Tenagogerris euphrosyne: our most common local species of water strider

A view of an insect making the transformation from nymph to adult under the cover of darkness

Finding a colony of burrowing beetles last week led me on a journey of discovery. I now recognise 3 species of Passalidae on our home list - and present a detailed chain of evidence. This post is a bit more than a casual read, I’m afraid!

I describe the female of a species of cricket previously known to science only from a male specimen.

Finding some new representatives of the spider taxon Mygalomorphae (Mygals, for short) leads me to discover more about this endearing group of animals.

On a rainy night, with Trapdoor and Funnel Web Spiders climbing the walls, it is a tiny white spider that catches my attention - and a large meal.

Watching a group of Glossy Black-Cockatoos this week led me to think more about how they feed.

A resident Two-spined Spider has turned her Banksia home into a very busy nursery web.

A new frog for our home list, and a relatively newly-evolved species … a mere 10,000 years plus!

I rediscover the Ogre-faced Netcaster spider and her amazing method of trapping prey

There are few plants flowering at the moment, but Banksia spinulosa is looking quite spectacular. Low light, brilliant flowers, and a beautiful bird - an Autumn afternoon treat.

Butterfly eggs aren’t the only target for wasp parasites - Lacewings can suffer the same fate

An ingenious mode of parasitism employed by a tiny wasp - lay your egg inside someone else's egg!

A brief return to the ongoing challenge of getting to know our native bees.

With few options available at this time of the year, insects looking for a feed of nectar or pollen seek out the tiny flowers of Prickly Broom-heath.

As Winter draws nearer, butterflies & grasshoppers are engaging in a breeding frenzy.

It's a lucky day when we see the Glossies feeding ... but to see them breeding is a rare sight indeed.

Winged ants gather together as they prepare to take flight to found new colonies