Imperial Jezebel, Delias harpalyce
Are you curious about the pretty butterflies you see fluttering by, sitting on trees, flowers or on the ground? If you would like to know more about Mt Majura’s butterflies, come along to Friends of Mt Majura’s very first butterfly walk, which will be on the lower slopes.
When: Sunday 18th February; meet at 1pm sharp.
Note: It will be cancelled if it is raining.
Broad-margined Azure, Ogyis olane
We meet: In the dirt car park at the nature park entrance off Antill Street, Hackett; click on this map. A classic concrete Canberra bus stop under power lines marks the car park.
Bring: Sun protection, drinking water and appropriate clothing and shoes for the weather and bush; to make it easier to see the butterflies bring binoculars or cameras with a zoom function if you have them.
We are very lucky to have ANU butterfly researcher, author and all-round biologist Dr. Suzi Bond to lead this information-packed walk.
She will talk about butterflies and caterpillars, life cycles and habitat, and why the butterflies on top of the mountain are different to the ones lower down. They are more actively feeding and flying on warm sunny days, than on very hot or cold days when they will be resting. Suzi will be able to point out the plants which are important for Majura’s butterflies if the weather is unfriendly. She might also tell us how the Common Brown butterfly is contributing to research on climate change.
We hope to see all the butterflies shown on this page.
Spot the differences between these orange & brown butterflies with rings on their wings:
Meadow Argus, Junonia villida
Ringed Xenica, Geitoneura acantha
Marbled Xenica, Geitoneura klugii
Common Brown, Heteronympha merope
Images from Canberra Nature Map https://canberra.naturemapr.org/
The following book and website are excellent resources to identify our local butterflies:
1. Bond, Suzi, Holliday, Steve and Stein, John (2016). Field Guide to the butterflies of the Australian Capital territory. National Parks Association of the ACT Inc, Canberra.
2. Canberra Nature map, https://canberra.naturemapr.org/
