SEPTEMBER 15, 1961

Vol. Xlll, No. 1 l Price-THREE SHILLINGS

The Great Barred Frog (Mixophyes f asciolatus) is one of the largest of Australian frogs, growing to more than four inches in length. Common in many parts of the coast and highlands of eastern Australia, it feeds largely on insects but sornetim es eats other frogs. This specimen was collected by the Australian Museum's Cape York Peninsula expedition, an article on which appears on page 362.

Registered at th E> GE>n('ral Post Office. Sydney. for transmission as a periodical. THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM HYDE PARK, SYDNEY

BO ARD OF TRUSTEES

PRESIDENT: F. B. SPENCER CROWN TRUSTEE: F. B. SP ENCER OFFICIAL TRUSTEES: THE HON. THE CHIEF JUSTICE. TH E HON. THE PRESIDENT OF TH E LEGISLATJVE COUNCIL. THE HON . T H E CH IEF SEC RETARY. THE HON. THE ATTOR NEY-GENERA L. THE HON. THE TREAS URE R. T HE HON. THE M IN ISTER F OR PUBLIC WORKS. THE HON. THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION. THE AUDITOR-GENERAL. T HE PRESIDENT OF THE NEW SOUTH WALES MEDICAL BOARD. THE SURVEYOR-GENERAL AND CHIEF S URVEYOR. THE CROWN SOLICITOR ELECTIVE TRUSTEES: 0 . G. VICKE RY, B.E., M.l.E. (Aust.). FRANK W. HILL. PROF. A. P. ELKIN, M.A., Ph.D. G. A. JOHNSON. F. McDOWELL. PROF. J . R. A . McM ILLAN, M.S., D.Sc.Agr. R. J. NOBLE, C.B.E., B.Sc.Agr., M.Sc., Ph.D. E. A. J . HYDE. ll. J. KENNY, M.Aust.I.M.M. PRO F. R. L. C ROCKER, D.Sc. F . L. S. BELL , M.A., F.R.A.I. J. W. GOODSELL. C.M.G.

DIRECTOR: J . W. EVANS, Sc. D. DEPUTY DIRECTOR: H . 0 . F LETCH ER, M.Sc. SCIENTIFIC STAFF: Birds, Reptiles and Amphibians: H . G. COGGER , M.Sc., Assistant C urator. Mammals: B. J. MARLOW, B.Sc., F.Z.S., Cur~Hor. Fishes: G . P. WHITLEY, F.R.Z.S., Curator. Insects and Arachnids: C. N. SMlTHERS, M.Sc., Curato r; D. K. McAL PINE, M.Sc .. Assistant Curator. Molluscs: D. F. McMICHAEL, M.A., Ph.D., Curator. Worms and Echinoderms: ELIZABETH C. POPE, M .Sc., Curator. Minerals and Rocks: R. 0 . CHALMERS, A.S.T.C., C t1rator. Fossils: H . 0 . FLETCHER, M .Sc., Curator. Anthropology: F. D. McCARTHY, Dip.Anthrop., Curator. EDITORIAL ASSISTANT AND PUBLIC EDUCATION OFFICER: RELATIONS OFFICER: PATRIC lA M. McDONALD, B.Sc., Dip.Ed. PETER COLLIS. EXHIBITION DEPARTMENT, ART AND DESIGN SECTION: F . J . BEEMAN. LIBRARIAN: PREPARATION SECTION: PHOTOGRAPHER AND VISUAL AIDS OFFICER: MARY OAV IES, B.Sc., L.A.A. R. D . MACKAY. H. H UGHES, A. R.P.S. HONORARY SCIENTIFIC STAFI'': Zoologists. E. A. BRIGGS, D.Sc. JOYCE ALLA , F.R.Z.S. H. LEIG HTON K ESTEVEN, D .Sc., M.D. S. J . COPLAND, M .Sc. MELBOU RNE WARD, F.R.Z.S., F.Z.S. ELLIS TROUGHTON, C.M.Z.S. TOM IREDALE. A. A . RACEK. Dr.rer.na t. (8rno). A. J. MARSHALL, D.Sc .• D.Phil. F. A. MrNEILL. F.R. Z.S. Ornithologist. l•hilatelist. K. A . HI NDWOOD, C.F.A.O.U., F.R.Z.S. FRANK W. HILL CONTENTS

Page

T il E BOOMERANG-Frederick D. McCarthy 343

INSECT MIGRATION-r. N. Smithers 350

RETIREMENT OF M USEUM CURATOR 353

VAMPI RE B ATS-TRUE AND FALSE-B. 1. M ar/ow 354

H ow TO RECOGNIZE M ETEORITES-R . 0. Cha/m.ers 358

AN EXPEDITION T O CAPE Y o RK PEN INSULA- Harold G. Cogger 362

TilE VORACIOUS PI RANIIA OF SoUTH AMERlCA- Gi/bert P. Whitley 368

NoTES AND NEws 349,370

POLLINATION OF TH E PROTEACEAE-R . Carotin 371

e The photo on our front cover was taken by Mr. Harold G. Cogger. a member of the Australian Mus::um's expedition to Cape York Peninsula and author of the article on the expedition in this is•we. The frog was collected in th:: rain forest behind Innisfail.

VoL. XUI, No. ll SEPTEMBER 15, 1961 NEW AUSTRALIAN BOOKS

CANNIBALS ARE HUMAN by He/en McLeod T'here are still places where you wiU find Stone Age cannibals who have never seen white people. Helen McLeod walked through this kind of un tamed savage territory when she went with her District Officer husband on a patrol th rough the almost impenetrable mountain country of New Guinea's Southern HigWands. She describes, too, her first experi ence of life in New G uinea, at Yule Island on the west coast, where she and her husband came ashore in a shi pwreck. H ere also are her frank views on some of the more difficult problems that arise in a country inhabited by one race and administered by another. . . . . Price 25 I- (post 1/ 3)

THE SECRETS OF ALEXANDER HARRIS The answers to many of the mysteries surrounding the author of Settlers and Convicts are given for the first time in this newly discovered book: his autobio­ graphy. A fascinating story of one man's physical and mental struggles, it also sheds new light on the conditions that prevailed in colonial New South Wales. There is an introduction by the author's grandson in Canada, and Alec Chisholm examines the Harris revelations from an Australian viewpoint. With 8 pages of illustrations...... Price 30 I- (post 1 I 3)

KILLERS OF EDEN by Tom Mead Men and killer whales versus whales! For generations the whalemen of Eden responded to the cry : " Killers in the bay!" It was the signal that Old Tom, leader of a pack of killer whales, had returned with his pack from the Antarctic to Twofold Bay and was beckoning the whalemen to follow the pack to a school of wh~ l es. H~ re are the unshakeable facts- a most remarkable stor y. With 16 pages of Jllustrat10ns...... Price 28/ 6 (post 1/3)

available at all booksellers and ANGUS & ROBERTSON LTD 89 CASTLEREAGH STREET, SYDNEY

Paf?e 342 The Australian Museum Magazine THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM MAGAZINE Published Quarterly by the Australian Museum College Street, Sydney Editor : J. W. Evans, Sc.D. Annual Subscription, Posted, 14/-

VoL. XIII, No. 11 SEPTEMBER 15 , 1961

The Boomerang

By FREDERICK D. McCARTHY

THE RE are not many places in Australia The origin of the boomerang is still a now where boomerangs are still made mystery. The fact that the non-returning and used by A borigines who follow their old boomerang was used in the New Hebrides, way of life. These places are in the most southern India, the south-western United remote parts of the continent where white States and elsewhere, and in ancient times contact has not disrupted the Aborigines' in Egypt and neighbouring countries, culture. Boomerangs may still be ob­ suggests that it had a wide distribution as a tained in the Northern T erritory, the hunting and fighting weapon in times gone desert a reas of Western Australia, parts by. We do not know, however, whether the ?f the K imberleys and adjoining areas, and boomerang was part of the armoury of the m the southern portion of Cape York. Most first Australians who fo llowed the non­ of these are non-returning boomerangs, the boomerang-using Tasmanians into Australia r~turning type having almost completely thousands of years ago, or whether it was an dtsappeared except in places like Palm in vention of the Australian Aborigines on Island, La Perouse and elsewhere where it this continent. Many kinds of curved sticks is made for the souvenir trade. were used in south-eastern Australia, and a T he T uruwal tribe on the George's River, fl uted type in Western A ustralia, for throw­ near Sydney, gave the na me bou-mar-ang ing at goannas, birds, small mammals and fis h, and it is possible that the boomerang to the returning boomera ng. It is a curious fact that each of the many hundreds of evolved gradua lly from this kind of weapon. tribes which used a boomerang did not have A fallacy commonly held is that all their own name for the weapon. I nstead , we boomerangs return to the thrower, whereas fin d that a number of tribes in a district or in fact tJle hunting and fig hting ones do not region used the same name or a variant of come back ; the returning type is the least it, indicating a common family of dialects important of the boomerangs as a weapon. and in some instances the diffusion of the boomerang and its na me from tribe to tribe. Non-returning Boomerangs Thus, it is called birgan at Moreton Bay, Queensland, and barragadan from the This type of boomerang has a shallow Brisbane River, Queensla nd, to the Hunter curve in relation to its length, which is from River, New South Wales, a nd many other 2 ft. to 3 ft.. and it weighs up to 1 t lb. instances could be cited . None of the names Some boomerangs are the same wid th from appear to refl ect the swishing or whi stling end to end, others taper to the two ends sound of the boomerang in fl ight. from a broad middle. This kind of

September, 1961 Pa~:e 34J boomerang is a dangerous and effective weapon in the hands of a skilful thrower. As an Aboriginal boy grows up he practises throwing and evading weapons almost daily NEW NAME FOR since his success in hunting, and his life in duels and warfare, are dependent upon hi s MAGAZINE skill in these activities. This thin-edged weapon, travelling at high speed, causes The Trustees of the Museum have death and serious injuries to men in war­ decided to change the name of The fare, and to animals of all kinds in hunting. Australian Museum Magazine to It has to be thrown with split-second timing Australian Natural History as from the on the instant an animal pops out of hiding issue of March 15, 1962. or a bird flies within range. It is thrown The new title has been adopted either directly at the victim, or in such a because it more accurately describes way that one end hits the ground and the boomerang bounds in a giant stride towards the magazine's scope. its bewildered quarry, confused by the The nature and content of the whistling and whirring of this strange fl ying magazine will remain unchanged. danger to its existence. The non-returning boomerang was made all over Australia except in Cape York, Arnhem Land, the northern Kirnberleys, on one side, convex on the other, painted and parts of the border region of South and red and sometimes decorated with a panel Western Australia, localities where boomer­ of red dots on a white fi eld at one end. It angs were not made at all. The most has a greater d istribution than any other famous non-returning boomerang is a fluted kind of boomerang in Australia. Another one made in central Australia, Northern fine type is a dark brown boomerang that Territory and western Queensland. It is flat was used in the region extending from northern New So uth Wales to western and central Queensland. The incised line designs on the convex side of this smoothly polished boomerang are highly varied and among the most skilfu1ly executed decorative work of the Aborigines.

Dual Types L acking as we do precise field studies of the performance of boomerangs in many parts of eastern and Western Australia, we find it difficult, if not impossible, to say whether some of the boomerangs in museum collections are returning or non-returning

RETURNING A N D kinds. In size, this dual form ranges from @ID NON- RE TURNING intermediate to near maximum for throwing boomerangs, so that it is an ideal non­ returning weapon for hunting and fighting. NON- RETURNING and, with the contra twist added, can be transformed into a returning boomerang. In BOOMERANGS NOT MADE this group is a beautifully tooled, narrow • ( Rece;ved b~ b-ode and long boomerang, perhaps the most 0 1n &ome oreos. ) gracefull y shaped of all the boomerangs, from central and western New South Wales, The distribution o[ boomerangs in Australia. and a thick boomerang, convex on both Map by David Rac. sides, from eastern New South Wales.

Page 344 The Australian Museum Maga:ine Australian boomer­ angs: At top are two non-returning types, one of them hooked. used in C entral Aust­ ralia and the North­ ern Territory. Below them are two return­ ing kinds from West- ern Australia. Photo.- H oward Hugbes.

A boomerang-shaped toy from New Hebrides (top left), an Ancient Egyptian boomerang (top right) , a rabbit-killing missile from Arizona, U.S.A. (centre) , and a southern Indian boomerang. These are all non-returning boomerangs. Photo.-Howard Hughes.

Returning Boomerangs one backward. This twisting was either This type is a light, thin, well-balanced shaped into the boomerang as it was made, boomerang from 12 to 30 in. in length, 2 or the weapon was heated in ho~ ashy sand, in. or 3 in. in width, and 3/ 16 to 3/ 8 of and then twisted. It was sometimes soaked an inch in thickness. It is up to 12 oz. in in water before beating. weight. It varies considerably ~n s h ap~ , and The throwing of a returning boomerang in aeneral has a deeper curve m relat10n to 0 . requires the grace and timing of a golf or its length than the non-returnmg type. cricket stroke. The action is vigorous, and Thus, there are returning boomera ng~ WJth the thrower runs a few steos forward to gain medium to deep curve, one convex and one greater impetus. T he boomerang .i s held at concave arm, a nd angled with straight ends one end, over the shoulder and behind the of which one may be longer than the other. thrower's head, with the concave edge to the One sid e is usualJy flat and one rounded, front. It is sw ung rapidly forward, with the but both sid es may be convex. The edges flatter side toward the ground, and just are sharp or slightly rounded to enable the before release is given added momentum by weapon to cut through the air. a powerful wrist movement similar to that T he most important technical feature of used by a golfer. The thrower tests his the boomerang is the twisting of the two poise and balance several times by shaking ends in opposite directions, one forward and the boomerang and making a few practice

September, 1961 Pape 345 dived downwards to evade their swift-flying enemy, and many of them became entangled in the net. As part of their training as OQO warriors the men dodged the boomerang as it dived swiftly to the ground on its return, and in Western Australia some tribesmen held tournaments to see who could bring his boomerang back nearest to a peg, or make his boomerang accomplish the greatest number of circles. R eturning boomerangs were used in eastern Australia (except Cape York) and Western Australia (except northern Kimber­ leys), but not in the Northern Territory, central Australia and most of South Austra­ lia. They were usually a lighter, narrower and smaller form of the local non-returning types. The kaili boomerangs of Western Australia are among· the best known of the returning types. The uncanny flight of the returning boomerang puzzled scientists for 50 years before its secret was unfolded. Early observers were of the opinion that its return was due to the combination of fiat Flight tracks of a returning boomerang as and curved surfaces. As the air pressed on recorded by Max Buchner with boomerangs specially made for testing. the fiat surface. the lower one in flight, the rounded upward side allowed the air currents to slip by and the missile to rise. swings, timing his throw according to the In 1846 Sir Thomas Mitchell discovered force and direction of the wind. The that the contra, or opposite twist of the ends boomerang may be thrown downwards, hori­ of the boomerang, was the real explanation. zontally or at an angle to the ground, but The effect of air pressure on the two it soon sweeps upward to a height of 50 ft. opposed surfaces produced by this twisting, or more. When thrown so that one end combined with the spinning of the boomer­ strikes the ground it ricochets into the air ang, causes the latter to fly in circles of at terrific speed. It completes a circle 50 decreasing size as it loses momentum and yards or more in diameter, and then two or falls to the ground. S. T. Walker, from his three, occasionally more, ovals as it drops experiments in England, demonstrated .that to the ground near the thrower. In some alterations in the ratios of size, wetght, flights a figure-of-eight course is followed. twist and rounding of the surfaces will cau~e Two fallacies exist about the returning changes in flight which he demonstrated m boomerang. One is that it was an offensive mathematical equations. As no proof that weapon, whereas it was chiefly a toy ; the a returning boomerang exists or has existed other is that it returns after striking an in any other country, it is generally believed object, but when this happens it wiU fall to that it originated in Australia as a gradual the ground. development from the non-returning type, the flight of which is often of a curving Some tribes used the returning boomer­ ang in hunting. They strung nets across a nature. stream, or between trees in the open forest, Mulga and sim ilar woods are favo u~ed and as a flock of ducks, parrakeets or other for making boomerangs in th e vast reg10n birds approached this trap the boomerang from central-western New South Wales and was thrown above them to imitate a hawk Queensland right across the in terior to whose call the hunters made. The birds Western Australia, where the kaifi is a good

Paf(e 346 The A ustr(lfian Museum Magazine Boomerangs are used for a variety of purposes, such as (1) scraping hot ashes over the carcase of an animal being cooked in a pit; (2) trimming the edge of a hafted chisel; (3) as a fire-saw (an occasional use when a suitable saw is not available); (4) striking together as clapsticks to mark the rhythm of a song or dance; (5) digging a cooking-pit with a sharpened end; (6) using a sharpened end lto cut open the abdomen of a kangaroo. The fluted non-returning boomerang of Central Australia is used more commonly than other types for tliese purposes.

Drawings by David Rae.

September, 1961 projecting from the middle of the outside ot the curve on a few of the kaili boomerangs Survey of Aboriginal in Western A ustralia. Rock Shelters Other Uses Of Boomerangs Apart from the above uses as hunting and The chairman of the Nuffield fighting weapons and playthings, boomer­ Foundation Australian Advisory angs serve other purposes. Committee, Mr. Colin Syme, recently The fl atter faces of two are gently rapped announced that a grant of £915 had together to ma rk the rhythm of a song or been made to the Australian Museum dance all over Australia. for an archaeological survey of Aboriginal rock shelters in the Cobar­ The fluted central Australian boomerang Louth area of western New South has a wider range of uses than any other Wales. type. It has one sharp end with which the men cut-open animals and chop them up, During the survey Aboriginal paint­ dig well s, fire-pits for cooking kangaroos ings in 26 rock shelters will be and emus, and holes to uncover totem recorded in scale drawings and photo­ stones, unearth honey ants, lizards and other graphs. Several habitation sites will be burrowing animals, and scrape the hot ashes excavated to ascertain the antiquity of over and away from cooking carcases. The the occupation of the area by the edge of the boomerang is used as a fire-saw Aborigines and the archaeological on a softwood shield, as a fabricator to period to which their stone-implement retouch stone adzes, and, as a bow, is culture belongs. A film of the work rubbed across the edge of another boomer­ will be made. The survey will be ang to produce a curious musical sound. undertaken by Mr. F. D. McCarthy, This boomerang thus takes the place of Curator of Anthropology, and other several other a rtifacts that would have to members of the staff of the Museum. be made and carried, and it illustrates an important principle in the life of the desert or spinifex country tribes of the interior. To them a reduction in the chattels to be example of this plum-red to brown timber, carried means less weight to transport and mottled with yellow. Along the east coast more freedom of movement, vital needs for of Australia, mangrove wood was favoured, a semi -nomadic people who have to travel and elsewhere a variety of timber, includ­ great distances between waterholes and in ing myrtle. Some boomerangs were made the search for food in a harsh environment. of bark. For this reason, the use of this versatile boomerang spread from the central Austra­ Special Types lian and Northern T erritory tribes to those in western Queensland, \Vestern Australia The hooked o r swan-necked variety of 'the and South Austra lia, and until the white fluted boomerang in the Northern T erritory man destroyed tribal life it was rapidly is a well-balanced boomerang. It is said replacing other kinds of boomerangs in these that the hook catches on the edge of a shield areas. or spearthrower (used for parrying) and the shaft whips round and strikes the defender. This action could not be very Boomerang-dubs dangerous, and I believe that the hook Many kinds of curved clubs stemmed forms a pick for fighting at close quarters, from the boomerang. In New South Wale like the stone-bladed pick in this region. In and Victoria a beautifully incised bladed Arnhem Land a short broad boomerang weapon, the fil /if, and boomerangs with one called the gafiwali is used in ritual opera­ end widened into a triangular shape, known tions on girls. rn the Lake Eyre district a as the yachi, were used as hand weapons hook is a typical feature of a curved ritual and as mi ssiles in fighting and hunting. boomerang, and a fi n-like hook is to be seen Curved and flat-bladed sword-clubs were

Page 348 The Australian Museum Mnga:.ine used in many parts of Australia; notable more commonly than with spears. The among them are one kind up to 6 ft. great creator-heroes depicted in the rock long, used in duels by the tribesmen of Lake engravings of the Sydney-Hawkesbury Eyre and western Queensland, and the district, and on the initiation grounds of enormo usly heavy ones of north-eastern New South w ·ales and Victoria, are armed Queensland. They demonstrate the capacity with boomerangs. In north-western Austra­ of the Aborigines to modify and adapt their lia another hero threw a boomerang in a limited range of a rtifacts in response to deadly manner with his left hand, and there cultural needs and to the ideas of keen­ are many legends in which the boomerang minded men in different localities. is featured as a weapon of great magical power. Designs representing totemic clans The Boomerang In Art And Legend and the travels of spirit-heroes were incised on boomerangs in the northern New South Although the spear is the principal Wales and central Queensland area, and in wea oon of the Aborigines, it is interesting the Kirnberleys. Simple designs were to note that among the rock engravings and painted on one end of them in central paintings in eastern a nd western New South Australia and the Northern Territory. Else­ Wales. north-western Australia and else­ where they were either fluted or plain, apart where, a variety of animals, including from the neat tooling pattern skilfully kangaroos and emus, are shown being worked out in western New South Wales struck with boomerangs. In fact, men are and on some of the kaili in Western shown fighting with them in the rock art Australia.

NOTES AND NEWS MUSEUM EXHIBIT ON WHALES GIFf TO MUSEUM An exhibit on whales and whaling has been Mr. Bob Dyer, well-known television and radio completed at the Australia n Museum. It tells personality, recently presented to the Australian of whales' life histories, migration, breeding and Museum a Bl ack and a Striped Marlin, to be fccEiing , and contains models of 15 different cast for display. When the latter was being species of whales and of whaling ships with prepared, a rare species of Sucking Fish was whales being flensed on deck. The exhibit in­ found inside its gill-chamber. cludes an explosive harpoon, used for capturing whales; a ftensing k nife ; a dart of the kind fired VISITOR FROM MANILA into whales from shotguns as markers to enable Miss P. V. Conlu. a Colombo Plan ichthyo­ the mammals' movements to be ascertained ; krill logist from Manila. the Philippine Islands. visited (shrimp-like animals) on which whalebone whales the Australian Museum recently to examine the feed: a baleen fringe with which these whales fish collections and identify gobles and blennies fi lter out the krill from mouthfuls of sea water; a wax ear-plug from markings on which a whale's from Queensland. age may be determined ; and photos of whaling ABORIGINAL EXHIBITS ON TV operations at sea and at shore stations. Maps show the areas in the Antarctic in which A direct telecast was made by ABN (Chan­ whaling is carried out, the location of shore nel 2) from the Museum's Australian Aboriginal stations and the areas in w hich whales are pro­ G allery on June 27. The economic life, crafts tected. and art of the Aborigines were illustrated with ex hibits and specimens. FISHES FROM PORT STEPHENS The Museum's C urator of Fishes, Mr. G . P. INDIAN VISITOR TO MUSEUM Whitley, visited the Port Stcphens, N ew South Mr. Anand Bisht, Conservator at the N ational Wales, a rea to obtain trawled and game fishes Museum of India. spent four weeks in the prepara­ for the new fish gallery and for the reference tion section of the Au tralian Mu eum early this collections. year, receiving in truction in preparing specimens for display. Mr. Bisht had already spent a few VAMPIRE BATS months at the N ational Art Gallery, Sydney, T he Australian Museum recently received its learning advanced techniques in the restoration of first vampire bats, which were sent in exchange by paintings. His visit to Australia was under a Dr. Felten, 0f Frankfurt, Germany. These bats scholarship from the Commonwealth Office of were collected in El Salvador, Central America. Education.

September, 1961 Pap,e 349 INSECT MIGRATION

By C. N. SMJTHERS

A full-scale butterfly migration is one of the most spectacular of insect activities. In temperate regions the number of individuals taking part is often small and the migrations may go unnoticed, although they occur fairly commonly. In tropical areas the number of individuals may be so great and the migrations so prolonged and regular in occurrence that they have become the subject of folklore and superstition in several parts of the world . In Ceylon, for example, the annual movements of butter­ fli es are believed to be orientated towards Adam's Peak, the highest mountain on the island, where there is a rock formation which bears some resemblance to a large human footprint. This is regarded as a footprint of Buddha, and the butterflies are believed to be going on a pilgrimage to the mountain to pay homage. Male (above) and fema le of the Caper In Australia, the migrations of the White Butterfly, a censpicuous migrant Bogong Moth (Agrotis irrfusa) culminate in along the eastern coastline of Australia. their assembling in masses on rock outcrops Photo.- Howard Hughes. in the Australian Capital Territory, the Snowy Mountains and the Victorian High­ ing bugs are regular migrants, sometimes lands ; these assemblages were known to the undertaking journeys of several hundreds of Aborigines of the area, who collected the miles, distances which are surprisingly long aestivating moths for food. when you consider the small size of the A conspicuous migrant butterfly is the insects. Mixed migrations, of species Caper White (Glycestha java teutonia ), the belonging to several different orders of caterpillars of which feed mainly on various insects, all travelling in the same di rection, species of Capparis. This species migrates are quite frequent and there are some during the months October to February; records of coincident migration in which occasionally the migrations involve different species were travelling in different tremendous numbers of insects, and some directions. spectacular flights have been seen in the Some of the early observers of migration Sydney district. Movements of this species thought that the direction of flight was have been reported from as far north as largely determined by wind direction, as it Cairns and from Tasmania in the south. hardly seemed possible that such apparently weak animals as insects could undertake Long Migrations directional fli ghts fo r any distance without Although it is amongst butterflies and some help. One of the reasons given for moths that migrations are most frequently migration was overcrowding ; it was thought observed and re ported, these are not the that, when the population level was high only insects which migrate. Some of the and food became scarce, the insects took dragonflies, hover fli es, parasitic wasps and off in search of a more congenial environ­ other H ymenoptera, locusts and some suck- ment- one with a n adequate food supply.

Page 350 The Alls/ra/ian Museum Magazine As more precise information has been the dicotyledonous food plants, on which gathered over the years and more records the larvae fe edl, have germinated-that is, have been kept by people on the lookout in late summer and autumn. It is clearly for migrating insects, it has become clear necessary to make a study of the overall that the direction of the wind is not neces­ ecology and biology of a migrant species sa rily that of the insects. Many insects before conclusions can be reached on the migrate when there is no wind, and many importance of the migratory habit. How prolonged . migrations ha ye been noted in the migratory habit evolves is also a which the msects were ftymg at an angle to, problem to whi

The Bogong Moth. a regular migrant in Australia. The Aborigines col­ lected the aestivat­ ing moths for food. Photo.-H oward Hughes.

September, 1961 constant over most of the flight route, but S

Page 352 The Australian Museum Magazine Marking of insects, with their subsequent birds and other animals, and it should not release, is also a possible line of work. be discarded out of hand as a useless The chances, however, of a marked insect method of study where insects are being recaptured in a country as large as concerned. Australia and with such a small num1>er of There is a fascination in following, in the people likely to be interested in capturing mind's eye, the journey of such a small an insect, render it a not-very-hopeful organism as an insect, a journey which may source of information. On the other hand, be over land and water, over forest or open that is the main method by which we have country, a journey of which we know so come to learn so much of the migration of little of the how or why.

RETIREMENT OF MUSEUM CURATOR

Mr. F . A. McNeill retired from the curatorship of the D epa rtment of Crustacea and Coelenterates at the Australian Museum on June 2, after 47 years as a zoologist on the staff. He joined the staff as a scientific cadet in May, 1914, and received his early zoological training from Museum scientists and at the Sydney Technical College. His early work was with fishes and reptiles. In February, 1922, he was appointed Zoologist in C harge of Lower Invertebrates, the title being changed to Curator in 1948. M r. McNeill is a specialist on Australian crustacea, and h is research papers have appeared in various scientific journals. His final project, prior to retirem ent, was the preparation of a detailed report for the British M useum (Natural History) on the Crustacea Decapoda collected by the British Great Barrier Reef Expedition during 1928-1929. In his many popular writings, which have appeared regularly in the "Australian Museum Magazine" and other publications, he has revealed an immense knowledge of the inverte­ brate groups of anima ls with which he was m&inl y Mr. F. A. MeNeill. c~n cem ed. He is joint-author, with Mr. Keith G tll ~tt , of a be·autifu ll y produced and well Reef, principall y as a member of expeditions, and recet,Ved book, "The Great Barrier Reef and the material he collected on these occasions has Adjacent Isles", recently published by A. K. considerably enriched the national collections. He .Murray Pty. Ltd., Sydney. Other contributions is a recognised authority on the Great Barrier mclude articles in the " Australian Encyclopaedia" Reef and its fauna, and it was largely due to his and "T his Land of Ours". efforts that turtles were protected by the Queens­ His research in the fie ld of economic zoology land Government from exploitation in that area. dealt with investigation into the destruction of Mr. McNeill is an enthusiastic broadcaster on under~water timber structures by marine boring natural-history subjects, and in the past was a o~gam sm s . T his work, carried out in collaboration member of a committee controlling the Nature Wtth M r. R. A. Johnson, Engineer Research Study programme in the A.B.C. School Broad­ 9 fficer of the Ma ritime Services Board, was fi nall y casts Section. F or three and a half years he mcorporated in one complete volume of more broadcast as '"Sandy the Naturalist" in the than. ?50 pages. I n the 1953- l954 report of the N ational Children's Session over 2FC. Man ttme Services Board. it is stated that, since the. commencement of this research in 1927, the As a member of the Royal Zoological Society savmgs to the State in piling alone amounted to of New South Wales he took an active part in £250,000. the earl y years of the Section of Marine Zoology, and has held the office of honorary sec retary and T he .. field investigations carried otJt by Mr. vice-chairman. In 1960, the council of the society McNet!l included many visits to the Great Barrier conferred on him the title of Fellow.

September, 196 1 B ""' v•M"" em

FALSE VAMPIRE BATS

This map shows the distribution of the true vampire bats in the Western hemisphere and the false vampire bats in the Eastern hemisphere. A lthough the latter group is widely distributed in south-eastern Asia and Australia, it does not occur in New Guinea. M ap by David Rae.

Vampire Bats-True and False

By B. J. M ARLOW

B ELIEF in the existence of supernatural from these shapes in the early stages of beings which feed on the blood of this superstition, but when the Spaniards living humans has exercised a macabre returned from the newly-discovered fascination among men since prehistoric Americas with tales of blood-sucking bats, times in many parts of the world. these animals were soon added to the list of the possible forms that a vampire could The term "vampire" originated in adopt. Due mainly to such works as Bram eastern Europe, particularly among Slavo­ Stoker's "Dracula", the bat has become nic people, who believed that these beings fixed in imagination as the main physical were the soirits of the dead which could manifestation of a vampire. leave the corose and adopt the form of va rious ani mais. The vampires would leave The term vamoire bat has since come the body at night in the shape of were­ to be applied indiscriminately to many wolves, horses, cats, dogs and other animals species, especially if they happen to be and search for the human victims on which large and of grotesque appearance, even they fed. The form of a bat was excluded though they do not merit this name.

Page 354 The Australian Museum Magazine True Vampire Bats victim. The saliva of the bat contains an anti-coagulant which prevents the blood True vampire bats are all included in the from clotting, and the ·wound continues to family D esmodo ntidae which is contained bleed for some time after the bat has within the la rge group of spear-nosed bats ceased to feed. The wound is not sucked Phyllosto mato idea, which is exclusively but rather the tongue moves backwards and America n. The re a re three genera each forwards with great rapidity so that it containing a single species; Diaemus ~uncti o n s as a piston. In this way the blood youngi a nd Di phylla ecaudata are uncom­ IS drawn in through two channels which mon, while De.sm odus rotundus is the most lie below the tongue on either side of the abundant a nd most extensively studied ~ o uth_.. This pumping action of the tongue species. ts fac1lt tated by the extreme reduction of Vampire bats (Desm odus rotundus ) are the lower incisors, which do not pierce the d istributed fro m southern Mexico south g.ums, and also by a V-shaped groove through Central America to Uruguay in Situated on the lower lip. South America. During the day they rest The simple stomach of these bats is in limestone caves, where they hide in the c~pac i o u s , and the animal becomes visibly deep cracks and fi ssures in the walls. A t d1stended as it feeds; it is from this feature. dusk they emerge in search of the warm­ that the specific name rotundus is derived . blooded vertebrates o n which they feed .

Feeding Behaviour Economic Significance Of Vampire Bats Va mpire bats are medium-sized animals Not only do these bats feed on dome tic with a wing spa n of about 12 in. Unlike ani mals such as horses, cattle and poult ry, most o ther sma ll bats, vampires are able but they will a lso attack humans. in which to walk o r run with dexterity on the case bites are normally delivered on some ground. During this process, the wings are extremity of the body, such as the fi ngers, kept tightly folded a nd the body is toes or nose. Continued attacks on man supported o n the la rge thumbs of the and hi s domestic animals may cause wings a nd the hind feet. Once a victim severe debil ity because of frequent and has been located, the bat lands close by. prolonged haemorrhage. In some districts creeps carefully o n to its body and inflicts of Central America it is im possible to rear a bite, often in the region of the shoulder. domestic stock because of the attacks of vampire bats. Of fa r greater signi fica nce T he upper incisor teeth (see photo on than the mechanical damage which is this page) a re very well developed and inflicted by these animals, however. are the enable the bat to scoop out a sha llow. diseases that they are able to transmit. crater-shaped wound from which the blood nows freely. lt is stated that thi s bi te is A disease called "murrina" in Central painless and does no t awaken the sleeping America is ea used by a protozoan blood

T he skull o f a true vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus). The arrow indicates the modified upper incisor teeth wi' h which the typical shal­ low, crater-like bite is innicted.

Photo.-H oward I l ughcs.

September, 1961 Pa~e 355 A true vampire bat ( Desmodus rotundus) from El Salvador, Central America. Photo.-Howard Hughes.

parasi te, Trypanosoma hippicwn, which is False Vampire Bats Of The Eastern transmitted to horses by the bite of infected Hemisphere vampire bats. Similarly, these bats are able Among the insect-eating bats, Microchi ­ to convey rabies to humans and domestic roptera, is a la rge super-family, the Rhino­ stock. and a severe outbreak of this disease lophoidea, which, besides containing the occurred in Trinidad in 1932. Since vam­ horse-shoe bats, also includes the family pire bats are difficult to control directly, of false vampire bats, the Megadermatidae. the diseases they convey are prevented both This family comprises three genera, which by prophylactic inoccul ations and by are widely distributed in the Eastern hemi­ housing humans a nd stock in bat-proof sphere (see map). Lavia frons , the buildings at night. yellow-winged bat, is the African represen­ tative of this family, while in the Oriental region there are two species in the genus Feeding Behaviour In Other Spear-Nosed M egad erma, M. spasma and M. lyra. Bats The third genus is Macroderma gigas, Spear-nosed bats have a wide range of the fal se vampire bat of northern Australia. feeding habits and, in addition to insecti­ Like many other groups of bats, the false vorous and blood-feeding species, there are vampires have been able to cross Wallace's ca rnivorous forms such as Phyllostomus, line, which lies between Bali and Lombok. which feeds on small vertebrates as well as and separates the typically Asiatic fauna in insects and fruit. the west from the Australasian fauna in the east. In spite of this, the group is absent The true frui t bats or flying foxes are from New Guinea, although it forms an absent from America, where the niche of important element in the fauna of Australia. fruit-eating bats is filled by the spear-nosed bats. Similarly, the nectar-feeding Macro­ glossinae of the eastern hemisphere are The Australian False Vampire represented by Glossophaga among the This bat, Macroderma gigas, is the American spear-nosed species. G!ossop­ largest species of the group of insect-eating haga, together with Artibeus and Vampy­ bats, the Microchiroptera, and is distributed rum, has acquired the name of vampire across northern Australia, from the north without any justification. since none of of Western Australia through Alice Springs these forms are blood-feeders. to Rockhampton in Queensland. During

Page 356 Tire Australian Museum Magazine the day these animals live in limestone caves, where they hang from the walls fairly close to the entrance. Their mummified remains may often be found on the cave floors. The wing-span is over 2 ft., and the colour may vary from brown to very pale fawn. This pale colour has been responsible for the vernacular name of "ghost bat" which is often applied to this species. T hese bats show many structural peculiarities, particularly about the head (see illustration on this page). There is a conspicuous nose leaf, the ears are joined in the mid-Hne and, in contrast with the horse-shoe bats, there is a well-developed forked tragus within the ear. Although these animals are called false vampires, they are in no way related to the true vampire bats of America, nor do they share thei r peculiar blood-feeding habits. Since the upper incisor teeth are absent in the false vampires, it would be impossible for them to deliver a bite comparable with that of the American species.

Feeding Habits Of False Vampire Bats False vampire bats are mainly carni­ vorous, although they will also eat large The head of an Australian false vampire bat insects. All classes of vertebrates are (Macroderma gigas). This species does not consumed, as fish, frogs, lizards, small birds feed on blood as do the true vampire bats of and rodents have all been recorded as food southern Mexico, Central America a nd South items in their diet. Well authenticated America. It may be recognized by its large records exist which show that the Asiatic size (its wi ng-span is over 2 ft.) and the forked species M egaderma lyra feeds on smaller tragus within the ear. bats as well as the other vertebrates listed Drawing by D avid Rae. above, and it has been suggested that the Australian species Macroderma gigas does T he diet of the smaller bats (M1cro­ the same. Wood-J ones records that he has chiroptera) is thus extremely varied and, found quantities of the hair of sma11 bats in although the majority feed only on insects, the stomachs of mummified specimens of others may be fruit or nectar eaters, while Macroderma collected from the floors of others are actively carni vorous. The name caves. F urther investigation of the feeding vampire bat should be restricted to those behaviour of this very interesting species is highly-specialised American bats which feed needed so that an accurate assessment of its exclusively on the b1ood of warm-blooded diet can be established. vertebrates.

CONFERENCE ON ABORIGINAL STUDffiS C ulture". The conference was held to assess A t the invitation of the Commonwealth knowledge of all aspects of Aboriginal life and Government. Mr. F. D . M cCarthy, Curator of culture, the gaps in it to be fi lled, and the broad Anthropology at the Australian Museum, attended programme of research necessary to record all a co~erence on A boriginal studies last May, and data possible belfore modern civilization extingu­ co~tnb u ted one of the data papers, his subject ishes Aboriginal culture in the remaining areas bemg " Aboriginal Economic Life and Material where it may still be studied.

September, 1961 Page 357 HOW TO RECOGNIZE METEORITES

By R. 0. CHALMERS

THE f all of meteorites either singly or in Even in our enlightened times, in 1949. a shower has been noted throughout the a meteor was seen at very close quarters at centuries since PJutarch published the first night in Caernarvonshire, Wales, and authentic record in 492 B.C. eventually plunged through the roof of a The noise of a meteorite rushing immedi­ hotel. One observer said that although he ately overhead at low altitude and high was not "as a rule frightened or timid of speed, leaving behind a brilliant luminous nightfall he stood perplexed wondering if "tail", has struck awe and terror in the this could be the second advent of Our hearts of observers, very often through fear Saviour . . . ". of the supernatural. Accounts such as these through the T hi s is evidenced by the veneration centuries understandably enough failed to attached to stones which are in all proba­ gain credence f rom scientists, including the bility meteorites, such as the famous one in famous Lavoisier. Even after 1803, when the Kaaba, one of the buildings of the Great F rench physicist Biot verified the fa ll of Mosque in Mecca. In 1640 a religious tract thousands of stony meteorites not far from caJJ ed "The Voyce of the Lord in the Paris, scepticism still prevailed in non-scien­ Temple' ' recorded the hurtling of "a Fiery tific circles. United States President Ball into the Church of St. Anthony, nee re J efferson made his famous howler when he Plimmouth, Cornwall, to the scorching said, on being told that two American and astonishment of fou rteen severall scientists, Silliman and Kingsley, had persons . .. '' recorded the fall of meteorites in Connecti-

A specimen of fused rock, a bout 9 in. Ion ~, which an untra ine d ob­ server could mistake fo r a meteorite. It is be­ lieved to be from an Aboriginal fir eplace four miles north of Na rran­ de ra. N ew South Wales. It was ore~ented to the Museum· by Mr. L en J ones. the owner of th e property on which it was found. Photo.- Howard Hughes.

The Australian Museum Ml'::a::. ine Portion of the Binda aerolite (stony meteorite). which was seen to fall near Crook­ well, New South Wales, in 191 2. Its fused crust and markings caused by its fl igh t through the air are clea rl y seen. The entire specimen weighed 12 I b.

cut in 1807, "It is easier to believe that two • Stony meteorites ( aerolites) consisting Yankee professors would lie than to believe of a mixture of rock-forming minerals, that stones could fall from the sky". mostly members of the feldspar, pyroxene and olivine groups, of the same type as Whether the p ublic interest in meteorites found in the great group of terrestrial basic is a sub-conscious hangover from the dawn igneous rocks, and in nearly every instance of history or due rather to an increasing a proportion of nickel iron. In the relatively general awareness that meteori tes originate few instances where no nickel iron whatever from the break-up of smalJ planetary bodies, is present a very detailed microscopic and as such provide the o nly tangible evi­ examination may be required to distinguish dence of the type of solid matter that exists the meteorite from certain types of terres­ outside the earth's atmosphere, the fact trial rock. remains that a la rge and varied assortment of objects thought to be meteorites continu­ • Tektites, which are natural glasses ally comes to the Museum for identification. found in relatively few countries of the world, including Australia, and about the Three Main Types Of Meteorites origin of which opinion is by no means yet unanimous. It would be correct to say. The salient features of meteorites are now however, that majority opinion fa vours a described in the hope that the interest of cosmic origin. readers may be aroused. There are three main types :- T he popular belief is that meteorites are completely melted and almost red-hot when . • Metallic meteorites (siderites) consist­ they reach the ground. Such is not the case, mg in the m ain of a natural alloy of nickel because during the meteorite's high-velocity and iron, the nickel being present mostly in flight through the air the heat caused by amounts of from 6 per cent. to 10 per cent. friction fuses the outer surface but since this

September, 1961 Paxe 359 continually streams off in the form of the A thin coating of black or brown iron luminous "tail" the heat is also rapidly and manganese oxides forms on a great dissipated. When the meteorite finally variety of roc~s , du~ to _a c?mp~ex interplay comes to rest on the ground the fused layer of factors, mam1y cllmattc, m and and semi­ hardens to form a thin crust. arid countries. This thin coating, which s0metimes has a glossy lustre, and is called Some stony meteorites that are particu­ "desert varnish", is very like the surface larly fusible have a glossy shining black crust of meteorites, and could be a source crust, sometimes showing ripple-like flow­ of confusion. lines that indicate the movements of the surface layer when fused. In most cases, Tn its quest for meteorites, the Museum however, this crust shows up on both stones receives from time to time masses of vesi­ and irons as a dull black or brownish­ cular scoriaceous material resembling the black patina. Very often the surface of "clinker" formed by the sintering and meteorites, particularly siderites, shows partial fusion of coal ash in boiler and loco­ characteristic depressions aptly named motive furnaces. These are found quite "thumb marks", thought to be due to frequently, and in the vicinity of railway unequal melting of the surface. These vary lines they may be from the locomotive fire­ in size from small pits up to cavities large box, but in many instances they are masses enough for a small child to nestle in. The of soil partially fused by the heat of bush­ shapes of siderites vary markedly, and they fires, especially near a large hollow burning vary in size from a few ounces up to 80 Jog through which the forced draught causes tons. Aerolites may occur as tiny fragments quite high temperatures. In one case it or in masses up to one ton. Being less tough seems as though the heat that had produced than siderites, they tend to break up either such a mass, near Narrandera, New South in flight or on hitting the ground. That is Wales, might have come from a fire burning why so many more showers of aerolites for long periods on an Aboriginal camp site. occur than showers of siderites. Aerolites Some of these "clinkers" may be soil fused are more regular in shape than siderites, by ball lightning striking in exposed places, having well-defined surfaces joining in as opposed to the tubular, highlv-siliceous reasonably sharp edges. The largest tektite fulgurites formed by the fusion of sand in weighs only a few ounces. Australites, the dunes by fork ]ightning. tektite variety from Australia, display a variety of regular symmetrical shapes. Other tektites are more irregular. Natural Glass When the source of heat is very intense, Objects Mistaken For Meteorites comolete fusion of soil may take place and a natural glass results. Glass may also form Because of this popular belief that from the burning of plant material with an meteorites melt completely during flight , appreciable content of silica at high objects that have a fused appearance, such t ~mperatures. Lumps of greenish glass are as furnace slag, are very often believed to found after the accidental burning of hay­ be meteorites. Masses of limonite, the ricks, and in incinerators in sawmills used yellowish-brown hydrated oxide of iron, or for burning sawdust. Material of this type "ironstone" , which is shale heavily impreg­ can be mistaken for tektites. Irregular frag­ nated with lim0nite, often have a glossy, ments of greyish glass known as Darwin polished appearance and regular, somewhat 1!lass or Queenstownite are found on Mount "ropy", surface markings reminiscent of the Darwin in the remote West Coast Range melted surface of a slag from a furnace. near Queenstown, Tasmania. F irst described Any untrained person finding it could be many years ago as a variety of tektite, this pardoned for thinking it had suffered the material is now thought to have been formed effects of intense heat. However, such limo­ by fusion of siliceous soils due to the slow, nite masses are formed mainly by deposition prolonged burning of peat bogs. A rare or precipitation of viscous gelatinous masses type of natural glass which might be con­ of hydrated iron oxide from solutions, and fused with tektites is that formed around not by the action of heat. meteorite craters, as at Henbury, central

The Australian M useum Magazine Australia. This forms because of the com­ many unlikely places. It may seem almost plete melting of the country rock by the unbelievable that so many artificial great heat generated by the impact of a substances, such as metals, glass and ferro­ giant meteorite. Other materials mistaken alloys, are found in remote places which for tektites are masses of glass dumped after people would be unlikely to visit; indeed, cleaning out glass furnaces, glassy slags enquirers are often hard to convince on this from blast furnaces and, of course, glassy point. None the less, the fact remains that minerals and rocks such as quartz, obsidian, these are artificial materials and, no matter pitchstone and perlite. how unlikely it may appear, they have been Since siderites are probably the most taken by human agency to where they are striking types of meteorites, it follows that eventually found. quite a number of metallic objects are The Museum is always glad to receive submitted to the Museum. Among these are any object considered to be a meteorite. metals produced in blast furnaces, such as Although most received consist of the pig iron, lumps of which are found in the various substances just described, the most unlikely places. These are probably interest of the general public is much mainly from foundries, and are very often appreciated and occasionally a genuine one portions of castings that have gone wrong turns up. Additions to knowledge of Austra­ and have been carted away and dumped. lian meteorites depend on people finding meteorites and submitting them to the Only recently an enquirer from Home­ Museum for identification. In a sparsely­ bush submitted a flattened metallic object populated country such as ours, meteorites with a dark brownish-black surface covered are seldom seen to fall. In 1954, after a with small pits generally resembling a sid­ soeciaJ appeal was made i11 a popular erite. The enquirer had dug this up in his illustrated magazine, out of the dozens of back yard, associated with some shells, and specimens submitted, two were genuine. thought it might have been an Aboriginal One was a small aerolite, weighing 13 5/6 stone implement, apparently not realizing oz., that had been ploughed up in an that it consisted of metal. It had to be cut orchard near Coolamon, N.S.W., between and a polished section examined before it 1920 and 1922 by Mr. George Eisenhauer. was identified with certainty as pig iron. It The other was quite a large australite, must obviously have been transported by weighing 4t oz., from Lake Grace. Western human agency to where it was found. Australia. found by Mrs. A. Ellis a few years before 1954. Mr. Eisenhauer and Mrs. E llis generously presented these speci­ Steel Ball Through Roof mens to this Museum. A visitor from Balmain once called with a perfectly spherical metallic ba11 about one · FURTHER READING inch in diameter which had fallen through Meteorites hi s roof. It might well have been thrown by Hodge-Smith, T.: "Meteorites", Aust. Mus. someone and found a weak spot in his roof, Mag., Vol. 1, No. I 0; "A Fall of Meteorites at Forest Vale, N.S.W.", Aust. Mus. Mag., Vol. 8, but it was a steel ball from a ball mill, and No. 2. not a meteorite. Cha lmers, R. 0.: "New Meteorites from Ferro-alloys which are metallic, hard and N.S.W.", Aust. Mus. Mag., Vol. 9, No. 8. heavy are often pkked up, even right out in Lovering, J. F.: "Meteorites and the Earth", the bush, and thought to be metallic meteor­ Aust. Mus. Mag., Vol. 12, No. 3. ites. These are manufactured alloys of iron Tektites mixed with a high proportion of silicon, Hodge-Smith, T.: "Tektites·•, Aust. M us. Mag., manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, tung­ Vol. 5, No. 7. sten or whatever metal it is desired to add Cas-;idy, W. A.: "Australia's Fiery Rain", Aust. to steel to impart special properties. It is Mus. Mag., Vol. 12, No. 6. believed that these artificial products are Various Natural Glasses taken away as souvenirs by visitors to ste~l­ Chalmers, R. 0 .: "Lightning, Meteorites and the works and then dropped or thrown away m Atomic Bomb", Aust. Mus. Mag., Vol. 9, No. 2.

September, 1961 Page 36 1 The Velvet Gecko (Oedura marmorata) is commonly found under bark on trees throughout Cape York Peninsula. Photo.-Author. An Expedition To Cape York Peninsula By HAROLD G. COGGER

D URING June and July, 1960, three to monsoonal rains. This means that the members of the staff of the Australian greater part of the annual rainfall occurs Museum undertook extensive field work in between January and April, with the result various parts of Cape York Peninsula, that the remainder of the year is very dry. Queensland. Mr. B. J. Marlow, mammalo­ The former period is referred to as the gist, Mr. C. N. Smithers, entomologist, and "wet" season, the latter as the " dry". Such the author, as herpetologist, comprised the conditions are unsuitable for the develop­ party, and in the hope of studying many of ment of rain forest, and the greater part of the animals which abound during, and the peninsula is covered by a dry sclerophyll immediately after, the northern Australian forest consisting largely of various species "wet" season, it was planned to enter the of eucalypts. Peninsula as soon after the end of this It is the seasonal rainfall, together with season as road conditions would allow. the topography of Cape York Peninsula, The accompanying map shows the route which explains the distribution of most of taken by the expedition, the major collect­ the plants and animals in this region. The ing localities, and the nature of the country Great Dividing Range lies close to the in some of these localities. eastern coast, except where it deviates inland around the area between Princess Charlotte Bay and Cooktown. Both the eastern and Monsoonal Rains western river systems owe their origin to the Great Divide, but whereas the eastern Cape York Peninsula is often mistakenly rivers are typically short, relatively swift­ believed to be a more or less homogeneous flowing streams which reach the coast in a tropical region, consisting of large expanses few miles, the western rivers are usua lly of tropical jungle. The peninsula, like most broad, and often amble for more than 100 other parts of northern Australia, is subject miles to the Gulf of Carpentaria.

The Australian Museum Magazine In the dry season, these western rivers note that this open eucalyptus forest covers (with the exception of their tidal reaches large areas of the lowlands of New Guinea, near the coast) are usually approached by opposite the tip of Cape York Peninsula, steep , water-worn banks which fall steeply with the result that the faunas of these two into the sandy, sometimes rocky, bed of the areas have much in common. Typical river. Early in the dry season, there may be examples are the Common Ground Goanna large expanses of s ~a ll o \\;' water, with (Varanus gou/dii ) and the Frilled Lizard occasional deep pools m whtch many fishes (Chlamydosaurus kingii), identical forms of and the Fresh-water Crocodile (Crocodylus which are fo und throughout most of Queens­ johns01di) a bound. As the dry season nears land and in southern Papua. its end, only a few of the larger waterholes remain. Only the more northern (and there­ It is the area east of the Great Divide, fore shorter) of the western rivers are however, which provides the greatest interest perennial, and prove a serious problem to most zoologists. Where the mountains to travelling during the dry season. are very close to the coast they receive the benefit of the winter trade winds, so that During the wet season, however, these localised fall s of rain may occur throughout western rivers become broad, deep, the year. Generally, the higher the impassable, swif t-fl owing waterways, often mountains are the greater and more freq uent much broader than their dry-season is the rainfall. As the Great Dividing Range boundaries would indicate. Debris lodged progressively loses altitude from south to in trees high a bove one's head offers north, rainfall is greatest at its southern end , evidence of the destructi ve force of these in the area roughly between Innisfail and rivers in full fl ood a nd the vast quantities of Cairns. It is la rgely this yea r-round rainfa ll water which must p ass to the sea. which allows the development of large tracts of rain forest, or related vegetational types. A ll signs of this wet-season activity may T he rain fo rest of the higher-rainfall areas be lost a lmost within weeks of the end of of the southern part of the peninsula is the season. T he lush, temporary vegetation usually somewhat different in constitution which fl ourishes during and immediately from that in the north, often having a much after the " wet" is soon reduced to a rela­ thicker scrub layer, and therefore being tively sparse gra ssland and open forest, and, more diffic ult to penetrate. T here are two to promote the growth of new feed, large main areas of rain forest in Cape York; the tracts of the peninsula a re deliberately largest stretches from a little south of Cook­ burnt-off each year soon after the end of the town to the region of Townsville, while the "wet". lt is d iffi cult to determine what other extends roughly from the Pascoe River effects this burning-off may have on the in the north to Port Stewa rt in the south. fauna of the a rea , though it has undoubtedly brought about some considerable changes. It rarely affects more than the grassy cover. Rain-forest Fauna Distinctive T he fauna of these areas of rain forest is Dry Sclerophyll Forest very distinctive and there is a high degree of endemicity (that is. a large number of From this brief description it may be seen the animals fo und .in rain forest are not to that, for the greater part of the year, the be found in any other habitat). T hi s is of area west of the G reat Dividing R ange is consid erable value to the zoologist, for, as la rgely covered by dry. o pen sclerophyll rain forest is such a distinctive habitat and forest, and is mo re or less continu­ is clearly broken up into a nu mber of ous, as a habita t, with many other parts of di sconnected patches along the eastern coast northern a nd central Q ueensland. It is. of Australia, he is able to see, much more therefore, not surpri sing that we should fi nd clearly, the effects of this di scontinuous that m uch of the fauna of this western distribution on the animals which inhabit section of the peninsula is the same as, or rain forest regions. T his is of considerable closely a ll ied to, much of the fauna of the va lue in wo rking out the mechani sms drier inland regions of Queensland and whereby new species are formed-one of New South W a les. It is also interesting to the basic questions in evolution.

September, 1961 Rain forest is also interesting for another survey will soon be made to study the reason. A substantial part of New Guinea effects of the introduction of Bufo on our consists of various types of rain forest, and native fauna and on the pests for the control in reptiles and frogs, for example, most New of which it was introduced. Fortunately, Guinean (and lndo-Malayan) species are this frog was not found north of the Laura adapted to survive in this habitat. Hence, it River, in Cape York Peninsula. is in the reptiles of the north Queensland After leaving the fertile country of Innis­ rain forests that one would expect to find fail and Cairns, the expedition travelled to forms which are most closely allied to those the Laura River, where brief collecting was in New Guinea. There are, of course, carried out, and then on through Musgrave important habitats besides those discussed Telegraph Station to Coen. During most of above, but they are generally of minor the journey from Laura to Coen, the "road" extent and are significant in the distribution follows the overland telegraph line. There of only a small minority of animal groups. are innumerabl·e sand ridges and steep creek Travelling in a one-ton Willys jeep, the crossings to be traversed, and most of the party left Sydney at the end of May, 1960, country consists of open eucalypt forest, dry and, except for a brief stop at Brisbane, grassy flats, and countless thousands of giant travelled through to Innisfail. There, termite mounds, or "anthills". These collecting was carried out in a small patch consist of two basic types. The well-known of rain forest which was in the process of "magnetic anthills" may be up to 12 ft. being cleared for sugar cane, and also in the high, 2 ft.-3 ft. thick at the base, and 7 ft.- surrounding canefields. In the former 8 ft. broad. The long axes of these locality the clearing operations enabled us termitaria all point in the same direction, to enter parts of the forest that would roughly north-south. The other type of normally be inaccessible, with the result that "anthill" is large, more or less circular, and a number of interesting reptiles were up to 10 ft. in height, and has a series of obtained, including the Queensland Rock­ " battlements" extending out from the larger python (Liasis amethystinus), two 8 ft.-10 central "fortress". ft. specimens of which were caught in less than an hour. An interesting lizard obtained in this locality (and in many subsequent Valuable Animals localities) was the Forest Skink (Tropido­ Soon after passing Musgrave Telegraph phorus queenslandiae) ; little is known of Station, the road passes through and over the habits of this small (6 in.) lizard, for the Great Dividing Range, which at this even in the middle of the day it is found point consists of little more than a series of deep in the forest under fallen, rotting logs. hills. The township of Coen nestles in a Related species are common throughout the broad valley surrounded by rolling moun­ Indo-Malayan Archipelago, but this is the tains covered by open forest. The airfield only species to be found in Australia, and is situated about 15 miles north of the town, is entirely restricted to the north Queensland and receives three commercial flights each rain forests. week. As it wo uld be too expensive to freight other than oeri.shable and fragile Giant Cane Toad goods by air, Coen receives its sup plies by In the canefields of the Innisfail district, boat, which deli vers goods to a point on the large numbers of frogs were found, includ­ coast, east of Coen, known as Port Stewart. ing, of course, the ubiquitous Giant Cane The latter consists solely of a large shed , in Toad (Bufo marinus), a Central American which stores are protected from the weather, toad that was introduced into the Australian and some stockyards, fo r cattle are shipped canefields in the 1930's in the hope th at it south from Port Stewart. would eradicate or control the destructive The exnedition left Coen and travelled cane beetle and its larvae. Whether it has along the Port Stewart road (which is open done anything toward achieving this a im is only during the dry season) over the questionable, but that it readily feeds on Mcllraith Range and on to Silver Plai ns small native mammals, reptil es and frogs is homestead, a few miles north of the Port beyond question. It is to be hoped that a Stewart road a nd about 10 mil es from the

Page 364 The Australian Museum Magazine ...... •.... .·..: 01 ...... ~ ... -

T he map shows t he ex pedition's route. Major collecting sites were: (l) lnnisfail ; (2) Laura River; (3) Moorehcad River; (4) Silver Plain ; (5) Rocky River; (6) Port Stewart; (7) Coen; (8) A rcher River; (9) Ravenshoe; ( 10 ) Tully Falls district; ( J I) Petford-Lappa J unction. T he photos show: upper right, the Archer River; middle right. open forest at Silver Plains; lower right, Port Stewart; lower left. Byerstown Range, south of Laura.

Ma;> by B. P. Dcrtram; p!totos by nut!lOr.

September, 1961 Pa;fe 365 coast. At Silver Plains, members of the over the Athert.on Tableland to a point west party were treated to the wonderful hospita­ of Ravenshoe, and thence to a camp site lity of Mr. and Mrs. J. L. Wassel and their deep in rain forest in the Tully Falls district. two sons. Mr. Wassell has an outstanding The mammalogist and entomologist spent knowledge of Cape York and its fauna, and a week in this area while the author travelled subsequently accompanied the party to the into the dry country to the west, through Rocky River and its associated rain forest. Irvinebank, Petford and Lappa Junction, in The Rocky River is about 15 miles north a successful search for certain Dragon of Silver Plains; it rises in the ranges, which Lizards (Family Agamldae) which were at this point are only a few miles from the required for current research. coast. Its bed is a mass of tumbled rocks The party then went back to Innisfail, and sandy pools, with a series of waterfalls returning soon after to Sydney (with only a and rapids, and it often passes between steep brief stop at Rockhampton) in mid-July. banks which are lined with a dense growth of jungle extending into the mountains behind. Toward the coast it passes through Expedition's Aims open forest country, though its banks are Why, of the numerous remote areas which usually lined with gallery rain forest. still exist in Australia, was Cape York Numerous interesting and valuable Peninsula chosen as a site for this expedi­ mammals, insects, reptiles and frogs were tion? The a nswer to this question is collected in the country near the Rocky threefold:- River, and our work was greatly assisted by • Firstly, there are many localities in Mr. Wassell. During this period, Mr. Cape York Peninsula which are known as WasseJl and Mr. Marlow remained at the " type localities", that is, localities from Rocky River while Mr. Smithers and the which certain animals were described to author travelled back to the Port Stewart science for the first time. Many proble.ms road, collecting in various habitats between associated with the classification of animals Coen and Port Stewart with considerable can only be solved by obtaining fresh speci­ success. mens from these " type localities". After returning from the Rocky River, the party spent several days in the vicinity • Secondly, very little is known about the of Silver Plains homestead. This area general animal life in Cape York Peninsula. consists of open forest, and rich collections Tt is frequently not realised by the public were obtained. For example, 13 species of that, apart from the exhibits on di splay, frogs were found in an area within 200 to each scientific department of the Museum 300 yards of the homestead. maintains an enormous research collection of many thousands of specimens. These specimens a re used not onl y by the scientific Water Goanna staff of the Museum , but by zoologists Leaving Silver Plains, the party returned thro ughout the world working on a wide to Coen, where the mammalogist remained range of scientific problems. One of the while the entomologist, the author and Mr. prime objects of th e expedition was to David Wassell travelled about 50 miles obtain representati ves of the little-known further north to the Archer River-a animals from Cape York Peninsula to add delightful river (at that time of yea r) , with to these reference collections. large, clear stretches of water flowing over • The third, and, to the author, the most alternate rocky and sandy beds. Of im portant, object of the expedition. was to considerable interest there was the Water try to gain some idea of the role played by Goanna (Varanus mertensi) , a species not Cape York Peninsul a in the origin and previously recorded from Cape York Penin­ present-day distribution of much of the sula. A number of specimens were seen, Australian fauna. but only one was collected. Australia is an island with an extensive After leaving the Archer River, the fauna, and there are many problems expedition returned to Coen, and then concerned with explaining the origin of t~i s immediately to Cairns. Our route then Jay fauna . This has resulted in several theones

Page 366 The A ustralian Museum Magazine concerning postulated land-connections in :Some poorly-known Australian sub-species the past between Australia and other conti­ of New Guinea leaf-nosed bats, Hippo­ nents, and such theories continue to be a sideros diadema reginae and Hipposideros source of disagreement among biologists muscinus semoni, were also obtained from and geologists. Coen. However, there is no doubt that within recent geological time (as recent as the Pleistocene). Australia and New Guinea Insect Collections were united by a broad la nd-connection. By C. N. Smithers Although this fact is not particularly signi­ ficant in the distribution of many animal The purpose of this expedition, from the groups, within those groups studied by the entomologist's point of view, was twofold. author (reptiles and amphibians) the Firstly, general collections of insects, distribution of many contemporary forms is from as many habitats as possible, were closely correlated with these known land­ made. The material was intended to fill connections. some of the gaps in the Muse um's The situation is. of course, not a simple collections, in which north Queensland one, a nd there a re innumerable unknown material is not particularly well represented. factors. Nevertheless, the expedition This material will, after sorting and enabled the author and his colleagues to preparation, be stored in the research study, to some degree. the general ecological collections and should provide valuable conditions whici:J p lay a vital part in govern­ additional data on the distribution and ing the constitution a nd distribution of relationships of the species concerned. much of Australia's unique fauna. Secondly, special attention was paid to the collecti on of Psocoptera (Bark Lice or Mammals oi Cape York Peninsula Psocid s), an order of insects much neglected By B. J. Marlow in Australia. T he number of species of these collected by the expedition in Cape The ma mmals of Cape York Peninsula York Peninsula alone was almost equal to are of particular interest a nd show striking the number previously known from the relationships with certain species which whole of Australia, and the material con­ occur in New Guinea. During the expedi­ tains many new species. The sorting of the tion some good series of mammals were coll ections and their preparation, catalogu­ coll ected which are poorl y represented in ing and proper storage will take several th e coll ections of the Australian Museum . months. Among these were specimens of a large, handsome marsupial mouse, Antechinus godmani. Extensions to the range of other marsu­ pial mice were also discovered during this CORRECTION expedition, si nce Antechinus maculatus The name of ome of the proclaimed rare and Planigale ingrami were obtai ned birds and marsupials in the New South. Wales from the Coen district ; neither of Fauna Protection Pa nel's list, published in our these species has been record ed before from last issue, were misspell ed because of typing errors. They should have read as follows:- Cape York Peninsula. Turquoise Pa rrot (Neophema pulchella): T op­ Small mammals were far more abundant knot Pigeon (Lopholaimus antarcticus); Painted in the rain forest than in the more open Snipe ( Rostratula benghal~nsis); Brolga ( G rt~s woodland, and many interesting specimens rubicunda); Bustard or Platn Turkey (Eupo_dotts were obtained in the Ravenshoe di strict, australis); Swamp Parrot (Pez.oporus walllcus). near Cairns. Long-nosed Rat-kangaroo (Potorous tridacty­ About 80 ma mmals were collected in all , lus); Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby (Onychogalea f1aenata); Pigmy Marsupial Mouse (Antechinus and included a mong these were marsupial maculotus); Pigmy Possum ( Cercartetus nanus); mice, native cats, band icoots, possums, Whiptail or P retty-face Wallaby (Protemnodon gliders, rodents and bats. parryi).

September, 1961 Pa[?e 367 A piranha recently presented to the Australian Museum by the Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi, at Belem, Brazil, anJ now on display in the ne .v fish gallery. The lips have been pulled back slightly to show the teeth. Photo.-Howard Hughes.

THE VORACIOUS PIRANHA OF SOUTH AMERICA

By GILBERT P. WHITLEY

THE name piranha is from the general most vicious species being Serrasalmus South American Indian language called nattereri. Tupi-Guarani, which is widespread in The earliest account of the piranha in Brazil. Brazil is that of Gabriel de Sousa in his T he patois spoken along the Amazon "Descriptive Treatise on Brazil in 1587" River is a hybrid language formed mostly of (printed in 1825). The first published T upi, with some Portuguese and other drawing of a pi ranha appeared in Marc­ elements added. lt is called the Lingua grave's work on Brazilian natural history, Geral (General Tongue or Language) : pira printed in J648. means fish and ranha is the word for tooth. so p iranha mea ns "fish-tooth" or "toothed S. nattereri Kner is the most widespread fis h". species of the true piranha, and is undoubt­ edly the one that has figured in most of the Piranha is pronounced pee-rahn-yah, with human fatalities reported. It is found the accent on the rahn and the r very faintly throughout the basin- of the Orinoco River rolled. T he whole word is formed in the in Venezuela. the rivers of Guiana. the front of the mouth with the tongue kept to Amazon basin, and the Parana and Para­ the teeth. T he alternate name for piranhas p, uay basins clear to Argentina. It is not among the locals is Perai or Carib Fish. found in the Sao Francisco or in any of the P iranhas belong to the family Characidae coastal rivers in south-eastern Brazil. (The or C haracinidae, genus Serrasalmus, the latter are, fortunately, free of all species of

Tlw Australian Museum Maga~ine piranhas). Piranhas d o not occur in the motion, is eaten with ease. Large alligators swift waters of rapids. They prefer quieter which have been wounded in the tail also places and deep pools. and they seem to become their prey. keep near the bottom. They never go into brackish or salt water, but are strictly fresh­ Attacks On Humans water fi shes. The piranha is chiefly a fish-eater, but quite often terrestrial animals become its Razor-sharp Teeth victims. Several observations are on record Generally, the colours of fresh-caught of reptile-eating birds flying low over the piranhas a re grey on the back and sides water and their prey, trailing from their gradating to silvery below. In the breeding talons, being snatched from them by season. the males especially are very bright · piranhas. Almost any animal which falls the sides show much meta llic blue and th ~ into the water accidentally is likely to be undersides of the head and bellv are eaten. It is a common sight to see domestic smeared with brilliant red . Because of this ducks strutting along on stumps, having lost the fish is often called piranha vermelha. their webbed feet to piranhas. Piranhas eat . The largest measured piranha on record vegetable matter at times, and can be caught on hooks baited with dough-balls. They IS an S. nattereri in the British Museum which is 1Ot inches long. ' are also known to eat fruit. The piranha is a short, stocky, muscular Theodore Roosevelt, m his book fi sh of quick movement, with a nervous and "Through the Brazilian Wilderness" unpredictable te m perament. It keeps up a (1914), was the first to introduce this fi sh to ~onstant " fli cking" of its pectoral fins. The the English-speaking public. The gruesome Jaws ~re short, heavy and so powerful that stories he repeated, especially the one there IS scarcely any living substance, save concerning a man who fell off his horse th.e hardest ironwood, that will not be while fording a Brazilian river and was cltpped off. The mouth is small and fill ed completely skeletonized by piranhas, made w it~ ra zo r- sh ~ rp teeth so set that they form the whole world aware of the terrible nature a z1g-zag cutt m~ edge in each jaw; the size of this fearsome fi sh. of the average p1ece bitten off would be that Roosevelt wrote: " I never witnessed an of a la rge o live o r nutmeg, and the pieces exhibition of such impotent savage fury as are S'_"a llowed whole a nd rapidly, the fish was shown by the piranhas as they fl apped snappmg many times. on deck. When fresh from the water and Piranhas travel in schools of 100 to 1 000 thrown on the boards they uttered an extra­ and, o~ce scenting blood in the water, 'they ordinary squealing sound. As they fl apped attack 1.n droves with the speed of lightning. about they hit with vicious eagerness at The swtmmer caught 25 feet from sho re by whatever presented itself. One of them a school of them is not likely ever to get flapped into a cloth and seized it with a bull­ !here. In 10 minutes he will be skeleton­ dog grip. Another grasped one of its JZed. Any splashing o r commotion in the fellows; another snapped at a piece of water will instantly attract them. wood, and ]eft the teeth-marks deep When food appears, the whole school therein." ft~shes savagely at the prey, chopping off Fishermen trailing their hand s in the Pieces and . swall owing in a swirl of darting water have lost fi ngers; women pounding fishes .. It IS probably at this time that the their washing near the shore have lost toes. fi shes: ~~ a clo ud of blood a nd juices from A 16-year-old boy sw imming in British the. VJCtJm, most frequently bite each other Guiana was heard to scream first in fear, ~C~I~enta ll y, a nd once one of their number then in agony. Before he could be reached IS InJUred they w ill devour it in seconds. he disappeared below the surface and all T hey have no fear of man o r beast what­ that was recovered, a few hours later, was soever, and will attack a fi sh 10 times their hi s skeleton. own weight, devourino all but the head. A party of explorers dynamited a strea m, Th.e tail is attacked fi ~ t and the fish, thus and when some of the fish settled to the bemg left witho ut the principal organ of bottom a diver went after them. Taking a

September, 1961 stunned fish in each hand, he held the head of fl esh stripped from his bones. Whether of a third with his teeth. Just before he he had drowned, and the fishes had then reached the shore the fish recovered and eaten his body, or whether they had ki11 ed snapped off a section of his tongue, produc­ him, it was impossible to say. They had ing a strong haemorrhage, which nearly got in under his clothes, which made it seem suffocated him. likely that there had been no struggle. During the South Amerkan wars around The piranha is migratory, but its seasonal 1810, one way of disposing of prisoners was movements have never been carefully to cut the throats of half a dozen and toss studied. them into the water as bait for piranhas, which came by the thousands. Then, as T he fish breed in the rainy season when the river seethed, the remaining prisoners the rivers rise. T hey clean out a shallow were thrown in alive, to be reduced to nest on the sandy bottom of a currentless inlet and spawn in it. T he female guards skeletons in a matter of minutes. the nest and viciously attacks any Jivi ng On one occasion a member of a party thing that comes near. went off by himself on a mule. The mule returned to camp alone. Following the [A cknowledgement is made to G. S. Myers' man's track, his companions came to a ford, " A Monograph of the Piranha" (Aqua­ where in the water they found his skeleton, rium Journal, U.S. A ., 1949) for some of his clothes unda maged, but every particle the information in this article.]

NOTES AND NEWS CAVE-MAN EXHIBIT Genus Protemnodon with a Review of tbe A striking new exhibit at the Australian Species"; Dr. Mil ler spoke on 'The Reproductive Museum shows a scene from the everyday life of Cycbs in Equatorial Birds", and Dr. Tedford on Neanderthal man during the last Ice Age from the " Cenozoic Stratigrapby and Vertebrate 30.000 to 60,000 years ago. Life-size models of Palaeontology of the Tirari Desert, South a Neanderthal woman and child are seen at the Australia". mouth of thejr cave watching two men spearing PACIFIC SCIENCE CONGRESS a G reat Cave Bear, one of the animals which the Two members of the staff of the Australian Neanderthalers hunted for food and clothing. In Mluseum attended the lOth Pacific Science Con­ the background is a range of snow-capped moun­ gress at Honolulu, Hawaii, recently. Mr. F. D. tains. The ex hibit was devised and made by Mr. McCartby, Curator of Anthropology, presented a B. P. Bertram, of the Museum's Art and Design paper on the archaeology of Australia and Mel­ Section. anesia. D r. D. F. McMichael, Curator of SCffiNTISTS TO COLLECT FOSSILS Molluscs, participated in a symposium on the Zoogeograpby of Pacific Islands Land Snails. Three scientists, Professor R. A. Stirton, Dr. After the congress Dr. McMichael. went to the Alden H. Mil ler and Dr. R. Tedford, from the U.S.A. for a short period of study at a number Museum of Palaeontology, University of Cali­ of museums. From there he will go to London fornia, U.S.A., recently visited the Australian to spend four months in the Department .of Museum on their way to collect vertebrate fossi l Mollusca at the British Museum (Natural His­ material from various localities in the country tory). east of Lake Eyre, South Australia. This was the fift h time Professor Stirton had visited Australia SURVEY OF LffiRARY RESOURCES in search of fossil vertebrates. On hir. previous Professor Maurice Tauber, of the School of visits he discovered extensive horizons containing Library Service, Columbia University, New York, fossi ls of late. Tertiary and Pleistocene age in the inspected the Australian Museum Library in April Menindee district, New South Wales, and in the as part of a systematic survey of Australian libr~ry Lake Eyre district of South Australia. Research resources he is making on behalf of the Austrahan carried out on the fossi l material collected on Advisory Council on Bibliographical Servi~es. these occasions proved it to be of considerable Professor Tauber is in Australia on a Fulbnght interest and importance. Professor Stirton and grant. his party feel sure tbat the fossils collected on this visit will materially add to our knowledge of the EDUCATION OFFICER IN U.S.A. Tertiary and P1eistocene vertebrate fauna. The Museum's Education Officer, Miss P. During their visit to Sydney the three scientists McDonald, spent May and June studying addressed the Australian Mammal Society at a museum education methods in the U.S.A. She meeting held at the Australian Museum. was the guest of the American Association of Professor Stirton spoke on the "Macropodid Museums during May.

Page 370 The Australian Museum Magazine POLLINATION OF THE PROTEACEAE By R. CAROLIN Lecturer in Botany at the University of Sydney.

HE average person, when looking at a Tflower, tends to think in terms of its aesthetic value a lone, the effect of the form on hi s mind. What generally escapes him is the importance of the flower in the life of the plant. Indeed, if the flower is not. aesthetically satisfying the layman may not even grace it wit h the name of flower. The flower is, in point of fact, an integral Persoonia acerosa, a collection of flowers. The part of the life-cycle of the plant. Its shape, lower ones are almost in the stigmatic stage, and their stamens are dark-coloured and curved colour and size are all orientated towards right away from the knob-like stigma. Higher, the one end- the production of the next the stamens are recurved only slightly and are generation, the continuation of the race. still pale in colour. Higher still, the perianth That many wild flowers art! also objects of is closed and the flowers are still in the bud beauty is purely coincidental. stage. Just as in most animals, in most plants of Persoonia, the Geebung. For example, in the p roduction of young (seeds) is depen­ P. acerosa (illustrated on this page), the dent upon the union of two units. In flowers are visited by bees, mainly for the animals these units are called sperms and nectar which is secreted by small glands at eggs · in plants there are also sperms and the base of the flower. When the flower eggs,' but- the sperms are contained in the buds open the four petal-like units on the pollen grains and the eggs within the ovary outside (perianth) cu rl downwards to reveal (pistil). It is necessary that pollen be the stamens bearing long anthers which deposited on part (stigma) of the prolonga­ surround the central style bearing a tion of the ovary (style) before seed can terminal stigma. The anthers have slits on be "set" . T he manner in which this the inside. Now, a visiting bee must push transference of pollen from where it is its proboscis down between the encircling produced (anther) to the stigma is called anthers and style to obtain the nectar at the pollination mechanism, and this, in turn, the base of tne flower. Its position at this is dependent upon the form of the flower. stage is such that it rubs against th~ anther slits and poll en is deposited over 1ts pro­ Fascinating Study boscis and- body. As the flower grows older Pollinating mechanisms are a fascinating the anthers curl backwards and the stigma study for the amateur naturalist; a good becomes sticky ; it is now ready to receive eye and a lot of patience are all that is pollen from a visitina insect which the latter needed. Let us consider the family of has previously colle~ted as outlined above. plants known as the Proteaceae. In most T his mechani sm illustrates several of these plants (Banksias, Mountain points. Firstly, the floral form forces the Devils, Spider-flowers, Drumsticks) the insect ' if it wishes to derive any ben..efit poll en is placed on the stigma by animals itself from its visit, into such a posttlon of some kind or another, e.g., fl ies, bees or that it receives pollen. Secondly, the anthers birds. The simplest case is probably that assume a position close to the stigma ;

September> 196! Pa~e 37 1 pollen is deposited on the insect in the same place that the stigma of an older flower is going to brush against. Both these provide for the most efficient use of the pollen. Thirdly, the anthers mature before the stigma of the same fl ower; "self­ pollination,, at least as far as the individual flowers are concerned, is mini­ mized. These ar,e common, although by no means uni versal. features of flowers. Many of the other genera in the fa mily show various degrees of " improvement" upon this system. I write " improvement" advisedly because, although at first sight it would seem that an increase in efficiency of pollen use has taken place, in actual fact Persoonia often shows better f.ruit production than these other genera. Factors other than seed quantity, with which we cannot deal here, enter into consideration.

Drumsticks In Isopogon anethifo/ius (Drumsticks) the anthers burst in the bud, where they are tightly pressed against the style. The upper part of the style is sticky and a swelling just below the level of the anthers blocks the lower end of the anther canal, preventing pollen from falling into the lower parts of the flower. Thus, when the perianth curls backwards, carryi ng the anthers with it, the style is left bearing the pollen, which often retains the outline of the anther cavity (upper photo on this page). The stigma, however, is terminal and tucked away amongst the tips of the perianth segments. Not only is no pollen deposited on it in the bud, but pollen would probably be unable to germinate on it even if some were; as in Persoonia, there is a pollen stage and a stigma stage in each flower. The pollen, then, is presented to the insect in an even closer position to that of the stigma tha n in the case of Persoonia although fusion of male and female units from the same flower is again prevented. Petrophila fucifolia (Cone-sticks), seen in the lower photo on this page, shows a similar construction, but in this case the Above: l sopogon anerhifolius, a single flo~e r . pollen is held on the style with the a id of Note the recurved perianth-segment beanng short hairs. the stamen, the pollen retaining the outline of the anther but stuck on the style, the bulge This form of pollination mechanism is in the style below the pollen, and the stigma repeated, with variations, in many other above it. Below: A flowe r in ~ head of Perro- members of the family. In Lambertia phi/a fucifo lia.

The A usrralian Museum Magazine (Mountain Devil), for example, the pollen is deposited on the sticky upper part of the style in the bud and then on the visiting insect when the perianth has o pened. In this case the perianth segments remain joined together from about half-way down­ wa rds, and once again the animal is forced to brush against the style and pollen in probing for the nectar at the base of the perianth-tube. The stigma is a cleft run­ ning down the style for a short distance from the a pex. In the bud this cleft is closed and - no pollen can be deposited within it at this stage. The stigmatic cleft opens only after the flower has been open for some time and most of the pollen on the style has e ither been brushed off or died. Examination of the newly-opened flowers of Lambertia shows, very clearly, the yellow clump of pollen at the top nf the style (uppe r photo, this page) , while later in the day the stigmatic cleft can be seen exposed. It seems that honey-eaters are the ma in pollinating agent in this case. carrying the pollen grains about on their bills. It can be seen that the approxima­ tion of the poll en and the stigma is even closer jn this case, although they still mature at different times. Banksia (Honey­ suckle) shows a similar mechanism, and it is appropriate to draw attention to the fact that, of the hundreds of flowers in a Banksia "spike". very few indeed set seed.

Difference In Mechanism Grevil/ea (Spider-flower). Hakea (Needle Bush). T elopea (Waratah). Lomatia and others show a rather different mechanism , a lthough quite clearly of the same general pattern. T he style is flattened at the to p a nd it is upon thi s di sc that the stamens burst in the bud. The stigma is a small mound in the centre of the disc, as yet immature, around and upon which the noUen is heaped ( lower photo, this page) . Above: A flowering head of Lambertia for­ Furthermore, this disc is retained within mosa. Note the recurved perianth and the the upper parts of the perianth even after styles bearing terminal clumps of pollen. the lower parts have separated, giving the Below: Lomatia siliaefolifl-the stylar disc typical " hairpin'' appearance. In some bearing the mound of pollen. species, this disc is not released until forcibly sepa rated by an animal fossicking T hus the pollen is not exposed to the around for nectar at the base of the flower. vicissitudes of the outer world until its This separation can be quite sudden and deposition upon an animal is imminent. the animal, often a honey-eater, is brushed Later, the stigmatic mound grows larger with pollen on the disc as it becomes free. and is ready to receive pollen from the bill

September, 1961 of the foraging honey-eater. The same the st~gma wi!l brush some off . This moving sequence of maturation is shown as in the sty,le JS ~mly JU St ahead of a sma-ll cloud of previous cases. pollen eJ e~ted from the separating anthers Sof!le ef the poll.en will land on the fly: A totally different type of mechanism is wh•.ch may carry 1t to another flower. This foun~ in another group of genera. In the prevtous genera described, the flower is agam, does not seem as "efficient" as tl:t~ relatively passive in presenting pollen to its Lamber~ia mechanism, although there is pollinator. In Symphyonema and Cono­ some 1mprev~ment on that of Sym­ phyonema. F1rstly, the stigma moves spermum the flower is active· in fact it is explosive. ' towards the sterile anthers, away from the pollen cloud, and, secondly, it clearly Symphyonema is not a particularly com­ strikes the visitor before the pollen does. mon gpecies around Sydney, but one can It see~s that self-pollination within the find it in damp or swampy places. The ft~wer 1s reduced. In fact, however, if one flowers are small and yellow and the disturbs the tensed flower with a blade of anthers are joined around the style. When grass some of the pollen almost invariably these are mature the perianth curls back­ sticks to the stigma. wa rds. Any insect (and the pollinator may This short account of pollination of be a moth) seeking nectar at the base of some members of a si ngle family, incom­ the flower bangs against the anther-stalks. plete as it is, should have convi nced the The anthers separate suddenly although the upper parts of their stalks remain joined. !he re s ~lt i~ that pollen is sprayed about m a ll dtrectu;ms, and some of it usually lands on the msect. When the latter visits another flower some of this pollen may be brushed on to the stigma. Clearly, this is a less "efficient" mechanism than those which we have met previously.

Explosive Anthers

. T he rath~r more common Conospermum JS a conspicuous member of dry sclero­ phyll and heath communities, with its large groups of white or blue flowers. In Western Australia some species are known An unexploded flower of Conospermum ellip­ ticum. Note the "swan-neck" of the style in as " Smoke-bush". In this genus not all the centre, the black fertile stamens behind the anthers produce pollen, although they and the white sterile stamen parts in the are all joined around the style, and so me front. of them terminate in a long bristle or "awn" . T he style is bent into a swan's­ neck shape with the stigma pointing away reader th~t the flower is, indeed, a compli­ from tho.se a nthers containing pollen cated p tece of machinery. That this (photo, th1s page). The whole flower is in mechanism is nicely tuned to the best a state of tension when it first opens and interests of the propagation of the race is the slightest touch on the style o r the 'awns not so evident and requires more facts than will cause the anthers to separate with are supplied here. Mechanisms such as explosive violence. Firstly, the stigma these were studied by Charles Darwin in the moves from one side of the fl ower towards middle of the last century-studies that the empty anthers. As it does so, it will helped to convince him of the validity of strike the object which has caused the the theo ry of evolution by natural selection. explosion. Thi.s o bject, of course, is generally a pollmator-often a fly in fact­ [The photos in this article are by the and, sho uld any pollen be already on it, author.]

The Australian Museum Maga::.ine