa 1, and also lateral cells of pronotum sharply delimited. " Imaged 2(1M,1J) in May(1J) & Oct(1M) | ||
| Three-ribbed Lycid Beetle Trichalus semicostatus iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying and Janet Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us ~7 to ~13mm long Females. Boris said "Elytra with three complete ribs (costae), instead of four in Porrostoma, plus a short one near scutellum; costa closest to suture bent outwards in anteriour fourth, giving space for extra interval." Imaged 5F in Nov(1F) & Dec(4F) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Soft-winged Flower Beetle (Melyridae); 3 species from Ellura | Red & Blue Flower Beetle Dicranolaius bellulus iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us ~5mm long. Males have a cup on their antennae near the base. Notice the red elytral tips here. These are one of those species that most of this family have been dropped into by ameteurs. But Boris did a review of the group on iNaturalist (& shared the 2017 review by Liu,Slipinski & Pang) to separate them all into their proper names. Imaged 3(1M,2F) in Feb(1M), Aug(1F) & Oct(1F) | ||
| Notched-leg Red & Blue Flower Beetle Dicranolaius cinctus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Gabriele Franzini for identifying and Thomas Mesaglio for helping with the id of this species for us ~4 - 6mm long. We have found these feeding on saltbush flowers We thought this was Dicranolaius bellulus. Thomas said "lack of red elytral tips should eliminate bellulus" D. cinctus can be recognised by a notch in the fore-femur of males (which our females don't have) Interestingly we have found both male & female Dicranolaius bellulus, but we have only found females of this species. Imaged 4F in Jan(2F) & Mar(2F) | |||
| Wrinkled-wing Flower Beetle Dicranolaius rugulipennis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Boris Büche for identifying and Gabriele Franzini for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 2nd Record in SA on Atlas: ~5mm long. We thought this was D. bellulus but Boris indicated the pattern of red & blue are important, and this has the wrong pattern. Boris then said (in relation to the pronotum pattern/marks) "Marks may take about half of pronotum; half of anteriour legs yellowish, etc." Imaged 1M in Oct | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Pintail Beetle (Mordellidae); 2 species from Ellura | Zebra Pintail Beetle Mordella australis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying this species for us ~3mm Imaged 1 in Nov | |
| Golden Pintail Beetle Mordella sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~4mm Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Wedge-shaped Beetle (Ripiphoridae); 1 species, none from Ellura | Wedge-shaped Beetle Macrosiagon sp iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying and (Fornax313) for confirming the id of this species for us Mark said "Most likely female Macrosiagon" We commented that these could easily be mistaken for Pintail Beetles. Mark responded "They are similar to the Mordellidae but in general the Ripiphoridae often (not always) have flabellate antennae (reduced in the females), while the Mordellidae have much simpler antennae (usually filiform or serrate at most). The most obvious difference is in the hind coxae, which is expanded in the Mordellidae, and much more slender in the Ripiphoridae, but this is difficult to see in most photos unless underside shots are taken." Imaged 1F in Mar |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Scarab Beetle (Scarabaeidae); 15 species, 11 from Ellura | Christmas Beetle Anoplognathus montanus iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Malcolm Worthing for confirming and Ethan Beaver for helping with the id of this species for us ~30mm long. The green to purple reflections is diagnostic, as are the large hooks on the feet. There are a number of similar genera in the Anoplognathini tribe; which this belongs. Mark Hura explained "One of the ways to separate Anoplognathus, Calloodes and Repsimus from the other members in the Anoplognathina tribe is by looking at the hind margin of the pronotum. In those 3 genera, the pronotum is 'bilobed', ie. it has a small deviation around the top of the scutellum. This can sometimes be very slight, so care must be taken not to use this feature alone, however if the base of the pronotum is evenly convex, then chances are that it isn't one of those genera. ... The clypeus also varies ... All Anoplognathus are either convex or at most truncated." Malcolm identified ours as a male and said "Male individuals often have an almost pointed/narrow snout (clypeus) where the edges are concave, like the individual you photographed. Females have a wider blunt snout. This rule generally appears to occur in most SA Anoplognathus species. Also, the two spotted species can be distinguished by the number of teeth (points) on their front legs (foretibia). A. pallidicollis has 3 teeth, while A. olivieri has 2 teeth on each front leg. Mark later said "The metallic sheen is only a useful feature here (SA) owing to the lack of other species, so if something out of it's range did turn up here, that wouldn't be a useful feature to go off." Imaged 1 in Dec | ||
| Red Scarab Beetle Cryptodus sp | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Flower Chafer Diaphonia dispar iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~23mm long. The female is basically a black beetle, with 2 "flame" stripes above, 2 orange spots on the rear, along with 4 paler orange/yellow spots on each side of the abdomen. The most interesting visual aspect of this beetle is it's sculptured elytra. The legs are wide and also have abnormally large appendages. Males look a bit like cowboy beetles and are pale brown, with a black 'V' on the pronotum & black edging to the inside edge of the pronotum. These are quite rare and important scientifically, so have included detailed photo's of all our specimens to show any differences between them. Imaged 4(1M,3F) in Mar(3:1M,2F) & Apr(1F) | |||
| Sandy Dung Beetle Euoniticellus fulvus | If a | Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Fiddler Beetle Eupoecila australasiae iNaturalist | Ir a | Thank you Mark Hura & Kurtise Templeton (NutsAboutNature) for confirming the id of this species for us ~20mm long, found by our 16m old Grandson, Kayden. These are an Australian Native, but introduced to South Australia from the Eastern States. There is a very similar, locally native species, Chlorobapta frontalis. Both vary quite a bit in their dorsal patterns such that they are easily confused. However, a ventral shot shows the thighs of Chlorobapta frontalis are very yellow; here the thighs are generally dark brown with a small yellow patch on the front of the hind thighs. Looking further is seems Chlorobapta frontalis doesn't have the longitudinal yellow mark on the pronotum either. These are still a major concern as, like Koalas, they can have a devastating effect on the local environment; pushing out local natives. Some do say that being in a suburban environment (where this was found) is a lost cause. ie so much damage has already been caused by humans. However, within a few days both a Southern Marbled Gecko (Christinus marmoratus) & a Four-toed Earless Skink (Hemiergis peronii) were both found in the same garden. So not all hope is lost in suburbia. Mark said "These seem to have appeared about 8 or 9 years ago, initially centered around the Golden Grove area, and so perhaps came in from landscape supplies as it is the site of large landscape suppliers. These have spread rapidly, covering most of suburban Adelaide now, which is a testament to their strong flying capabilities and their ability to adapt to a wide variety of flowering plants." Imaged 1 in Jun | |||
| Scabby Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES03 | Na e m |
Imaged 1 in Feb | |||
| Beige Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES04 | Na e m |
Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Brown Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES05 | Na e m |
Imaged 2 in Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Hairy Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES06 | Na e m |
Possibly Semanopterus sp Imaged 3 in Mar(1), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Red Chafer Melolonthinae sp ES07 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~17mm long. Very similar to the Brown Chafer. These have different head plate; being wider at the very tip. Notice the 4 large antenna blades, most likely used for pheromone detection. We thought these might be Heteronyxsp. Mark said "Simple tarsal claws separate this from Heteronycini tribe. Most likely Colpochila sp". Imaged 5 in Apr(1), Oct(1), Nov(1) & Dec(2) | |||
| Long Legged Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES09 | Na e m a |
We've found quite a few of these. They look identical but range from 17mm down to ~6mm; which would indicate they are different species. We've just shown a couple of the larger specimens here. Imaged 12 in Feb(2), Mar(2), Oct(2) & Dec(6) | |||
| Hairy Little Scarab Beetle Melolonthinae sp ES12 iNaturalist | Na m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying and Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long. Mark found this beetle and we photographed it in his hand. He said "This is a bit of a mystery species. The only thing I could find that came close to a match was Automolius, based on the arrangement if the hind tibial spurs, the fused tergite/sternite near the apical end of the abdomen, and the stout hairs on the pronotum. Automolius generally should be completely clothed, however the extent of the clothing on the elytra varies. There are some species that have scale-like setae on the elytra, which I think this may have had originally, but has since worn off. There seems to be a whitish mark from each of the pores on the elytra, which may be the remnants of scales that have been rubbed off before us finding it. In addition, females also have bare patches (usually near the back of the elytra) which may vary in size and may have contributed to the nakedness of the elytra. There is a chance that it could also be a Liparetrus, however if so, it is very unlike any that I have ever come across. Generally these have very fine pilosity on the pronotum and not the stout hairs so obvious in your image. There may very well be species like this however that I am not aware of. Basically, unless I find another one that I can examine, we will not really know the true identity of it, and so it is best left as a 'Melolonthinae' for the time being." Imaged 1 in Mar | |||
| Red-corn Flower Beetle Navigator ruficornis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura & Christian H. Moeseneder for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long male. Found head down, bum up in a Melaleuca lanceolata flower. Just saw a black bum hoping it was a Jewel Beetle, but got even luckier! These are VERY rare. The prontoum & bum reflect green, but it wasn't as obvious under the studio lights. It depends on the angle of the light hitting it, and the flash forces that to be 90 deg. Ventrally between the middle & back legs is quite green too. Etymology of the name: a) ruficornis -> rufi = red + cornis = horn (antennae). b) We asked Chris why "Navigator", he said "We named the genus Navigator because of the males "navigating" to the females, during their circling flight. It seemed to be all they were interested in and we only had evidence from very few found on fowers. So your observation is important." Imaged 2M in Feb(1M) & Mar(1M) | |||
| Adelaide Unicorn Beetle Novapus adelaidae iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~17 to ~21mm long. Marie found all 3; the first (male) was dead on the ground; the other female & male were found live on the ground. We spent hours trying to id it via photographs and thought it was Novapus crassus, a very similar species. Mark said "It exhibits all the features of this species - pygidium setose on base and apical ridge; mentum setose on disc; deep, abrupt pronotal excavation with shallow vermiform punctures on the disc; large bifurcate cephalic horn; subobsolete upper carina on hind tibia as well as a number of other features." In 1887 Rev. T. Blackburn states of this species (which he described) "I have seen a good many specimens taken in the Adelaide district.". It's a pity they are so rare today. The females don't have the horn, nor the depression. Imaged 3(1M,1F) in May(1F) & Jun(2:1M) | |||
| Brown Chafer Pimelopus cf sp | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us Large hairy rusty brown beetle. There are many very similar species & genera. Mark said "These are in the Dynastinae sub-family and is most likely Pimelopus, however it could also be a Novapus. Difficult to tell with the females." Imaged 3 in Apr(1), Aug(1) & Oct(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Large Carion Beetle (Silphidae); 1 species from Ellura | Carrion Beetle Ptomaphila lacrymosa iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm body & head length, ~19mm including elytra. A distinctive brown & black beetle with large elytra & pronotum making it look much larger than it really is. Somewhat reminiscent of a Pie Dish Beetle. Imaged 3 in Apr(1), Aug(1) & Oct(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Rove Beetle (Staphylinidae); 7 species, 5 from Ellura | Red-winged Rove Beetle Aleochara (Xenochara) rutilipennis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Boris Büche for identifying this species for us 1st Record in SA on Atlas: ~5mm long Imaged 1 in Feb | ||
| Ant-like Rove Beetle Astenus sp iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you (ChipIok) for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Devil's Coach-horse Beetle Creophilus erythrocephalus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you David (DMail) & Gordon Claridge for confirming the id of this species for us Variable in size, ~12 to ~17mm. While found around carrion (and toilets), they feed on fly larvae on dead animals. In South Australia, the size of the centre spot on the face is a good guide, as only the two Creophilus species (C. erythrocephalus & C. lanos) have been recorded here. Lorenzo Locati said "certainty of species ID comes from terminal segment, orange in lanio, black in erythocephalus". Vik Dunis says of C. erythrocephalus " Head spot: Circular, sharp edged. Elytra: Metallic-blue Tint Terminal Abdominal Segment: Black" Generally the Elytra colour is VERY difficult to pick up in photo's due to the poor colour depth of most commercial cameras. We've highlighted this with 3 different colours (blue, black & green) with 2 different specimens and 2 different cameras. Imaged 4 in Aug(2) & Nov(2) | |||
| Torn Rove Beetle Creophilus lanio iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Boris Büche for confirming the id of this species for us Notice the wings are out here. Normally (as can be seen above) the wings are neatly folded under the elytra and not visible. Vik Dunis says of C. lanio " Head spot: Wide, edge not sharp Elytra: Black Terminal Abdominal Segment: Orange/red" Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Small Rove Beetle Lathrobiina sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Lorenzo Locati for identifying and Boris Büche for helping with the id of this species for us ~5.5mm long Imaged 1 in Dec | |||
| Pintail Rove Beetle Sepedophilus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | ~3mm long. Note the hairy/spiny abdomen that pintail beetles don't have, and the short elytra typical of rove beetles. This one seems a little damaged as it couldn't retract it's wings. Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Apr(1) | |||
| Tiny Rove Beetle Staphylinidae sp ES01 | Na e m | We can't be sure these 2 sightings are the same species. They are both tiny & we managed to measure the 2nd at ~3mm. At this size our equipement isn't sophisticated enough to get detailed diagnostic photographs, so stay with family level id. Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Jun(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Darkling Beetle (Tenebrionidae); 13 species, 12 from Ellura | Black Comb-clawed Beetle Alleculini sp ES01 | Na e m a | Alleculini is a tribe, commonly called Comb-clawed Beetles and are an understudied group. There are a large number of similar looking genera in the tribe, let alone species. We have left this id at the tribe level for now until further information is more readily available. Note the very hairy body & legs, as well as large eyes. Reminiscent of the introduced Egyptian beetle, but much smaller at only 12mm long (head & body). Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Brown Comb-clawed Beetle Alleculini sp ES02 | Na e m | Alleculini is a tribe, commonly called Comb-clawed Beetles and are an understudied group. There are a large number of similar looking genera in the tribe, let alone species. We have left this id at the tribe level for now until further information is more readily available. Note the very hairy body & legs, as well as large eyes. This specimen is quite a bit smaller than the previous at only 8mm long (head & body). Notice also that the legs are shorter and body more parallel than our previous specimen. The head shape, large eyes & padded feet still match. Imaged 3 in Oct(2) & Dec(1) | |||
| Orange-footed Black Beetle Batessia westwoodi iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~20mm long. Many of the beetles in the Cyphaleina sub-tribe can look very similar. The corners of the pronotum vary in size and shape quite a bit within species. There is another similar genus, Nyctozoilus, which has diagnostic hairs on the rear legs of the males. Hence the reason we included hind legs shots to show they are bare here. When we were wondering if it was B. championi Mark said "B. westwoodi and championi have very similar descriptions, but when placed side by side, the differences become a little more obvious. Unfortunately most of the features used to distinguish between the two are variable to an extent, thus further confusing them. This biggest difference externally is in the prothorax, and specifically the hind angles which are preceeded by and abrupt constriction in westwoodi, and by an even sweeping curve in championi. A syntype image for B. championi can be found here. Another major difference is the shape of the elytra which is somewhat tear-shaped in westwoodi (widest near apical third), and almost parallel in championi." Imaged 1 in Feb | |||
| Egyptian Beetle Blaps polychresta iNaturalist | If e m c |
Thank you Dr Chris Lambkin & Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us Large black beetle, approximately 35mm (40mm including elytra extension) long, with a projection out the rear end of the elytra. Imaged 3 in Feb(1) & Mar(2) | |||
| Sharp-antennae Darkling Beetle Brises acuticornis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line ~16-17mm long. The Rusty colour seems consistent with these. Came to the Night Light. A unique combination of: 1. Matt body 2. Light hair covering 3. Small punctuations 4. Fine ridges 5. Front edge of pronotum shape 6. Face, antennae shields 7. Elytra shape Mark said "Interesting - looks like Brises acuticornis (teneral)". We never realised a beetle could have a teneral stage. We've only of this with dragonflies. After we found some links of pinned specimens of Brises acuticornis, Mark said "Both images in your links are of Brises acuticornis duboulayi ..., which has the granulations on the elytra. By contrast Brises acuticornis acuticornis (which yours appears to be) doesn't have the granulations, and the ridges are far less pronounced." Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Feb(1) | |||
| Rainbow Darkling Beetle Chalcopteroides sp ES01 | Na e m |
Similar Species: Metallic Dodonaea Leaf Beetle (Callidemum hypochalceum) Thank you Tom Weir for helping with the id of this species for us Very metallic green back Highly reflective. These look similar to Amarygmus sp. Tom said "Amarygmus tend to have the elytra distinctly striate and punctate whereas Chalcopteroides tend to have only superficial striae and punctures. Also Amarygmus have the mandibles apically bifid whereas in Chalcopteroides they are apically rounded or truncate." Imaged 9 in Mar(1), Apr(1), Sep(2), Oct(4) & Nov(1) | |||
| Finely-punctuated Rainbow Beetle Chalcopteroides sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Strongly Striated Rainbow Beetle Chalcopteroides sp ES03 | Na e m a |
Imaged 4 in Jan(1), Feb(1) & May(2) | |||
| Little Sardinian Beetle Cheirodes sardous iNaturalist | If e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us ~5mm long. We suspected they were introduced as we found them in the kitchen and assumed they had transported in from flowers or veggies. But the records showing distribution seem higher in Southern Australia than the rest of the world; indicating they originated here. Mark said "Introduced here from Nthn Africa/Mediterranean. The first records of it here are from WA in the 1920's and they have been recorded here in SA since the 1960's" We also found a couple of records from Victoria in 1943. This implies it's been in SA longer than we thought. We'd expect them to travel thru SA from WA toward Victoria; unless it was a separate introduction. Interestingly these seem rare in their countries of origin ... perhaps we can catch them & ship them back Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Honey Brown Beetle Ecnolagria rufescens iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Boris Büche & Dianne Clarke for confirming the id of this species for us Male & female ~13mm long. To separate species within the genus the male is needed. These can be recognised by the long thick antennae bases as seen here. In SA we have two very similar species, E. grandis & E. rufescens. To separate them you need to see the antennae segments. The middle & rear leg spines also help. E. rufescens has longer middle leg spines but a slightly smaller rear leg spine than E. grandis. With E. grandis the middle antennal segments also have slight spuring (similar to the 2nd to last two, but not as exaggerated). With E. rufescens the middle antennal segments are relatively symetrical ... round, not spurred. We cannot confirm the females shown here are E. rufescens, but given the one male we found is, and they were found in close proximity it's reasonable to assume they are. Imaged 7(1M,6F) in Jan(1F), Feb(2F), Nov(1M) & Dec(3F) | |||
| Confusing Beetle Salax sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~8.5mm long. The thick legs are reminiscent of a Scarab beetle, but the antennae are wrong for those. We thought it might be a Dusty Surface Beetle (Gonocephalum sp), but what's going on with it's face! A double face shield? No, on analysing the photo's we then realised the lower shields (looking similar to the upper ones) are the upper edges of the mandibles. Mark said "These guys are interesting - they are listed as Salax Guerin-Meneville, 1834, in the Trilobocarini tribe (Pimeliinae subfamily). They are believed to have been introduced here from Argentina or Chile. The species found here is listed as not described. Doesn't seem to be many official records of them, and of those they are mostly from coastal habitats. I have found them reasonably common out our way in disturbed farmland areas." As there is so little information on them, we haven't marked them as introduced. It's possible they are native, but no work has been done to be sure either way. Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Golden Slit-eyed Beetle Seirotrana parallela iNaturalist | Na e m | ~10mm long. It had a very gold reflecting body. Imaged 2 in Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Flour Beetle Tribolium cf sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying and Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us ~3 to ~3.5mm long. Mark id'ed this to a Darkling Beele (Tenebrionidae family), and said "Looks like Tribolium sp. - common pests in grain/flour etc. I'm not that familiar with the tribe" When we then looked into it, at first it seemed like an exact match. We thought the "dozer" like face would be quite unique, but we discovered a number of tribes exhibit this feature. Species such as Lorelus pubipennis look similar, along with members of the tribe Cnemeplatiini. So with-out microscopic inspection & possibly dissection we aren't able to be sure of this id. Without an exact id, it's also hard to be confident of it's origins/native status. Possibly native to the region; or a regional introduction from wetter environs. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Mar(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Pie-dish Beetle (Tenebrionidae: Heleina); 5 species, 4 from Ellura | Transparent Pie-dish Beetle Helea castor iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Mark Hura for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: We have recently discovered the enclosed head is not a diagnostic feature of Helea sp. Notice how round this species is compared to the next (Helea waitei). It's quite unusual as it's brown plus has a transparent "shell". We're not sure if the "brown fluff" is just plain dirt, or possibly excreted by the beetle as camouflage. Another possibility is cobweb from a tiny spider This specimen was 22mm long including the flanges of the Elytra (rear shield / wing covers) and Prothorax (front shell), 18mm just the head & body without the shell. This specimen has 2 ridges starting at the front of the elytra stopping about 3/4's toward the rear, roughly where a 3rd middle ridge starts. Imaged 1 in Jan | ||
| Large Pie-dish Beetle Helea waitei iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Gray Catanzaro for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Notice the single, central ridge running from the front to the back of the elytra on this specimen. Also a small horn on the prothorax between the head & elytra. When threatened they tilt their whole body up on side to present the shell to the threat (protecting their undersides). They are able to move their head inside the shell like a tortoise, so can close the hole off with nearly no eyes showing, or have half the eye poking through. The body & legs are covered in short thick hair. The elytra is fused, so they can't fly. The last specimen we found is covered in a white substance. Possible fungus of some sort. But other beetles exude a fungus like substance to help with camoflage. The 2 specimens we measured were 27mm & 33mm total length. To be clear, this includes the "shell', tip to tail. The actual head to abdomen extremities were 26mm (of the 33mm). 7mm of "shell" front & back. It can be unclear what "length" means with inverts. Normally we don't include appendages, but the shell doesn't seem like an appendage. So we've included it for now, unless otherwise notified. Imaged 9 in Jan(4), Feb(4) & Mar(1) | |||
| Shiny Pie-dish Beetle Pterohelaeus sp ES01 | Na e m | Imaged 3 in Jan(1), Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Red-rimmed Blue Pie-dish Beetle Pterohelaeus sp ES03 | Na e m | ~19mm long with basically thread antennae; however the segments are wide & flat. Has a white speckled/dusty look to it's surface that seems to rub off. The red-rim was easily visible to the naked eye, but held up to light here to highight it plus show the semi-transparent nature of it (you can see the leg underneath it) Imaged 6(2J) in Jan(1), Feb(2), Mar(2J) & Dec(1) | |||
| Rotund Pie-dish Beetle Saragus sp iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Mark Hura for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long. On Bowerbird we all thought these were Cillibus sp, but that's been changed/fixed. While similar, Cillibus sp has much larger flanges on the elytra. Mark later said "Cillibus has well developed elytral flanges as opposed to Saragus which has much less developed/no elytral flanges. The large tibial forespur, which can be seen very well in this image, is also a good indication of Saragus, although a couple of other genera also possess this feature (Trichosaragus - essentially a hairy or scale-covered Saragus & Dysarchus which has different shaped pronotum as well as a number of other features that differ)." Imaged 3 in Jan(1), Oct(1) & Nov(1) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - Beetles (Coleoptera); 170 species, 135 from Ellura - Gnawer Beetle (Trogidae); 5 species, 4 from Ellura | Arrow-warts Carcass Beetle Omorgus euclensis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you (SageOst) for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~15mm It seems the arrow-shaped warts on this beetle are a diagnostic feature of this species. Notice also the tibial teeth are quite angular compared with the other, more rounded teeth, of the other carcass beetles we've found. First published here on 08-Aug-2016 as Omorgus sp ES01. Imaged 2 in May | |
| Small-wart Carcass Beetle Omorgus sp ES03 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~12 to ~13.5mm Most of these Carcass Beetles (Omorgus sp) play dead for long periods of time. We've only managed to photograph one that actually got up and started walking around. This one does seem to have the Arrow-warts of Omorgus euclensis, but the tibial teeth are more rounded and this one is smaller than the other we've measured. We thought it possible a gender difference between Omorgus euclensis, but Paul said "generally external variation in tubercles is not an indication of gender", so we've assumed a different species. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Mar(1) | ||
| Carcass Beetle Omorgus sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~12mm long We thought this was the same as our Omorgus sp ES03, but then noticed they had tiny arrow-warts/tubercles, where as this one didn't. It was found on the same day one of those. It does lead to the question if it's just individual differences, or gender variations. But it does seem the tubercle shapes/sizes are diagnostic so we are assuming this is a different species. We don't have too many carcasses that we know of around. Can't smell them anyway, so it's always a surprise to find them. The do come to night lights. It's possible they eat roo scats, of which we have an abundant supply! Imaged 1 in Mar | ||
| Finely-lined Carcass Beetle Omorgus sp ES05 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Paul M Hutchinson for identifying and Kurtise Templeton (NutsAboutNature) for confirming the id of this species for us ~16mm long We thought this might be Omorgus perhispidus but Paul said "Omorgus perhispidius has distinct long setae on side of pronotum and does not obtain 16mm.", so not a match for this species. Further, in reference to Trogidae generally Paul said "Trogidae in Australia is composed of 1 introduced Trox and the remaining are in the Genus Omorgus. Trox has the scutellum "U" shaped whereas Omorgus are hastate "arrow-head" shaped. Within Omorgus there are 3 distinct groups. First the large flightless species which have fused elytra. They are usually quite localised and not often encountered. There are appx 10 species mostly represented in WA and are of special interest to me and hopefully will publish on them. The second group have unfused elytra, but due to reduced hind wings are most likely flightless. There are 9 species. I have little knowledge as mostly eastern States species and I have no representative specimens. The third and most common are the group that is capable of flight, and are attracted to light. There are 37 species. Adults and larva can be found under carcasses (old dried). Scholtz revised the Australian Trogidae in 1986 with appx 6 species described since. The key mainly utilises characters of the legs, head, pronotum and particularly elytra. The key is difficult to use, and I have found it necessary to extract genitalia to confirm species, particularly for species in group 2. This only works for males. External sexual characters are not mentioned by Scholtz. A subsequent paper on Scarabaeoidea suggests a difference in angle of abdominal sternite 2. I have determined distinct external sexual character in 2 species only, thus generally external variation in tubercles is not an indication of gender. As there are several species that are very similar, particularly in group 3 I do no recommend relying on available image for identification purposes. The available images do not represent all species (appx 10 of 50) AND the diagnostic characters are not mentioned." Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Apr(1) | ||
| Large Carcass Beetle Omorgus tatei iNaturalist | Na r | Thank you Paul M Hutchinson for confirming the id of this species for us ~26mm Not only is this the largest carcass beetle we've found, it also has distinctively large warts, or tubercles. Imaged 2 in Oct | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura | |||
| True Bugs have a proboscis as their feeding apartus. Juvenile hemipterans are similar to their parents, smaller with no wings, but often wing buds. Beetles, which can look similar, have mandibles; they also have their forwings hardened (called the Elytra). Juvenile beeltes are larvae, all soft, looking nothing like their parents. Phil Warb said "Many species in the sub-order Heteroptera have forewings called hemelytra which are hardened at the base and are more membranous apically. Many of these form the characteristic cross pattern that we see in many photo's." | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Aphid (Aphididae); 1 species from Ellura | Green Peach Aphid Myzus persicae | Na e m | Imaged 2 in Sep(1) & Oct(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - True Spittlebug (Cercopoidea, Cercopidae); 1 species from Ellura | Brown Spittlebug Bathyllus albicinctus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Francesco Martoni for confirming the id of this species for us Adults ~6mm long. They make a froth (akin to a frog nest pontoon) in plants for their young to hide in while they suck juices from the plant, as can be seen here. As far as we know this is the only species of true spittlebug in SA. We confused the nymph with a Cicada; at least they are related. Newly emerged speciemens can be very pale. Additionally Les Day said "B. albicinctus does appear to be variable in colouring." Imaged 4(2J) in Aug(1J), Sep(2:1J) & Nov(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Tube Spittlebug (Cercopoidea, Clastopteridae); 2 species, 1 from Ellura | Green Tube Spittlebug Chaetophyes sp iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 1 in Nov | |
| Tube Spittlebug Machaerotinae sp iNaturalist | Na e m | We discovered these tiny tubes on gum buds and thought they may be some sort of tiny Paper Wasp nests. We have now found out they are spittlebug houses/shelters/hides. They are known to feed on gum trees. There does appear to be two different types - a smooth nest & a rough one. The tubes are made from excretions from the larvae contained inside. Whether this rough texture indicates a different species or not we don't know. The rough bent nest was ~13mm long, and you can see a "closed" cell inside. This is actually the posterior end of the larva. It has a protective plate on it's rear end to seal the tube. The tube contains one larva, similar to a case moth, or psyllid. Imaged 1 in Dec | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Cicada (Cicadidae); 5 species, 3 from Ellura | Undescribed Buzzer Cicadettina sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Lindsay Popple for identifying and Prof David Emery & Francis (CicadaExplorer) for confirming the id of this species for us ~14mm forewing length. ~14mm head & body length. We thought this was Two-dot Smoky Buzzer (Myopsalta binotata). Lindsay said "Undescribed genus most closely allied to Adelia" Imaged 2(1M,1F) in Nov(1M) & Dec(1F) | |
| Cicada Cicadettina sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na c | Thank you Dr Lindsay Popple for identifying this species for us ~22mm long. Notice it's hairy eyes, like a line right through the middle of the back third. This is a nymph and was crawling up our Daughter-in-law's leg. We assume it just dug it's way out of the lawn. They can live underground for up to 7 years, climb up a tree, shed their skin for the last time and emerge as adults. They then mate , with females laying eggs, and they die within ~2 weeks. We most likely won't ever find out what species this is, but it's so rare to find a live nymph we thought it worth posting anyway. If we had put it on some wood in a container, it probably would have shed and we'd be able to determine species. Next time, if we ever find one again. Imaged 1J in Dec | ||
| Subcoastal Squawker Pauropsalta accola iNaturalist | Na e m r | Thank you Dr Lindsay Popple for identifying and Ethan Beaver for helping with the id of this species for us Reference Link It's been very useful to have found 2 of the same species as you can now compare the colour variations between the teneral stage & a full coloured adult; which is much blacker. The following relates to Specimen 2: ~20mm body length with red wing veins and a bronze body. There are 3 large, red, ocelli just in front of the middline of the eyes. It has some strange green "milky" colourations on the wings and body which, on closer inspection, is the same on the pale abdomen stripes. The hind wings make a dark pointed "peak" above the abdomen. The forearms are armed with heavy set spines. Lindsay said "The specimen is still partly teneral, which makes it difficult to identify. The dorsal portion of tergite 1 is clearly visible, which actually rules out both P. confinis and P. extensa. So need to consider other alternatives. Given consideration of its size, it is most likely to be Pauropsalta accola" Imaged 3(2M) in Jan(1M), Oct(1) & Dec(1M) | ||
| Large Mallee Squawker Pauropsalta infuscata iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Dr Lindsay Popple for identifying and Ethan Beaver for helping with the id of this species for us Lindsay has since said "The key to Pauropsalta species requires quite precise measurements and close examination of a specimen." ... they "can only be identified to genus from photographs." As such, these id's are tentative/estimates. Imaged 1 in Jan | ||
| Grass-buzzer Toxala sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver & Dr Lindsay Popple for identifying and Dr Lindsay Popple for confirming the id of this species for us Female was ~15mm long Dr Lindsay Popple said it was a tentative id Imaged 1F in Dec | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Jumping Tree Bug (Cimicomorpha, Miridae); 6 species from Ellura | Saltbush Mirid Coridromius chenopoderis iNaturalist | Na e m f | A tiny bug at ~2.5mm that has striped legs & face. More like a plant hopper with it's powerful hind legs. It's severely bent wings are another obvious diagnostic feature. Notibly this genus utilises a Traumatic insemination technique to "copulate". Imaged 2 in Apr(1) & Sep(1) | |
| Green Mirid Creontiades dilutus iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Danilo Lüdke & Janet Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 5(1J) in Mar(2), May(1), Sep(1) & Oct(1J) | ||
| Cactus Bearing Seed Bug Cysteorrhacha cactifera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 1st Record on Atlas & iNat ~4.5 to ~5mm long Looking at the dorsal view, you wouldn't expect this to be anything other than fairly normal bug. But the profile view shows a "scutellal lobe" with spines emminating from it. This isn't a singular abnormallity, we found 9 all with the same shape. As it turns out, it's a diagnostic feature and is featured in it's name - the cactus refers to the spiney protruberance on it's scutellum. Imaged 5 in Sep(2) & Oct(3) | ||
| Pale Spotted Mirid Metopocoris sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for helping with the id of this species for us ~6mm long, 4 segment antennae. Danilo highlighted it looked a lot like Metopocoris cassiae. But it seems it's too small and the pronotum is quite dark, so possibly an undescribed species. Imaged 1 in Sep | ||
| Hairy Large-eyed Mirid Bug Miridae sp | Na e m | Nearly 5mm long Imaged 3 in Jun(1), Jul(1) & Aug(1) | ||
| Colourful Seed Bug Rayieria sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Anna A Namyatova for confirming and Cynthia Chan for helping with the id of this species for us ~6.5mm long. Cynthia suggested is may be Rayieria frontalis, and asked for Anna's confirmation. Anna (who described Australia's Rayieria) said it was too shiny, so an undescribed species. Imaged 1 in Jan | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Assassin Bug (Cimicomorpha, Reduviidae); 7 species from Ellura | Fury Assassin Bug Coranus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Brown Senna Bug (Melanacanthus cf scutellaris) Imaged 2 in Nov(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Wingless Corsair Assassin Ectomocoris sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for helping with the id of this species for us ~13.5mm. With these wingless ( "apterous") species, it becomes difficult to differentiate adults and nymphs, as wing development is normally a simple indicator to separate them. In response Danilo said "In Reduviid adults the pronotum is subdivided into fore and hind lobe (not in nymphs) and adults have three tarsal segments (nymphs two). In a nutshell, in nymphs many other structures and appendices looks somewhat more roundish, less developed, but the differences are difficult to describe, there is no general rule for all taxa. We can also consider the genitalia, which aren't fully developed in nymphs. This is a male, the genitals form a kind of capsule. Females have an ovipositor surpassing the abdomen and thereby forming its black tip. The male genital capsule does not reach the abdominal margin, that's why the tip of the abdomen looks rather roundish and red from above. Danilo added "The pads of the tibiae are called 'fossula spongiosa', a structure of hairs and spines producing a viscous substance. It helps to grab and hold prey." On another obs Danilo said "Wingless form, often quickly ID'd as E. patricius, however such IDs aren't reliable as apterous forms of similar species and their differences are yet unknown." Danilo said of our find "What's interesting about your specimen is that this is apparently not Ectomocoris ornatus! The wingless form was formerly called E. patricius but proved to belong to E. ornatus as well. However, the body length of E. ornatus (including measurements for E. patricius) is not known to be < 17.3 mm." ... "yours at 13.5 mm, together with the dark legs we have strong evidence that this is something either undescribed or previously not known from SA! It certainly fits best E. interioris known only from central arid WA (body length 13.4-13.7 mm)." ... "this is a find of high scientific importance" Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Apr(1) | |||
| Assassin Bug Oncocephalus sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Adult ~15mm long. Interesting bugs Assassins (Reduviidae), one of the few predatory/carnivorous true bugs (order Hemiptera). Most are vegetarian. One easy diagnostic difference over the similiar Alydidae family are the large front legs as can be seen here; used to hold it's prey. Not all assassins have them, but no Alydidae's do. A more guaranteed diagnostic, but harder to see, is that Assassin's have a curved rostrum / proboscis Imaged 4(1J) in Nov(3:1J) & Dec(1) | |||
| Assassin Bug Oncocephalus sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | ~13mm long Imaged 2 in Oct | |||
| Assassin Bug Oncocephalus sp ES03 iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 2 in Oct | |||
| Orange Spotted Ground Assassin Bug Peirates punctorius iNaturalist | Na e m |
Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Pale Assassin Bug Perissopygocoris pallidus iNaturalist | Na e m f |
Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~11.5mm long. Predominately pale brown with darker brown patches. Has hairy antennae & a "spine", or projection, eminating from the scutellum. Imaged 3(2M) in Feb(1M), Nov(1) & Dec(1M) | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Thread-legged Assassin Bug (Cimicomorpha, Reduviidae, Emesinae); 3 species from Ellura | Small Thread-legged Assassin Bug Armstrongula tillyardi iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 1st Record on Atlas since 1978: ~7mm long. Looks similar to Ploiaria sp. Fairly hairless. White knees, striped legs, patterned wings & body. Notice the significant spines on the front legs Imaged 2 in Feb(1) & Mar(1) | |
| Large Thread-legged Assassin Bug Emesinae sp iNaturalist | Na e m | ~16 to ~18mm long. Legs & antennae span a huge 70mm! Fairly hairless. White knees, plain body, wings & legs. We'd never seen a thread-legged assassin bug before and suddenly 3 came to the night light. There were 2 species, this one and a smaller one. Imaged 2 in Mar | ||
| Tiny Thread-legged Assassin Bug Empicoris sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~3.5mm long. Dark, very patterned body with very stipy legs. Danilo said "Closest to E. scrabraventris" Imaged 1 in Apr | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Soft Scale (Coccoidea, Coccidae); 2 species, 1 from Ellura | Wattle Tick Scale Cryptes baccatus iNaturalist | Na a c | Thank you Thomas Mesaglio & (InsideRelic) for confirming the id of this species for us Adult Females are ~4mm diameter. There are no appendages to worry about here Imaged 200F in Jul(150F) & Sep(50F) | |
| Scale Insect Pulvinaria cf sp ES01 | Na e m | Thank you Prof Lyn Cook for identifying this species for us Primarily brilliant white (which is the egg sack) with a brown cap (the actual insect). Found on saltbush (Atriplex sp). This is a tentantive id, the cf indicating "it looks like", "it might", but not definate. Lyn said "They’re coccids with a long ovisac. Possibly Pulvinaria but the whole group needs revision." Imaged 7 in Aug(1), Sep(4) & Oct(2) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Armored Scale Insect (Coccoidea, Diaspididae); 1 species, none from Ellura | Sedge Scale Insect Furcaspis cladii iNaturalist | Na a c | Thank you Prof Benjamin Normark (BNormark) for confirming the id of this species for us <2mm diameter on Clustered Sword-sedge (Lepidosperma congestum) Imaged 2 in Jul |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Felt Scale (Coccoidea, Eriococcidae); 1 species from Ellura | Eucalypt Gall Apiomorpha strombylosa iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Mealybug (Pseudococcidae cf sp) Thank you Prof Penelope Gullan for confirming the id of this species for us We've cut galls open before to see what's inside, but this is the first time we've found something. We thought it was a larva, but it's actually a female adult. You can see the 6 "legs", more like claws, in the photo's. Clearly not required anymore, but a left over ancestral "artifact"; living it's life inside the mutated Eucalypt stem. We're still not quite sure how the males, that live a whole 2 days outside the "casing", manage to mate with females embedded inside their "casing". We found this specimen on a very stunted, sick looking, mallee "bush". You know when you have a native plant when it's attacked by insects. Insects don't know what to do with introduced species; so generally treat them like a lump of rusty steel (ie not interested, leave it alone, so the introduced species thrives - oops!). Imaged 2 in Jul(1) & Aug(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Giant Scale (Coccoidea, Monophlebidae); 2 species from Ellura | Large Mealybug Monophlebulus sp ES01 | Na e m |
We are not sure why one of the group was orange; they are clearly cohabiting and have the same body shape so reasonably sure they are all one species. Imaged 1 in Jul | ||
| Small Mealybug Monophlebulus sp ES02 | Na e m |
It's possibly a nymph, and at 2mm body & head length is not very big. Imaged 1 in Jan | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Mealy Bug (Coccoidea, Pseudococcidae); 1 species from Ellura | Mealybug Pseudococcidae cf sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Eucalypt Gall (Apiomorpha strombylosa) Many thanks to Ken Walker at Bowerbird who contact Dr Gullan (Australia's expert in scale insect group) on our behalf. She said "Male scale insects are hard to ID, but if it has 4 simple eyes, it's probably a male mealybug (or perhaps an eriococcid). It's not really possible to go further." Imaged 3(1M,2F) in Feb(2F) & Mar(1M) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Broad-headed Bug (Coreoidea, Alydidae); 2 species from Ellura | Brown Senna Bug Melanacanthus cf scutellaris iNaturalist | Na e m a f |
Similar Species: Pacific Damsel Bug (Nabis kinbergii) : Fury Assassin Bug (Coranus sp) : Green Seed Bug (Lygaeidae sp) There are 5 families that look similar 1. Broad-headed Bug (Alydidae; tend to be longer & thinner), 2. Jumping Tree Bug (Miridae), 3. Seed Bug (Lygaeidae), 4. Damsel Bug (Nabidae) & 5. Assassin Bug (Reduviidae; highly variable family, but have curved rostrum/proboscis tucked underneath. Easy to see in a side shot - but you have to photograph the side of it to be sure). Sometimes we take photo's that look nothing like the bug we see with our eyes. This is one case, so we've published both "naked eye" looking shots and others with more detail that we still want to share. An interesting species this, apart from the talk above, it's usual venacular name is "Brown Bean Bug" .... now it annoys us to find common names of natives that have nothing to do with natives. Here, eg, there is no native bean that we are aware of. BUT these guys love senna (and probably acacia), in fact probably any legume ... guess what! Beans are legumes. So how about we name them after a native species of plant that they love, rather some agricultural pest term. There is another species that is very similar to this one also found in SA; M. margineguttatus. According to the original description, it "Differs from M. scutellaris, Walk., by the prominently spotted connexivum, differently coloured markings through-out, posterior area of the pronotum more distinctly raised and wrinkled, &c.". When Danilo Lüdke id'ed one on iNat he said "see the spotted connexivum, the lateral line only distinct along head and prothorax and the darker scutellum". Danilo also highlighted a 3rd, M. funebris, but this isn't recognised by Atlas (or the AFD) as yet. Imaged 19 in Jan(6), Feb(2), Mar(1), May(1), Aug(2), Sep(1), Oct(4), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |
| Long Broad-headed Bug Mutusca brevicornis iNaturalist | Na e m a | Similar Species: Pacific Damsel Bug (Nabis kinbergii) Thank you Tony Daley for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long, with varying levels of green colours on the body. Imaged 2 in Jun(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Leaf Footed Bug (Coreoidea, Coreidae); 4 species, 3 from Ellura | Wingless Coreid Bug Agriopocoris froggatti iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~10mm long males, ~13mm long female, chocolate brown and very spiny. Males have a narrower abdomen than the females. The speciemen we recently found at Ellura is slightly longer and has some minor differences in colour, shown here as S3. Possibly location variations, or a different species. Tony Daley on Bowerbird said "There are a couple of differences in the form of the abdomen to separate the wingless adults from the similar nymphs, but easiest to point to is the two pairs of abdominal dorsal scent glands down the middle which are active in nymphs and thus clearly seen but not active, and thus not distinguished from surrounding surface in colour, in adults." The scent glands Tony refers appear like 4 black lumps in the nymphs that are missing from our two specimens. These can have wings, makes them look quite different. Danilo said "A. dollingi (known only from WA) and A. porcellus are out as the shape of the male abdomen is different (connexival segment VII) and the remaining A. chadwicki is not confirmed for SA and differs in lacking the bristle-bearing tubercles, the legs and the lateral margins of the pronotum are rather smooth. And this leaves us with A. froggatti" Agriopocoris porcellus also occurs in SA, and the nymphs of A. porcellus & A. froggatti can't be seperated. In relation to this, Danilo also said "I believe that the high density of slender thorns ( = setigerous tubercles) on the surface will not be found in nymphs of porcellus and chadwickii, but this is what I believe and not a proof." Danilo said "Literature says that most of them are found on Acacia or related Leguminosae." One assumes this is their preferred food source. Imaged 4(3M,1F) in Jan(1M), Sep(1M), Oct(1F) & Dec(1M) | |
| Eucalyptus Bug Amorbus obscuricornis iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Anthony Paul for confirming the id of this species for us When we asked Danilo Lüdke about gender differences with Amorbus in general, he said "Indeed there's a distinct dimorphism. Males differ from females in having the hind femora much more thickened, the spines more produced, and the shape of the tip of the abdomen is different, females are also bigger." Imaged 24(13J) in Feb(5:4J), Mar(6:3J), Apr(9:3J), May(2J) & Nov(2:1J) | ||
| Eucalyptus Tip Wilter Amorbus rhombifer iNaturalist | Na e m a | The instar we caught was ~14mm long. The adults get a lot larger. The name refers to the fact they suck the juices out of the new growth of Eucalyptus trees, which then wilt and brown off. Imaged 4J in Feb(3J) & Mar(1J) | ||
| Crusader Bug Mictis profana iNaturalist | Na e m a f | Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli & Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 4th Instar was ~8mm, 5th instar ~13mm, adult female ~18mm. A dark grey/black bug with orange stripes on its back & antennae. Nymphs also have orange stripes on their legs. The common name of course comes from the Orange Pattern on the back of the adults. Adult males have very large spines on their rear tibias (legs); these are missing on females. We are estimating the instar stage based on the colour of the wing buds (more orange=older); along with views on-line of other instar patterns. The nymphs have 2 raised orange patches on their abdomen which are scent glands; emitting a fowl scent as a defence mechanism. We've never smelt it though. Notice in the 5th instar the hind wing buds are quite clear in profile view. Imaged 11(1M,3F,6J) in Jan(3:1M,2J), Feb(1J), Mar(1J), Apr(3:1F,1J), May(1J), Jun(1F) & Sep(1F) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Ground Dwelling Bug (Coreoidea, Hyocephalidae); 1 species from Ellura | Ground Dwelling Bug Maevius sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~9mm long and flightless. These dark bugs live under stones in sandy soil & gravel. They are very rarely found or seen. We thought this might be Hyocephalus aprugnus. But Danilo said "The fore femora are armed with spines", making it Maevius sp. They look very similar to juvenile assassin bugs, but their proboscus is straight, not curved. Also their wings are "squared off", nearly all true bug invert wing-buds are rounded. Usually the number of antennae segments is diagnostic. But you can see here one side has 4 & the other 3. A mutation perhaps? We find this occurs with bugs sometimes. Ratios/lengths of the antennae with 4 segments is diagnostic. Further Danilo provided a key "The key is as follows (A1-4 = antennal segments) A3 > A4, A1 > 1.95 mm (at least as long as head), profemora unarmed = Hyocephalus aprugnus A4 > A3, A1 shorter than head, profemora armed with spines = Maevius". Imaged 1 in Dec |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Scentless Plant Bug (Coreoidea, Rhopalidae); 1 species from Ellura | Red Eyes Bug Leptocoris mitellatus iNaturalist | Na e m f r | Similar Species: Peaceful Seed Bug (Spilostethus pacificus) Thank you Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long. A mainly dark grey bug with red/orange highlights. The instars are very orange/red. Apparantly they like dark moist places. They don't cause wood rot, but like to live in it. So finding them near a wooden dwelling is an indicator of a leaky roof. Genital examination is required to separate species within the genus. Accordings to Gross, "This is apparently the commonest of the Australian species and is the only species in Southern Australia." As such we have identified these to species based on location. On Atlas, SA Museum has since found Leptocoris tagalicus in SA, but they look different; they don't have any black on the body. Imaged 44(1M,1F,22J) in Feb(3), Mar(5), Apr(23:1M,1F,19J), May(4:1J), Jun(3:1J), Oct(1J), Nov(3) & Dec(2) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Achilid Planthopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Achilidae); 2 species, 1 from Ellura | Black-laced Planthopper Plectoderini sp iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Won-Gun Kim for helping with the id of this species for us Imaged 1 in Dec | |
| Vertical Wing Achilid Hopper Tropiphlepsia badia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Won-Gun Kim, Mark Ridgeway & Nick Lambert for confirming the id of this species for us Of those we've measured, they range from ~3mm to ~4mm. That's quite a size variation. We're not sure if this is due to gender, normal variation, or actually different species that look the same. Imaged 6(1J) in Oct | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Lacehopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Cixiidae); 2 species from Ellura | Speckled Lacehopper Aubirestus semicirculatus iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: Imaged 1 in Oct | |
| Mallee Lacehopper Ozoliarus sp | Na e m | ~6mm body length. Lacehoppers have very chiselled faces which can be useful for id, so always best to get anterior shots. As well as wing venation, dorsal and alantennae & ocellii location. Notice here the ocelli below the eye in front of the antenna. Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Dictyopharid Planthopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Dictyopharidae); 4 species from Ellura | Longheaded Hopper Thanatodictya cf hebe iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Won-Gun Kim for identifying this species for us This is the more usual type seen, with the straight snout. WonGun said "According to Kirby (1906), Thanatodictya hebe has 2 cells in the stigma." Later he said "Among the 5 Australian species of the genus Thanatodictya, T. praeferrata and T. bifasciata have distinct features, and so they are easily separable. But the difference between the remaining 3 species is somewhat unclear and their separation based on the key is not easy." These 3 other known species are T. hebe, T. insignis & T. psyche. Imaged 1 in Dec | |
| Curved Longheaded Hopper Thanatodictya sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Won-Gun Kim for helping with the id of this species for us We have found that all specimens have different wing venation. It's quite possible that the curved snout and wing venation are not diagnostic. We don't count these as separate species now; until some research is done on them to determine what diagnostic features separate the species. WonGun said "According to Kirby (1906), ... this one has 3 cells, and so it may be possibly T. insignis." But then when he saw the entire photo, he remarked "The shape of its cephalic process looks unusual." The "cephalic process" is the curved snout. Looking at other T. insignis, it doesn't seem to match. They generally have longer, even upturned, snouts. It's possible it's a gender variation, but there's not enough knowledge to be sure either way. So have left it at genus. Imaged 1 in Oct | ||
| Longheaded Hopper Thanatodictya sp ES03 iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Longheaded Hopper Thanatodictya sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Won-Gun Kim for helping with the id of this species for us Won-Gun said "The stigma has 2 cells and so, it is one of hebe and psyche. Although Kirkaldy (1906) separates the two species by the darkness/brightness of the front wing, it's hard to tell whether it is darker or paler." Imaged 1 in Dec | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Planthopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Eurybrachidae); 3 species, 2 from Ellura | Pale Wattle Hopper Dardus abbreviatus iNaturalist | Na e m |
~3.5mm long Notice the emarginate eye around the antennae (underneath the eye). There is a knob like process on it, this is diagnostic for the Eurybrachidae family. Notice the frons (face) is evenly rugose, with no major lumps & bumps; this is diagnostic for the genus. Notice the red body (barely visible under the wings), one of the diagnostics for the species. Imaged 1 in Feb | |
| Wattle Hopper Dardus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | A little hopper ~4-5mm long. You'll notice our specimen has lost one of it's middle feet. With very dark specimens like these we bump up brightness to highlight details, making the background unrealistically bright. It can be considered a camera artifact and highlights the need to be careful when considering colours in photo's. Imaged 3 in Jan(1) & Nov(2) | ||
| Gum Tree Hopper Platybrachys lurida iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Jason Van Weenen (JVanWeenen) for confirming and Dr Ken Walker & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 1st Record on Atlas & iNat Imaged 2 in Nov | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Flatid Planthopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Flatidae); 2 species, 1 from Ellura | Grey Planthopper Anzora unicolor iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Apr(1) | |
| Green Planthopper Siphanta sp | Na e m a | Imaged 8 in Mar(2), Jun(1), Oct(1), Nov(3) & Dec(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Lantern Fly (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Fulgoridae); 1 species from Ellura | Lantern Fly Rentinus dilatatus | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Aug |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Ricaniid Planthopper (Hopper: Fulgoroidea, Ricaniidae); 4 species, 3 from Ellura | Broad-winged Planthopper Aprivesa varipennis iNaturalist | Na e m r | 1st Live Photo on-line:~6.5mm long, ~19mm wingspan. Imaged 10 in Jan(1), Feb(1), Sep(1), Oct(3), Nov(2) & Dec(2) | ||
| Undescribed Planthopper Ricaniidae sp ES01 | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Dec | |||
| Broad-winged Planthopper Scolypopa australis iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Alan Melville for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Record in SA on Atlas: We don't know what it is, but insects with clear wings and black patterned edges just enthral us Marie saw this "moth" on the kitchen fly-screen. As soon as I saw it, straight into the insect box into the fridge. Didn't want to miss any important details. Thought it'd be easy to id; never having seen one, and being so unique. The only issue was the location component shows only the eastern seaboard. Imaged 3 in Feb | |||
| Broad-winged Planthopper Scolypopa stipata | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Leafhopper (Hopper: Membracoidea, Cicadellidae); 10 species, 8 from Ellura | Mottled-brown Leafhopper Bakeriana rubra iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 1 in May | |
| Yellow-headed Leafhopper Brunotartessus cf fulvus | Na m | A fierce looking little hopper as an instar. Quite pretty when fully grown. Imaged 1 in Sep | ||
| Milky Planthopper Cicadellidae sp ES01 | Na e m | There are many species of these little hoppers that have the same body shape, but many different colours & patterns. Body length of this one is ~5mm. Imaged 2 in Dec | ||
| Black-spotted Planthopper Cicadellidae sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Oct | ||
| Mottled-head Gum-leafhopper Eurymeloides punctata | Na e m | Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Elegant Hopper Neovulturnus sp iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 2 in Apr | ||
| Seed Mimicking Leafhopper Notocephalius hartmeyeri iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: What a curious little brown bug this is. ~9mm long (body & snout). Interestingly appendages aren't included in invert lengths; ie wings, legs, antennae, palps, etc. However, the snout on this is so long it doesn't seem fair The antennae seem tiny, but inspecting underneath shows they start as the typical club like, then finish of as a fine haired, antennae of this family of Hemiptera. The snout & body is concave under and the whole upper surface is covered in dimples, which reflect in the flash of the camera. It would be difficult for most animals to feed with the mouth in the middle, but being a true bug, this has a proboscis to such the juices out of plants. It can articulate quite well in the middle to over come obstacles in the terain and can certainly hop; as it's name implies. We didn't see if fly though. It's snout seems to mirror it's wings, perhaps a defensive trait; like the false eyes on butterflies. There seem to be two pale spots on the snout in front of the eyes, these are possibly defunct ocellii. Ventrally it's snout is primarily black, with a black stripes on the abdomen. It also seems to be covered in small scales underneath. Imaged 2 in Aug | ||
| Tamarix Leafhopper Opsius stactogalus iNaturalist | If e m | Thank you Solomon Hendrix for identifying this species for us Here's an Australian gov' site: NSW DPI The antennae are quite long and thin with these (you have to look closely at the 1st photo to see it). There are slight differences with above link and our photo's but this could be due to head tilt & dead vs alive specimens. Imaged 1 in Feb | ||
| Brown Leafhopper Orosius orientalis | Na e m | Imaged 5 in Mar(1), Apr(1), Oct(1), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Flat-head Leafhopper Thymbrini sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Solomon Hendrix for identifying this species for us ~10mm. Originally thought this was Stenocotis depressa. However, you can see the snout is too short and the eyes too large, compared to other images of this species. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Dec(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Horned Treehopper (Hopper: Membracoidea, Membracidae); 1 species, none from Ellura | Acacia Horned Treehopper Sextius virescens iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 7 in Jan(1), Feb(1), Apr(2), Nov(1) & Dec(2) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Big-eyes Bug (Lygaeoidea, Geocoridae); 1 species from Ellura | Grey Big-eyes Bug Unicageocoris griseus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~4.5mm long. We thought the different coloured bugs shown here (red abdominal marks vs green) may have been a different species. But Danilo considers them to be the same species. We can only assume the colour variation is perhaps due to their food source; or perhaps gender. The green specimens also have have less black on their abdomen. Imaged 6 in Jan(2), Oct(1) & Nov(3) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Seed Bug (Lygaeoidea, Lygaeidae); 4 species from Ellura | Green Seed Bug Lygaeidae sp | Na e m | Similar Species: Brown Senna Bug (Melanacanthus cf scutellaris) Thank you to Fabien Piednoir for correcting our error with these He said "Lygaeidae have 4 antenna segments; 4-segmented antennae are plesiomorphic feature, not characteristic to Lygaeidae, but rather non-Pentatomoidea Pentatomomorpha : Aradoidea + Lygaeoidea + Pyrrhocoroidea + Coreoidea. Lygaeoidea are actually characterized by the low (4 max) number of wing veins in wing membrane." Imaged 1 in Oct | |
| Red-banded Seed-eating Bug Melanerythrus mactans iNaturalist | Na e m r | Similar Species: Peaceful Seed Bug (Spilostethus pacificus) Thank you Stephen Fricker, Anthony Paul, Fabien Piednoir & Lila (FairyPossum) for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long. This specimen seems to have an extra ocellus. We assume this is an aberant mole of sorts, as the ocelli are just above the compound eyes. Imaged 2 in Sep(1) & Oct(1) | ||
| Rutherglen Bug Nysius vinitor iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Marina Cheng for confirming the id of this species for us It's important to clarify that Marina comfirmed our identification on the 1st photo only. She hasn't seen the others, which we have extrapolated ourselves. As always, id of invert's by photo is always suspect but is the only tool we have. Any photographic site like ours can only be considered a guide. But if you only have photo's too, then matching to ours here is a reasonable guess. Our site is a good start for locals to then begin your research to confirm elsewhere. Imaged 26(3M,3F,2J) in Jan(4), Mar(1), Apr(2), May(1), Jun(2:1J), Jul(1J), Aug(2:1M,1F), Oct(4), Nov(7:1M,1F) & Dec(2:1M,1F) | ||
| Peaceful Seed Bug Spilostethus pacificus iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Horehound Bug (Agonoscelis rutila) : Red-banded Seed-eating Bug (Melanerythrus mactans) : Red Eyes Bug (Leptocoris mitellatus) Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long. A very orange and black bug which is covered in short, fine hairs. Imaged 1 in Nov | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Seed Bug (Lygaeoidea, Rhyparochromidae); 3 species, 2 from Ellura | Ant-mimicking Seed Bug Daerlac cephalotes | Na a | Thank you Prof Előd Kondorosy for identifying this species for us We thought it looked very similar to D. cephalotes; but we weren't sure because of the excess red on the shoulders and lack of black lateral lines on the back. Imaged 1 in Oct | ||
| Black & White Seed Bug Dieuches nudus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Előd Kondorosy for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long. 4 segmented antennae, with wings are shorter than the body. Note the large spur, along with other smaller spines, under each front femur (thigh). Both lost the end of one of their legs. Imaged 9 in Jan(2), Feb(1), Mar(1), Apr(1), Jun(1), Aug(1), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Grain Bug Remaudiereana inornata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~4.5mm long. Note the strong/bulbous front legs, with ventral spines on the thigh. The lack of spines on the fore tibia is diagnostic. The strong legs are surprising, as these would typically be associated with a predator. However these are known as granivores & herbivores; so the strong legs must be associated with a different activity. Perhaps associated with the hard seed shells they feed on (prying open?). Imaged 1 in Feb | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Damsel Bug (Nabidae); 1 species from Ellura | Pacific Damsel Bug Nabis kinbergii | Na e m | Similar Species: Brown Senna Bug (Melanacanthus cf scutellaris) : Long Broad-headed Bug (Mutusca brevicornis) Like Assassin Bugs, these are predatory on other insects (ie carnivorous). Notice the strong front legs as well, to hold the prey. Imaged 4(2J) in Jun(1), Sep(1J), Oct(1J) & Dec(1) |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Water Boatman (Nepomorpha: Corixidae); 2 species from Ellura | Water Boatman Agraptocorixa cf eurynome | Na e m | Imaged 5 in Feb(1), Mar(2), Nov(1) & Dec(1) | |
| Striped Water Boatman Sigara sp | Na e m | ~7mm long with horizontal stripes on the pronotum, transverse grooves on the rostrum with no ocelli. Notice the curved inside of the forewing. Imaged 1 in Feb | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Water Scorpions (Nepomorpha: Nepidae); 1 species, none from Ellura | Needle Bug Ranatra dispar iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Dr Matthew Pintar
for confirming the id of this species for us Imaged 1 in Mar |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Backswimmer (Nepomorpha: Notonectidae); 3 species from Ellura | Golden-shouldered Backswimmer Anisops cf deanei iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Matthew Pintar
for confirming the id of this species for us ~6mm long It can be difficult to determine, but the back legs are covered in long hairs that look a bit like fins when they swim. They serve the same purpose. Matthew said "Maybe but these really need closer inspection to verify" Further we asked Matthew why we were seeing them in our area, being semi-arid and no sitting water for kms it seemed strange they'd land here. We suggested they fly high up in the rain clouds and saw our roof and interpretted as a lake. In response Matthew said "Yes, they can be attracted to the polarization of light off of flat shiny surfaces when they fly at night". This would also explain why we found them on the newer attached shed roof, but not on the older (~7 year old) house roof. Imaged 5 in Jan(1), Feb(1), Mar(2) & Jun(1) | |
| Yellow Backswimmer Anisops sp iNaturalist | Na e m r | Thank you Dr Matthew Pintar
for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long. Mainly yellow with orange patch on top and black stripes underneath (which is what would normally be seen from above). We thought these might be Anisops planifascies, but Matthew said "it seems unlikely to be a larger species not known from this area" A quantity (~10 or so) came to a night light in February. Imaged 4 in Feb(2), Jun(1) & Oct(1) | ||
| Large Backswimmer Anisops stali iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Matthew Pintar
for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: 1st Photo on Atlas: ~10 -> ~12mm long. We think the black tick marks on the pronotums are damage. There was a lot of pitter-patter on our nearly flat colourbond roof. Sounded like the start of rain, but kept going, with no rain. Got the ladder out and picked up 5 species of water-related insects hopping around within a few minutes. It's like they interpret our roof as a lake, so drop in from rain clouds looking to breed; only to find no water. Matthew said "By far the largest species in Australia". In relation to be attracted to the roof, Matthew also said "Yes, they can be attracted to the polarization of light off of flat shiny surfaces when they fly at night". Interestingly we noted they were mainly on the newly attached (shiny) shed roof, not the 7 year old house roof, which has dulled. Imaged 2 in Jun | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Shield Bug (Pentatomoidea, Cydnidae); 2 species from Ellura | Burrowing Bug Adrisa sp iNaturalist | Na e m f | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long Danilo said "Adrisa simply has 4 antennal segments (3 visible from above) and the second (first visible) extremely long." Imaged 5(1J) in Jan(1), Feb(2:1J) & Nov(2) | |
| Segmented-antennae Burrowing Bug Geotomini sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~5mm long, smaller than Adrisa We thought these were Adrisa. Danilo said, when comparing to Adrisa, "All other Geotomini have 5 segments of more or less equal length." Imaged 6 in Jan(1), Feb(1), Mar(1), Jun(1), Oct(1) & Nov(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Stink Bug (Pentatomoidea, Pentatomidae); 30 species, 21 from Ellura | Horehound Bug Agonoscelis rutila | Na e m | Similar Species: Peaceful Seed Bug (Spilostethus pacificus) Even though Horehound is introduced, this bug is native. Bright orange with black blotches on top and black stripes under. Black legs. Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Jun(1) | ||
| Acacia Shield Bug Alcaeus lignicolor iNaturalist | Na e m | ~17mm long. Notice the side spines one the pronotum are very much reduced compared with A. varicornis. It's surprisingly difficult to see, but the leading edges of the pronotum also have small spines/teeth (this occurs on both Alcaeus species we have depicted here). Note though the edges of the abdomen seem less serated compared to most pentatomids, looking almost smooth edged. We have separated out our species based on the "shoulder" spines. However this could be gender based, so will need to revisit, as Danilo Lüdke said "A. uniformis & A. hermannsburgi lack any subdivision of the 2nd antennal segment. From Gross: "females with lateral angles of pronotum acute, angles in males generally less spinously produced". I usually consider the black lines on the head on either side of the midline. According to Gross, the lines are "usually" not continued forward onto jugum to the antennae in lignicolor, while angling exteriorly about halfway the length of the head and continued forward to the antennae in varicornis." Imaged 8(3J) in Feb(2), May(2J), Jun(1J), Oct(1) & Dec(2) | |||
| Spined Acacia Shield Bug Alcaeus varicornis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Very similar in appearance to A. lignicolor, but larger insects along with heavier/longer spines on the side of the pronotum. The scutellar spine (the body armour at the back of the body where the wings start, that curls up slightly and has the pale patch on it) appears to be thicker with these that A. lignicolor. Imaged 1 in Jan | |||
| Spotted Exocarpos Bug Aplerotus maculatus iNaturalist | Na e m f r | Thank you Martin Lagerwey & Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us ~8.5mm long Imaged 26(2M,3J) in Apr(3), May(15:1J), Sep(1M), Oct(2J), Nov(2) & Dec(3:1M) | |||
| Lovely Flat-headed Bug Cephaloplatus (Cephaloplatus) bellus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~9.5mm. This is the most southerly record of them on Atlas. Had 2 come on the same night to the light sheet in January. There are 2 specimens at SA Museum, with variations in the face shield protrusion/horn. In Gross' drawings they point forward slightly. Here they don't, and in the SA Museum species they have one that does and one that doesn't. Danilo said "I believe the small differences in the dilations of the head and pronotum we can observe between specimens are due to natural variation, or perhaps sexual dimorphism." Imaged 3 in Jan | |||
| Brown Soldier Bug Cermatulus nasalis ssp nasalis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long. This is the only sub-species found in Australia. The other 2 are from New Zealand. 1. It's VERY dark brown, with a golden metallic sheen. Photo's on-line show lighter coloured specimens out there as well. 2. Has a VERY heavy/thick rostrum/proboscis; indicating it's predatory nature. Not a plant sucking bug. 3. A black spot on each "corium". 4. Rear-ward pointing spines on rear edge of the pronotum, which are very difficult to detect. These are quite unique in our local bug world. 5. Pale bands on the legs. 6. 5 antenna segments (including the base). A predatory bug that feeds on caterpillars. Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Green Emubush Bug Cuspicona eremophilae iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying and Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us ~6mm long. These are very rare and are usually found on Emubushes (Eremophila sp). This came to the kitchen window light. We confused this for the introduced Southern Green Stink Bug (Nezara viridula). Danilo said id can be made "based on the very short 3rd antennal segment, even less than half the length of the 2nd". Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Black-spotted Shield Bug Cuspicona intacta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Won-Gun Kim & Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long, covered in punctuations, randomly splattered with black. The black patches are not easily visible to the naked eye. Most Cuspicona are green, but turn yellow brown after death (ie Museum Specimens). Our neighbour has since found a yellow one of these. These are supposed to have 5 antennal segments, but as we have been found before with this family, this one has 5 segments on one antenna and 4 on the other. A deformation, not a lost tip. Notice how both specimens follow this trait. The 1st segments are very pale, with the 3rd segment turning red/brown towards the far end. The head looks quite long and pointy, yet is wider (at the eyes) than long. This is probably due to the face narrowing quickly below the eyes. Notice the transparent wings that look white, compared to normally dark/black wings. We have noted the Keels on this type of bug before. Notice here how it is definately used as a support for the proboscis; it's cupped to fit. It is on both males & females. These are known to feed on Eremophila freelingii, which is not found in our region but much further North. However it was found on a flyscreen adjacent to a patch of Eremophila longifolia. One can surmise the one we found feeds on that species of emu bush too. It does look similar to an E. longifolia drying fruit. We also have a lot of E. glabra around. As regards our pale brown one Won-Gun said "The yellow or orange color is uncommon in this genus. So I think your bug may be a color morph of this species." Danilo explained further "Actually I also believe that this might be a colour morph rather than a freshly moulted one. As it is usually the black pigments that take longest to develop, I would assume that in the meantime all the other body parts already have their 'correct' colour. Such a form is also known e.g. from Nezara viridula (forma aurantiaca) and apparently also occurring in other 'green bug groups'." Imaged 2(1M,1F) in Feb(1F) & Nov(1M) | |||
| Long-spined Shield Bug Cuspicona longispina iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Thomas Mesaglio for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Basically a green bug, ~6mm long, Adult & Nymph. The one adult we found has an orange head, yellow go stripes that form a 'v' on it's back, with white under The main diagnostic features are the massive horns/spindes protruding up & slightly forward from it's pronotum, as well as the horizonal black band made by punctuations across the pronotum (between the horns). Of interest is the large ventral keel. While this occurs to some degree in some other shield bugs, here the proboscis is pushed to one side. It also had a habit of folding it's antennae underneath. Pinned specimens loose their striking colours, becoming a pale brown. Live photo's in this case make field recognition so much easier Notice how different the colour of the Nymph is. We think the nymph is a 5th instar female based on the fact it has wing buds, shape of posterior & lack of a "keel". Originally we thought it was Neagenor, perhaps N. spinosus, but it's body seemed too rounded & the antennae didn't fit. We've selected this species for the nymph because: 1. The spines seems to match the adult pretty well. 2. The front of the "face" is wide & rounded, unlike the other spiny Cuspiconas we get in SA. 3. We've had the adult here before. While the nymphs lost one antennae (found like that) the black "tear" on the underside isn't damage. It's symetrical on both sides. So just the shape of it's shell. Imaged 2(1M,1F,1J) in May(1:1F,1J) & Sep(1M) | |||
| Visible Net-veined Shield Bug Dictyotus conspicuus iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~8.5mm long. Imaged 1 in Nov | |||
| Pink-rimmed Shield Bug Diemenia rubromarginata iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long, which is reasonably small. Primarily black top & bottom, with a beige to pink rim around the body. The black sometimes protrudes to the outside edge. Here they don't and used to be considered different sub-species where they did. While they generally have 4 antennae segments, you'll notice one here only has 3 on one and 4 on the other. Normally you'd consider this a loss of one tip, but the remaining tip seems longer and rounded. Possibly a malformed antenna rather than a broken one. At each antenna base, they have a large hooked spine protruding forward. This is called the "antennophore". When we saw one on iNat with a strange wing shape, Danilo said "The genus exhibits considerable wing polymorphism. Also thanks to the many users who share their observations in iNat, we now know much more about it. In the past, specimens with distinctive wing differences were actually considered new species, but this soon turned out to be wrong. The distinctive feature is the shape of the pale lobe just in front of the eyes, which fits D. rubromarginata, while in the three other described species it is more or less spinously produced." An uncommon find. We found two one year in Jan & Feb. Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Feb(1) | |||
| Short Antennae Complex Kalkadoona confinis iNaturalist | Na e m f | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us Note here that these are VERY similar to Kalkadoona enchylaenae, but the 2nd antennal segment is considerably shorter. Imaged 3 in Sep(1) & Oct(2) | |||
| Large Snouted Stink Bug Kalkadoona enchylaenae iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~7.5mm long. You can see here the "spots" are actually dark coloured punctuations in the exoskeleton. Danilo said "It leaves me with some very tiny doubts about K. confinis (length of 2nd antennal segment, shape of the anterolateral margin of the pronotum, coloring of the connexivum). But as Gross himself doubted and ended up considering the big and dark ones as enchylaenae and the small and pale ones as confinis, we can do the same as your specimen matches the key and is dark and over 7 mm :)" Imaged 4 in Jan(1), Feb(1) & Apr(2) | |||
| Small Snouted Stink Bug Kalkadoona sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying this species for us ~5.5mm long. It seems with some inverts, size does matter! We thought this might be a smaller specimen of Kalkadoona enchylaenae, but Danilo said "It's somehow also close to K. confinis as particularly the description of the black portions fits well. But the antennal segments 2 & 3 are indeed of almost equal length as you said. If the two forms are really closely related, even mating is possible." Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & Mar(1) | |||
| Rounded Shield Bug Kapunda tepperi iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: From ~4.5mm (males) to ~6mm (females) long. Males have concave (cup-like) rear end while females have a convex (oval) rear end. Notice the wing lengths are variable even within gender. Differentiating K. tepperi & K. troughtoni is not easy as they both vary somewhat. The easiest way to differentiate them is by the trailing edge of the pronotum (posterolateral margin); it's bent in sharpely (angulately incised) in K. troughtoni, while smoothly curved in K. tepperi. Another way is the shape of the face edges (lateral margins) in front of the eyes; they are bent in sharpely (acutely concave) in K. tepperi, while smoothly curved in K. troughtoni. But this 2nd difference is VERY prone to error as the angle of the camera has a significant impact on viewing the facial angles. Danilo said "Also the transverse depression of the pronotum and the shortened membrane (Gross 1976: never observed in K. troughtoni) indicate K. tepperi." Imaged 5(3M,2F) in Feb(1M), Mar(1M) & Dec(3:1M,2F) | |||
| Sharp Shield Bug Kapunda troughtoni iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Mallik Malipatil for identifying and Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: From ~4.5mm to ~6mm long. This genus has a distinctively blunt snout for a shield bug; with relatively short antennae that come from under the snout, not the side or front like most others. Imaged 6(2M,4F) in Feb(2F), Sep(1M), Oct(2F) & Dec(1M) | |||
| Dusky Plant Bug Minchamia hubbardae iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Ryan Shofner
for confirming the id of this species for us ~14mm long. A very scoop like snout and striped body. Came to a night light sheet. Imaged 2 in Mar | |||
| Spiny Shield Bug Neagenor spinosus iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Karen Weaving & Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us Adults ~18mm to ~20mm. Males & females are separated by the shape of their rear end. They seem to be the same size. Neagenors are highlighted by heavy shoulder spines. Note the unusual black tip to the scutellum here; typically it's pale or the same colour as the body in other Pentatomids. Also note how it's curled up; typically being flat or slightly raised. Danilo noted this as "the reflexed tip of the scutellum". Note also the unusual polka-dot pattern to the wings. We can't be sure the nymph is the same species as the adults. However, we have only found one 1 adult Neagenor species here so far, and think it's a reasonable assumption it is the same species. Imaged 5(2M,2F,1J) in Feb(2:1M,1F), Mar(1M), Apr(1F) & Oct(1J) | |||
| Forward-spined Shield Bug Neagenor transcontinentalis iNaturalist | Na r | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line 1st Atlas record since 1909: We are really VERY excited While we love helping people and discovering the wildlife we have around us, moments like this are like the gold nugget to the prospector. In our recent pit trapping adventure we found a shield bug, a Neagenor sp of some sort. Only 2 records on Atlas, with 2 photo's of a dead specimen from 1909, which Gross eludes to in his 1971 description. Imaged 1 in Oct | |||
| Spined Predatory Shield Bug Oechalia schellenbergii iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you (LifeIsAmazing ) & Simon Ong for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long. As the common name suggests it has spines (that lift up and back from the shoulders). It preys on & consumes insect larvae. Imaged 7(3J) in Feb(1J), Mar(2:1J), Jul(1), Oct(1J) & Nov(2) | |||
| Gum-tree Shield Bug Omyta centrolineata ssp siccior iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long. These only have 3 antennae segments, which is less than most others at 4 or 5. However, the colour banding makes them look like 4 segments, so you need to pay close attention to the actual segment separtion; not just colour. Notice the spurs on each antenna base under the head. It seems some specimens have longer spines than others. Possibly a gender difference? Imaged 18(9J) in Jan(1), Feb(3), Mar(2), Apr(1), May(2:1J), Jun(1J), Aug(2J), Sep(1J), Oct(3J) & Nov(2:1J) | |||
| Brown Stink Bug Oncocoris apicalis iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us Initially we thought this was Gum Tree Shield Bug (Theseus modestus), but when reviewing to post here we realised it didn't look right and that it was too small. Apart from size, this is also squatter (shorter compared with width) than T. modestus. So hunted thru Gross' volumes and found this species. Imaged 1 in Sep | |||
| Toad Stink Bug Platycoris rugosus iNaturalist | Na a |
Males are considerably smaller than females at ~8mm long, while larger females are ~11mm. We found two copulating allowing us to show the difference in sizes & posterior shapes. As their common name suggests, they are very rotund bugs compared with other Pentatomidae. This species is quite brown, with some reddish overtones. Rugosus indicates the rough text of it's upper body. Directly translated means "full of wrinkles, folds or creases". Imaged 5(1M,2F) in Jan(3:1M,2F), Mar(1) & Apr(1) | |||
| Reddish Shield Bug Poecilometis alienus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us The males were ~11mm & ~12mm, while the female was ~13mm long. The 2nd specimen, male, is much redder than the others, which is possibly caused by freshly moulting. Imaged 3(2M,1F) in Jun(2:1M,1F) & Dec(1M) | |||
| Brown Shield Bug Poecilometis fuscescens iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mike Burrell for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long. When identifiying Poecilometis, leg colour, antennae colour & segments, body colour and shoulder spines (or not) are all useful diagnostics. They can have different shades of colour, but generally the patterns are consistent. Notice here the spiny shoulders, pattern of beige blotches on the dark reddish base colour. Legs have pale sections and the antennae generally have orange on one side of the segment joins but not the other. Here we have been able to separate the genders of some of our specimens where we have managed a ventral shot. You can see the shape of the rear end is quite different between the one male we found, to all the other females. Interestingly, we've deduced that you can differentiate the genders by counting the abdominal spines from above. Males have 4 visible pairs, females have 5. On the male, the spines on the 5 segment exist, but are narrower than the wings. You need a 90 angle shot to see this. In too much of a profile angle, all 5 are visible. We have found Poecilometis with different antennal segment counts on the specimen, so these can't be relied on completely. NB: Here, S3, clearly has it's right-hand antennae tip truncated, it's a blunt end. So not useful for an antennal segment count. Imaged 11(1M,8F,1J) in Jan(1F), Feb(1F), Mar(5:4F), Jul(1F), Aug(1J), Sep(1F) & Dec(1M) | |||
| Long Gum-tree Shield Bug Poecilometis strigatus iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us ~16-17mm with 4 antennae segments. The proportion of the length of one segment to another is diagnostic. Gross gives the ratio of these as 45:95:70:65. Importantly the shoulders/pronotum are not spined with these. The binomial name of "strigatus" implies these are "longer than wide" Overal size is also important when id'ing these Poecilometis, as < 15mm involves a different subset of bugs. Notice the colour of the emerging adult is nearly white. It's easy to find different colours from very pale to almost black as they age. We have also found nymphs having a large range of colour density (pale to dark). Shown here is a dark nymph. It's only a guess that this nymph is this species, but given the large number of adults we've found in the area, and the other diagnostic features fit (antennae segments, antennae & leg colour, etc), except for size of course. Also called Stink bugs. While we've never smelt the odour they produce, some species can emit a cocktail involving cyanide as a defence mechanism. Shown here is the "efferent of scent gland" or orifice that the foul smelling odour excudes from. Also shown here are the spiracles (breathing holes), which are black, along the ventral side of the abdomen. Imaged 46(22J) in Jan(2:1J), Feb(3:1J), Mar(5:4J), Apr(17:11J), May(4:1J), Jun(4:2J), Jul(2:1J), Aug(1), Sep(2), Oct(4:1J) & Nov(2) | |||
| Shield Bug Poecilometis vermiculatus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Newton for identifying and Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Considered a rare species. Varies from black to light brown (tan) to cinnamon Adults are quite distinguished with white "bow tie" spot at the end of their wing shield, finishing with jet black diamond vest formed by the wing tips. Found on Acacia and Beyeria opaca. Imaged 3(1M,1F) in Jan(2:1M,1F) & Oct(1) | |||
| Beautiful Plant Bug Poecilotoma callosa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~10mm long. Danilo said "Antennal segment IV seems shorter than III and the shape of the luteous patch of the scutellum is distinctive and different in any other described species. Also fits the allotype well." Imaged 2 in Mar(1) & Dec(1) | |||
| Pittosporum Bug Pseudapines geminata iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dee Petersen & Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us These are quite small bugs. We haven't measured one, but adults are ~7mm long. Early instars are circular, elongating to an oval shape as they age. 1st instars only have 2 white spots (one on each site), getting more as they molt. Instars are black with white spots/patches and orange antennae, while adults attain some orange/chestnut highlights to the edge of the body. The adult patterns are very consistent between specimens Underneath, they are very pale, and the legs have a blue tinge to them. Imaged 21(10J) in Feb(7:4J), Mar(5:3J), Apr(5:2J), May(3:1J) & Sep(1) | |||
| Green Shield Bug Rhynchocorini sp iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Danilo Lüdke for identifying and Won-Gun Kim for helping with the id of this species for us A mainly green bug, ~8.5mm long. Notice the lack of any horns protruding from the sides of the pronotum. Small horns would indicate C. simplex Like the Long-spined Shield Bug, this species has a keel, but is not as noticeable. You can just see it in the profile shot. The ventral shot shows the shorter proboscis & little evidence of the keel. Originally thought to be Cuspicona simplex, then C. eremophilae, then Cuspicona privata, Ocirrhoe prasinata. As you can see, difficult to separate. Won-Gun also said "the shapes of the posterolateral pronotal margin, the scutellum, etc. For example, the posterolateral margin is relatively straight and relatively horizontal in C. privata when compared with O. prasinata. In addition, the dorsal surface of this bug is much closer to C. simplex than the species of the genus Ocirrhoe." Notice that the wings are almost clear, and the edges of the abdomen have small black tipped spines on the edges of the "laterotergites" (abdominal segments). Danilo said "The laminate anterolateral margin of the pronotum is continuing onto the region of the humeral angle, which explicitely mentioned by Gross separates O. prasinata and allies from the C. thoracica group including C. privata. Also the basal scutellal foveae are visible here." After exploding the images up, and adding more of the same specimen Danilo downgraded the id saying "From the pygophore we can at least clearly say that this is NOT Ocirrhoe prasinata." A case of needing the specimen under a microscope to differentiate. Of course it's always possible it's undescribed. Imaged 1 in Apr | |||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Shield Backed Bug (Pentatomoidea, Scutelleridae); 3 species from Ellura | Red Jewel Bug Choerocoris paganus iNaturalist | Na e m a r c |
Thank you Danilo Lüdke for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long. We suspect the different coloured shield (ie all dark vs wine glass shaped stripe) relates to different gender; with the females having the wine glass shape. We've included some shots of them mating to prove their variation in colour occurs within the same species and to show the size differences. Males seem thicker at the back, while females are wider and larger overall. An amazing array of fire engine red and deep metallic green head and shield. There are 6 small white dots around the rear edge of the abdomen. Imaged 27(7M,11F,2J) in Jan(6:1M,3F), Mar(2:1F), Apr(3:1F,1J), May(2:1M,1J), Oct(2) & Dec(12:5M,6F) | |
| Variable Shield Bug Choerocoris variegatus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matthew Connors for confirming the id of this species for us Similar in shape to the Dodonaea bug above, but very different colours and patterns. While still shiny, doesn't have the metallic lustre. The instars of these are similar to the adults. As the name suggests they are very variable; ranging from off-white under, to yellow to reddish (examples elsewhere show bright orange). Primarily coloured with black patches. The back is also covered in dimples. The face of our specimens have 3 strong pale longitudinal stripes (which is atypical), topped off by the 2 typical red Ocelli. While they are listed as eating Beyeria lechenaultii, here they are on Beyeria opaca (not listed as a food source). We also found one on Pearl Bluebush; perhaps it was lost. Also notice how the varying thickness of black makes a large difference to the patterns made (and how the specimens look) Imaged 16(2J) in Sep(3), Oct(2) & Nov(11:2J) | ||
| Green Shield Backed Bug Coleotichus costatus iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Cynthia Chan for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long. A lightly toned, large bug. We found one on Dodonaea & another on Acacia. The 3rd came to the night light/sheet. They have lots of tiny maroon dots on pale brown around the edge of their backs match the Dodonaea fruit perfectly. These maroon & green dots are the colour of the punctuations scattered all over it. It also has very distinctive purple spots around the edge underneath. They can vary from brown to green. Red compound eyes with two red jewels (actually an Ocellus, simple eye), one above each compound eye. You'll notice in the ventral shot it was photo-bombed by a Ruthenburg bug that were inundating the light sheet that night. While the shield (scutellum) is solid, they have wings and can fly. Cynthia kindly explained this, along with other consideration: "The scutellum is a structure that arises from the thoracic segments and is associated with but is not a part of the wings. In the case of the Scutelleridae, the enlarged scutellum which is characteristic for the group (hence their name) extends over the two pairs of flight wings to protect them much in the same way that elytra (hardened forewings) in beetles protect the hindwings. Because of the similarity in their appearance scutellerids are often mistaken for beetles though what we are seeing on their dorsum are entirely different parts of the insect. Scutellerids are quite good fliers, and the large scutellum does not hinder their wings. The wings are slid out from under the scutellum and unfold to extend laterally." There are futher links to images on the iNaturalist page linked here. Imaged 3 in Jan(2) & Mar(1) | ||
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Psylloid (Psylloidea); 1 species from Ellura | Orange Jumping Plant Louse Psylloidea sp | Na e m | Thank you Dr Francesco Martoni for helping with the id of this species for us ~3mm long, ~7mm wingspan. Francesco said "Any psylloid that makes lerps is currently in the subfamily Spondyliaspidinae (family Aphalaridae)." Because we follow Atlas taxon definitions, we had this marked under family Psyllidae. Seems this will change. To keep things correct we've used the super-family name, Psylloidea, for now and applied those we know create lerps under the sub-family. As the family Psyllidae still exists, the common name Psyllid has now been replaced by Psylloid to highlight the group is now referring to the super-family, rather just the single family of old. Imaged 1 in Apr |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) - True Bugs (Hemiptera); 123 species, 99 from Ellura - Lerp Making Psylloid (Psylloidea: Spondyliaspidinae); 3 species from Ellura | Melaleuca psylloid Boreioglycaspis melaleucae iNaturalist | Na e m | Many small birds rely on psylloids for survival, so an important cog in the biosphere of Ellura Imaged 2 in Jan(1) & May(1) | ||
| White Clam Lerp Cardiaspina sp | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Francesco Martoni for identifying this species for us We thought this was Hyalinaspis sp. There is a bit of confusion with the naming of these. The Lerp is the housing. The bug inside is a Psylloid that produces the lerp; the bug isn't a lerp. Imaged 16(8J) in Mar(1J), Apr(2J), May(11:4J), Jun(1) & Jul(1J) | |||
| White Fibrous Lerp Glycaspis brimblecombei | Na e m |
Imaged 7 in Feb(1), Apr(2), May(2), Jun(1) & Oct(1) | |||
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