Bugs n Slugs

BIG day at the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden today with 2 booked out sessions and one last minute ‘Animal CSI - tracks, scats and traces session’ to make up for the Murder in the Dark session that had to be cancelled on Friday due to the forecast bad weather. (I promise that we will reschedule ‘Murder in the dark’ asap). Thanks to everyone who turned up today. You’re a big part of why I love Port Augusta so much ❤️

I’m posting this because it’s been suggested by a person unknown to me that I didn’t have permission to share a picture of a moth that was reported as having been found in the Adelaide hills. Below I have shared the screenshots of the relevant bits of the original post where it is 100% clear that I was given permission to share the picture and where it is also clear that the information provided was as I said. I make absolutely no apology for sharing the picture - I take biosecurity very seriously. I understand that to some people a moth is a moth. But I exist in a world where most of the people I know and work with can identify one moth from another like some people know makes of car. I am sent images every day that people want identified. I provide this service for free. If I am alerted to something that could be a serious issue I absolutely will alert the appropriate people and authorities. You would not believe how often this stuff happens. The internet has made the world smaller. Protecting our unique flora and fauna and our primary producers from biosecurity threats is increasingly difficult. Our biosecurity officers do an incredible job of finding as many ‘needles in the haystack’ as they can but not surprisingly they actually do need the public to be alert to potential biosecurity risks and to report them. I will always err on the side of caution when it comes to biosecurity. The person who made the original post that I responded to was acting in good faith, as was I. In this case, as always, I made every effort to check my facts and sources. If people misrepresent the facts that is not something I can control. If people are not thorough enough or bothered enough to provide the correct information at the outset that is also not something I can control. I had no proof that the person who hijacked my post with her accusations was even who she claimed to be. She was not reasonable or rational in her approach but chose to go on a rant about a situation she hadn’t been involved in and seemed to expect me to just take the post down based on her demands and accusations. To suggest that I have been dishonest or that I have used content without permission is an absolute lie. I have added the screen shots of the original post below where a member of SA Natureteers was seeking an ID for a friend. I provided an ID and gave correct advice about what to do. I then asked and was given permission to share the photos. I also messaged the poster privately to seek further clarification. She assured me she had permission to share the pic. I asked her to get her friend to contact me but I didn’t hear back for 7 hours. In the meantime I felt the situation was urgent and having been given permission to share it i did. I WAS IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED BY PIRSA who were also seeking further clarification. Turns out the outcome was the best possible scenario - an honest mistake that came about because the person who took the pic and asked for an ID didn’t mention to her friend that she was on holiday in Canada. Maybe there are people who don’t realise that our moths are not the same as Canadian moths just like I don’t pay much attention to whether or not cars are the same the world over. Horses for courses I guess? I’ve deleted the original post because everyone has surely seen the update by now and I can’t be bothered dealing with accusations of dishonesty by someone who seems to just want to put herself at the centre of a non event to get attention. I trust this resolves the matter. End of story.

Here’s a little grasshopper to brighten your day! (Raniliella testudo - the living stone) She’s definitely giving stone butch vibes right?

Tune in to Spence Denny on ABC Adelaide radio just after nine cause I’ll be bugging him with all the highlights of my Coober Pedy trip. Here’s a lovely house centipede (Scutigeridae) for attention. Don’t often see these guys in the dry because they need humidity - but there’s loads of them out there at the moment.

I’ve definitely got mixed feelings about this … rain is never a bad thing but I’m devo that I won’t get to see all the gorgeous folk of Roxby this weekend at the Kokatha Arid Recovery open day. We had some awesome displays and activities lined up so I really hope we can find another date that suits everyone. (Believe me it’s not easy to coordinate so many busy people to be in one place at the same time!!) I’m still heading out to bug Bowman Park near Crystal Brook on Thursday then I’ll head to Port Augusta for some fun times at the Arid lands Botanic Gardens on Friday and Sunday. Hmmm I might just have a day off on Saturday to do some exploring!!!

🌧️ Kokatha and Arid Recovery Open Day Postponed 🌧️

Due to forecast rain this week, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the Arid Recovery and Kokatha Open Day scheduled for this Saturday 20 June.

With forecasts predicting 8–20 mm of rain on Wednesday, access to the Reserve is likely to be impacted.

We're incredibly disappointed. A huge amount of work has gone into planning the day, and we were looking forward to welcoming the community to celebrate culture and conservation.

That said, it's hard to be too upset about rain in the outback.

Thank you to everyone who was planning to attend, volunteer, perform, host a stall or support the event. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to seeing you when we dry out.

Kokatha Bugs n Slugs Andamooka Observatory BHP South Australia SA Arid Lands Landscape Board Rotary Club of Roxby District

We were lucky enough to find this big, almost certainly gravid, scolopendrid centipede under a rock by the salt lake. After we took her pic we returned her to her little den. I can’t help wonder how long she’ll survive? According to our friends at Arid Recovery feral cats are pretty partial to centipedes. Regardless of what else a feral cat has in its gut it almost always has centipedes. Now you might think ‘so what?’ But centipedes are very long lived out there (20 years or more) and they have a pretty slow reproductive cycle. They are 3-4 years old before they are mature and they only reproduce once a year, laying a clutch of between 10-60 eggs. First she guards the eggs for a few months until they hatch, then she parents her young through their first couple of sheds which takes up another 3-4 months. If she’s disturbed at any time she will more than likely eat the eggs or young and have to try again next year. Just one breeding pair of feral cats could potentially wipe out all the centipedes in one spot very quickly.