Tag: Araba Bioscan Project

This was a cold week and very wet. On 1 November, no point in the whole 24-hour period was as warm as midnight at the start.

The moths captured included several of the small oecophorid Hoplostega ochroma (Meyrick, 1886), as well as the first record for the site of Philobota cretacea Meyrick, 1884. This latter species had not been recorded from light trapping at the site.

Thanks to Frans Janssens@www.collembola.org for the springtail identification, Boris Büche on iNaturalist for the Aderidae identification, Nigel Main on iNaturalist for the ant genus identifications, and tonyd on iNaturalist for multiple fly identifications.

The collecting medium was 95% isopropyl alcohol.

This was the first week of sampling in the Araba Bioscan Project, using 95% isopropyl alcohol as the collecting medium. A sensor for temperature and humidity was attached to the Malaise trap part way through the week, along with a soil moisture sensor immediately under the trap. Barometric pressure is measured about 10 m away and other environmental measurements will be collected in subsequent weeks.

Spring has been wet here in Canberra, following a number of years of low rainfall. The surrounding woodland is currently full of flowers, including very large numbers of tiger orchids (Diuris sulphurea R.Br.).

The Malaise sample included a surprising number (to me, at least) of springtails (Collembola).

The only neuropteran species captured was the common brown lacewing (Hemerobiidae) Micromus tasmaniae (Walker, 1860). All four individuals of this species are illustrated below.

Thanks to tony_d on iNaturalist for the identification of Sphenella ruficeps (Macquart, 1851) and other flies.