Where they have been

Where Creatures Have Been

This page is showing pictures of formations created by insects or small creatures. A brief description is added to explain the formation. Despite the page title many of these formations are still occupied by insects - they are just not apparent.
Click on the picture to display at a larger size.

Ant Hill

When ants built their underground tunnels to live in, the worker ants are responsible for removing all the soil, small pebbles, sticks and other debris from underground to the surface. Many ants deposit this adjacent to the hole to their nest, hence forming an Ant Hill.It is their mullock heap. Ants can lift up to 50 times their own body weight so don't be surprised at the size of some of the small stones found in an anthill.

Not all ants build ant hills, those that don't carry the spoil away from the colony opening.

Bandicoot

Bandicoots dig small conical holes in search for insects, earthworms, insect larvae, and spiders as well as tubers and fungi. Bandicoots are often attracted to forage on watered lawns and gardens where insect numbers are higher than in bushland, and these areas can sustain higher numbers of bandicoots.

Bndicoot scat.

Cuckoo Spit

Cuckoo spit (also known as Frog Spit or Snake Spit) is made by insects, or to be more precise nymphs (young insects). They chew partially through the plant stem and then froth up the sap which exudes from the stem resulting in a white aerated sticky froth. The nymphs live in this froth until they are mature enough to fly away and fend for themselves. The froth provides a moist environment, which they need to mature, it also acts as a thermal barrier and hides them from predators and parasites. There are several insects which utilise this method of protection.

Eggs

Ootheca, the egg sac of a preying mantis

Egg laying insects use innumarable methods of protecting their eggs from the elements and predators. Some of which are extremely elaborate and others are quite simple such as ants which lay their eggs below existing ground cover or in underground nests.

Lacewing eggs on a stem of dry grass

Fairy Martin nests located below a bridge.

Galls

Gall on a eucalypt fruit.

Galls are seen as unusual growths on plants. They result when something injures the plant and the plant will attempt to repair itself resulting in a cancer like growth. Galls are quite often caused by insects which either live inside or feed on the inside of the gall as they are usually filled with highly nutritious soft tissue which means the insect (usually in its caterpillar or mite stage - depending on the insect species) does not have to chew through the tough bark of the plant every time it wants a feed. Galls can appear on leaves, fruit, branches and roots. Root galls can seriously damage a plant however most above ground galls have little or no detrimental effect on the plant.
Galls can also be caused by fungus and mistletoe.
Eucalypts and wattles are the most gall-prone Australian plants.

This Gall has almost taken over the whole leaf.

Galls on a leaf.

Galls on a leaf and a twig.

Gall on a leaf where the insect has got under the skin of the leaf.

Frass

Frass is the wood dust left by burrowing beetles or ants into trees. This can be seen emerging from the tree often in the vicinity of new growth as the wood is softer - as shown in the picture right.

A pile of frass is often seen at the base of the tree as per the picture left.

Burrowing beetles can be quite harmful to trees and can be sufficient to kill the tree. Blackwood trees in our area are often killed by infestation by grubs.

Note the word Frass also applies to insects poo.

Pupa

Pupa illustration courtesy www.enchantedlearning.com

The pupal stage occurs with insects which undergo a complete metamorphosis, with four life stages - egg, larva, pupa and imago. The processes of entering and completing the pupal stage are controlled by the insect's hormones.The pupae of different groups of insects have different names such as chrysalis for the pupae of butterflies and tumbler for those of the mosquito family. Pupae may further be enclosed in other structures such as cocoons, nests or shells.

Butterfly Pupa or Chrysalis. A cremaster is one, or a cluster, of support hooks at the abdominal end of a pupal chrysalis. Some are supported by only the cremaster; others have a web girdle holding them in place whilst they pupate

Species unknown

This Papu is sealed at the top with clay. Species unknown.

Bagworm pupa. Species unknown

Greengrocer cicada casing

Dragonfly nymphal case found on Carex appressa stems in dam, showing torn off breathing tubes (the trachea).

Termite Mounds

Termite mounds are the home of termites. Generally there is no sign of life so people think they have been vacated. But termites go underground from the mound to feed and are only visible when they swarm (mid August to March) or when the mound is damaged they can be seen on the surface repairing the damage. Mounds are often built over old tree stumps, which is possibly the case with the picture left, which could explain the unusual hole in the mound. The termites keep the mounds at a temperature of 32 deg.C which is ideal for incubation of their eggs. It is also ideal for incubation of goanna eggs hence termite mounds become surrogate "egg sitters" for the Lace Monitors - the goanna found in our area.

Thousands of termite wings on a pool following a day of swarming.

The photo left show termites swarming from their nest.

The photo on right shows termites repairing the outside of their nest following damage caused by fallen branch.

Wasps

This is the "nest' of a Spider Wasp. The nest is made from mud and progressively divided into chambers. In each chamber an egg is laid, one or more spiders are placed alongside the egg and the chamber sealed. When the larvae hatch they feed on the spiders before "digging" their way out of the chamber to the free world.

The photo right is also a Spider Wasp nest which was built in the indent of house brick (disturbed when the brick was removed). Shows the eggs and spiders in seperate chambers.

Skeletonised Eucalypt Leaves. There are many insects, mainly caterpillars, which feed on leaves leaving behind the vein structure.

Spider web-nets

Photographs Kaye Proudley and John McClumpha