22^nd March 2015

Our second field trip for the year was to Wellard Wetlands, the wetlands created by Alcoa after extraction of clay for use in the residue storage areas at the Kwinana Alumina Refinery. A very good turn out of 12 members enjoyed the beautiful autumn morning’s walk around the numerous lakes. As expected at this time of the year, when many of the ephemeral wetlands have dried up, there were many water birds on the lakes. The lakes still had good water levels, though a few mud banks were exposed and were being used by waders, including a solitary Grey tailed Tattler.

There were a total of 42 species sighted, as listed in the table below. Many of these species were well represented in terms of numbers, with large flocks of Grey Teal, Little Black Cormorants, White Ibis, Pelicans, Black swans, Musk Ducks and Pacific Black Ducks. A flock of 11 Red-necked Avocets were seen amongst some Black Winged Stilts. We spotted a number of carcasses of Pelicans, White Ibis and a Black Swan, though it was not apparent as to how they had died. A large number of Whistling Kites were seen feeding on a Pelican carcass (at least 10). One Tiger Snake was spotted during the walk. Bob Goodale spotted a Bandicoot near the Spoonbill bird hide. While many of us were watching out for birds, others were interested in finding smaller invertebrates – sometimes with unexpected outcomes. While looking under some loose bark on a tree Otto Mueller was surprised when a Motorbike Frog jumped out and in a similar situation Chris Punter disturbed a roosting bat that flew off.

Invertebrates spotted included Dragonflies, a Banded Bee Fly (Villa), a scorpion, Golden Orb Weaver spiders and a gum tree grasshopper nymph. Daniel Heald has provided the following details of the invertebrates that he identified. There were antlions, mud-dauber wasps under the seat of the loo; Tachysphex Crabronid wasp; Callibracon White-flanked Longicorn Parasitoid; Iridomyrmex Rainbow Ants; Myrmecia bull-ants; at least two other species of ants. A nice sighting was Macrodiplax cora, Wandering Pennant – a gorgeous, highly migratory red and black dragonfly tolerant of brackish lagoons. There were also Xanthagrion erythroneurum (Red and Blue Damsel Fly); Orthetrum caledonicum, the blue skimmer dragon Fly; at least one other species of dragonfly.

Spiders included a Tetragnathid Long-jawed Orbweaver, a Cymbacha crab spider folding her refuge (see attached), an Argyrodes sp. Teardrop Spider stealing midges from an Eriophora‘s web, and an unusual horizontal orb-web, with complicated stabilimentum, among the leaf litter. Still hoping for an ID on that one. Sightings also included Depressa sp. Lauxaniid fly – unusual beetle-like flies that hold the wings curved over the body like a beetle’s elytra; yellow midges with black spots; grey midges of various sizes in abundance; at least one species of Villa bee-fly, Goniaea Gumleaf Mimic grasshopper nymphs, both grey and orange forms; Acrida conica – Green Slantface, Helea Piedish Beetle; Parosisterna beata leaf beetle; Flea Beetle – Chrysomelidae again, tribe Alticini; and a third unidentified leaf beetle that was walking backwards in circles on a vertical tree trunk. Hyocephalid True Bug nymphs were found under a log.

Weeds in the park included Blowfly Grass and Lesser Quaking Grass Briza maxima and minor, but both of those are pretty much ubiquitous now.

The Bird List is shown in the following table.

 Colin Prickett