A Brown Day

[moloch]

Greetings, everyone,

I returned to the Fitzroy Falls area today. I was hoping that there might have been flowers remaining on the butterfly bush or on the tea trees. Unfortunately, these are now gone for the season along with the hordes of feeding butterflies.

I ended up walking through open eucalyptus woodland with a dense fern and grass ground cover. Brown butterflies of several species were everywhere. This is the sort of habitat that I examined:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/habitat2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/habitat3.jpg

Lomandra, Gahnia and ferns were numerous.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/habitat1.jpg


The most common butterfly was a new one to me. These were Spotted Browns (Heteronympha paradelpha):
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown4Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown3Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown2Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg


They often sat on bracken ferns.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown1Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown5Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg

[Commander]

Nice shots, David. The Aussie Satyrinae definitely look more colourful than what we have over here...

I like that upperside shot where the butt is sitting on the fern. Shot with the T180? :)

[moloch]

Common Browns (Heteronympha merope) were also numerous. I only saw females so perhaps the males are gone for the season. These are lovely when they hold open their wings. Unfortunately, they usually did this deep in grass cover and I could not move into better positions for photos.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/CommonBrown3Heteronymphamerope.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/CommonBrown2Heteronymphamerope.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/CommonBrown1Heteronymphamerope.jpg



I saw a single Ringed Xenica (Geitoneura acantha)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/RingedXenica2Geitoneuraacantha.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/RingedXenica1aGeitoneuraacantha.jpg



Marbled Xenica were common. They often landed on grasses and reeds that were growing from flooded areas.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/MarbledXenica1Geitoneuraklugii.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/MarbledXenica2aGeitoneuraklugii.jpg

[moloch]

Another new one to me was the Wide-brandGrass-Dart (Suniana sunias)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/Wide-brandGrass-Dart4Sunianasunias.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/Wide-brandGrass-Dart3Sunianasunias.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/Wide-brandGrass-Dart5Sunianasunias.jpg



Lesser Wanderer (Danius chrysippus)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/LesserWanderer1Daniuschrysippus.jpg



"Brown" spider:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/spider1.jpg



This was a tiny plant. I am not certain but the flowers look orchid like to me. It was growing in a flooded area.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/orchid1.jpg


If it is not raining, I will head out again tomorrow to look for more.

[moloch]

Nice shots, David. The Aussie Satyrinae definitely look more colourful than what we have over here...

I like that upperside shot where the butt is sitting on the fern. Shot with the T180? :)


Thanks, Khew. Yes, all but the habitat shots were with the T180.

[Psyche]

That certainly is an orchid. It is Spiranthes sinensis( syn. S. australis, a widespread species from Asia to Australia. Its generic name means spiral flowers.

TL Seow:cheers:

[moloch]

Thanks, Seow, for the identification. Here is another photo from today that shows the odd, spiral arrangement of the flowers:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/orchid2.jpg


I found another Tongue Orchid at Fitzroy Falls. These look so unusual.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/TongueOrchid.jpg


I walked a few kms along a trail that followed the edge of these cliffs:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/habitat4.jpg


In this habitat, I found another 3 species of Browns but I was only able to photograph two. The following was a nice, fresh Spotted Brown.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown6Heteronymphaparadelpha.jpg


... another on a fern:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/SpottedBrown7.jpg



This Rock Ringlet (Hypocysta euphemia) sat right on the trail.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/RockRingletHypocystaeuphemia.jpg



I saw a few Eastern Iris Skippers (Mesodina halyzia). This one was heavily worn. It perched in a small Banksia tree.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/EasternIrisSkipperMesodinahalyzia.jpg


This is the "native iris" used as a host plant by Eastern Iris Skippers.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/EasternIrisSkipperPatersonia.jpg

[moloch]

I saw a number of Varied Dusky-Blues (Candalides hyacinthina) at flowers:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/VariedDusky-Blue2Candalideshyacinthina.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/VariedDusky-Blue4_400Candalideshyacinthina.jpghttp://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/VariedDusky-Blue1_400Candalideshyacinthina.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/VariedDusky-Blue3Candalideshyacinthina.jpg


The falls at Fiztroy Falls NP:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/habitat5.jpg


Here are photos of a few flowers that are still out:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/flowerMountainDevil1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/flower3fanflower_400.jpghttp://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/BC/FitzroyFalls/feb2011/flower_lily2.jpg