Leaf Beetles are also known as Pittosporum Beetles or Bursaria Beetles, after their host species.
The beetles have a bright red head and pronotum with an entirely blue or green body. The larvae have a brown head with six distinct black eye spots on each side. Pale underside, dark upperside with dark spines.
They are aposemtatic, meaning they are posionous to visual predators. Be very careful if handling them.
Size
0.6 - 1.4 cm long; body narrow and flat. Length to width ratio ranges from 2:1 to 2.5:1. Length to height ratio is 3.5:1.
The caterpillar (larva) is green with a hump on its upper back and small white dots over its body. The butterfly (adult) has brown or black outer wings with some white markings plus two green blotches, and green inner wings (closest to its body). The underside of each wing has the same patterning but the green parts tend to be darker. It has “tails” at the tip of each hindwing.
There are two recognised subspecies Graphium macleayanus macleayanus from Queensland and NSW, and Graphium macleayanus moggana from Tasmania, Victoria and parts of subalpine NSW.
Size
Caterpillar 4 cm long; Butterfly wingspan 5 – 6 cm (can reach up to 8 cm).
A black and white bird, the pattern varies slightly between sexes. The male has a white eyebrow above a black horizontal eye-stripe, a black face and throat, while the female has a white face and throat, with a broad vertical stripe through the eye, and no white eyebrow. Both sexes have a thin white bill and black legs and feet. Juvenile Magpie-larks have a black forehead, white eyebrow and a white throat.
The top of its head and its hindneck are black. Its forehead is covered with bright-yellow skin, which hangs down to form wattles. The rest of the head is white. Its back and wings are pale grey-brown. Below, black plumage extends from the hindneck onto the sides of its breast, and the rest of the underparts are white. Its long legs and feet are reddish and its bill is yellow. It has a prominent spur on each wing.
Juveniles are similar to adults, but have dark ‘scallop’ markings on the back and wings, and the wing spur and wattles are either smaller or absent.
Distinctive feature
A yellow wattle that extends from its forehead to behind its eye and hangs down beside its chin.
The caterpillar (larva) is initially green, white and brown and resembles bird droppings. A mature caterpillar has a dark brown head, a green body with some pale yellow and brown markings, and spines along its back.
The male butterfly (adult) is black with an arc of creamy-white spots near the tip of each forewing. Each hindwing has a creamy-white patch and a single red spot, and there are many red crescents on its underside.
The female butterfly is brown to black, and the outer half of its forewing is whitish-grey. Its hindwing has a creamy-white patch, as well as a series of blue and red crescent-shaped markings.
Size
Caterpillar up to 6 cm long; Butterflies 10 – 12 cm wingspan.
A colourful bird, the upper part of its back is bright green, merging to light blue on the lower part to its rump. Its tail is black, tinged with blue, and has two long central feathers (called streamers) that extend beyond the tip of the tail. Its forehead is blue-green and the top of its head is golden. A bold black eye-stripe runs from the base of its beak and is bordered below by a narrow blue line. Its chin is yellow, changing to chestnut on its throat, below which is a broad black band. It has a green breast, becoming paler on the belly and changing to light blue from the lower belly to the vent. It has a long, slim, curved black beak and its legs and feet are grey-black.
Young birds are generally duller and greener. They lack the black band across the lower throat and the long tail streamers.
Distinctive feature
The sexes differ in the length of their tail streamers: the male has longer, more slender streamers.
The southern brown tree frog is native to southern Australia. Other common names of this tree frog are brown tree frog, whistling tree frog, or Ewing's tree frog.
Ranges from pale fawn, cream, or orange to light brown, although some individuals in western Victoria and South Australia are partly or completely green. It has a wide brown band that starts from between its eyes and runs down its back. Darker flecks are also scattered across its back. It has a narrow black or brown stripe that runs from its snout to its shoulder, and a pale stripe that runs from below its eye to the base of its arm. Its belly is white to yellow and breeding males have a light brown vocal sac (beneath their mouth).
Distinctive features
Its back is smooth with small lumps, its fingers have no webbing and its toes are half webbed.
This spider is named for the cross the female weaves into the web. There are many theories about why the female does this including, strengthening the web, for camouflage, and for increasing prey catches as the cross reflects ultra-violet light which attracts insects. It may also deter predators which must go to the effort of cleaning off the extra silk after diving into the web.
The female has a silvery head with silver, yellow, red and black bands across its abdomen, and two yellow stripes running down its underside. Its legs are dark brown to black with one or two yellowish bands. The male and juveniles are brown and cream, with brown legs. It often appears to have only four legs because it sits with its legs in pairs along the stabilimentum.
Distinctive feature
The zigzag patterns (known as the stabilimentum) it weaves into its web to form an X or a cross, after which it is named.
The striped marsh frog or brown-striped frog is a common species in urban habitats It is a mostly aquatic frog native to coastal Eastern Australia.
A pale to grey-brown back with darker brown stripes. Usually also a pale stripe running down the middle of its back. Its belly is white and often flecked with brown, and there are dark spots and stripes on its limbs.
Size
4.5 - 7.5 cm
Also know as Blackthorn.
A woody shrub to small tree, usually with thorny branches. Grows up to 5 – 10 m high.
Leaves
Glabrous, dark green, 20 – 44 mm long and 5 – 9 –mm wide.
Flowers
White, 6 – 10 mm wide, fragrant.
It was first described by renowned botanist J.E. Smith, the founder of London’s Linneaen Society.
Evergreen shrub with smooth, purplish brown or light green bark. Up to 0.3 – 3 m high.
Leaves
Narrow, straight or very slightly elliptic, and blue-green. Each leaf is about 5 – 15 cm long and 2 – 10 mm wide, with a prominent vein down the centre. Its surface is hairless and covered with a fine white powder. It grows at right angles to the stem.
Flowers
Pale yellow to white and ball-shaped. Each flower is 4 – 7 mm in diameter and is found in clusters of 5 – 10 flowers aligned along an axis of 1 – 3 cm long. They are sweet smelling and enclosed in overlapping bracts (modified leaves) before opening.
Mostly bright green, with a blue crown, cheeks and colouring on its wings. It has red around its bill, throat and forehead, and bright red patches under each wing. The red on its throat is edged with yellow and its long, pointed tail is purple-red. The female is slightly duller, with a creamy bar under its wings.
Size
About 25 cm; ; Wingspan 32 – 36 cm
Metallic blue-black on top and light to dark grey on its breast and belly. Its forehead, throat and upper breast are rust in colour. It has grey legs and feet, and its eyes and bill are black. A young Welcome Swallow has shorter tail feathers than an adult and its forehead and throat are a creamy beige (instead of rust).
Distinctive feature
A deeply forked tail with a white band or row of spots on the long tail feathers.
Also known as Cape Lilac. It reaches maturity when it is 6 – 10 years old and lives for about 20 years.
Deciduous tree, usually 10 – 15 m high but can reach 45 m in its natural environment. Its canopy is 6 – 8 m wide.
Leaves
Bright glossy green and oval in shape, 2 – 7 cm long and 1 – 3 cm wide. They are arranged either side of a 12 – 45 cm long stem and turn yellow in late autumn before falling from the tree in winter.
Flowers
Pale purple to white, star-shaped, forming clusters that are 10 – 20 cm long. Each individual flower is about 2 cm in diameter and consists of 5 petals. The flowers have a chocolate scent!
Mostly light blue-grey in colour. The forehead, crown, chin and upper throat are white. It has a long, slim neck and a pointed grey-black bill. The legs are long and dull yellow in colour. Easily identifiable when seen from below with the dark flight feathers of the wing contrasting with the paler grey plumage.
Males and females are similar. When breeding, the birds have long feathers (nuptial plumes) on the head, neck and back. Young are similar in appearance to non-breeding adults, with little to no white on the face; underparts often have a reddish colour.
Distinctive feature
Its characteristic white face.
One of Australia's most widespread birds on mainland.Mostly black with a white belly and eyebrow. A young bird has paler, slightly rusty edges to its wing feathers.
Size
18 - 22 cm long (from head to tail)
The male is grey with a red bill, orange-tan cheeks and flanks. The flanks also have white spots. Its rump is white, and its tail is black with white bars. The female has a red bill, a black/white face and tail markings, and is otherwise grey.
Size
10 cm
