Newsletter of the Land for Wildlife Scheme April 2008 Vol. 12, Number 2 NEWSLETTER OF THE LAND FOR WILDLIFE SCHEME REGISTERED BY AUSTRALIA POST PRINT POST: 606811/00007 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN ORCHIDS - THE MASTERS OF DECEIT (PART 2) Andrew Brown The attraction of male insects to flowers under sexually such as the spider orchids (Caladenia). The biggest and false pretences, often termed pseudocopulation, is used most conspicuous part of a hammer orchid flower is its by several south-western orchid groups in which the lip, which resembles to a remarkable degree a female flowers share certain characteristics with the female flower wasp. Pollination is achieved by sexual deception insect. Their colours, for instance, are usually dull shades of the male wasp, which is flung over and upside down of green, yellow and maroon and they are usually, but against the column when it attempts to fly off with the not always, odourless to humans. However, all produce female decoy. Each species of Drakaea is thought to be powerful chemical lures that are irresistible to male pollinated by a different species of wasp and illustrates one pollinating insects. These 'sex pheromones' appear to of the most specialised relationships between pollinator be especially active on still, warm days, particularly and plant known to occur in Australia, and indeed the from mid morning to early-afternoon. The dragon orchid world. (Caladenia barbarossa) is a superb example with its Yet another group insectiform lip closely matching the size, shape and of orchids that use texture of a female flower wasp. sexual deception are species of duck orchid ( Paracaleana) . These have a sensitive lip that is similar to that of triggerplants (Stylidium) in being capable of movement on mechanical contact. The female decoy is formed by the lip and is attached to the inverted winged column by The hammer orchid Drakea livida is pollinated by flower wasps an elongated springy The flying duck orchid Paracaleana claw. On contact gracilicordata Like Caladenia barbarossa, hammer orchid with the female (Drakaea) species are masters of sexual deception. Their decoy, both the male wasp and lip are swung down inconspicuous odourless flowers are living examples into the pouch formed by the column wings. It takes of extreme specialisation. These flowers are invariably considerable exertion by the wasp to back-peddle out of solitary on top of a thin wiry stem and are reduced to mere the trap and in doing so it removes or deposits pollinia. remnants of their colourful counterparts seen in genera The flower resets itself to the firing position over a period of several minutes. continued on page 4 1 Western Wildlife Vol 12 No. 2 EDITORIAL landcare officer. Contacts for Sheila and Phil are operator to the east of Bridgetown given below. If you are in one of Greetings all! and is very knowledgeable about these areas, why not ring up and whole of landscape planning. say hello, or call in at the office for It is a pleasure to announce two The Great Southern position a chat? Remember, if it has been a new LFW Officers, Sheila Howat has also moved, from Katanning to while since a LFWO visited you, and and Philip Worts, who will each be Kojonup, to make it easier for Philip you would like someone to come out working for two days a week. Worts, who has taken over from again to see how well everything is Sheila has taken over the Middle going, or perhaps to seek advice on Blackwood position, previously a new problem that has arisen, then held by Julia Boniface. This ring up to arrange a ‘revisit’. services the Shires of Boyup You may also like to welcome Brook, Bridgetown-Greenbushes, back Sylvia Leighton, returning to Donnybrook-Balingup, Manjimup the office after a year of maternity and Nannup. To make it more leave. I am hopeful that both Sylvia convenient for her, the office and Dorothy will continue to work location has moved from Nannup with us in the Albany area. back to Bridgetown, where she will be sharing an office with other Kathleen O’Brien. This position WA’s weather continues to landcare and environmental groups. services the Shires of Lake Grace, be capricious, although it is Sheila is a landholder and ecotourism Dumbleyung, Kent, Woodanilling, encouraging that the northern areas Katanning, Broomehill, Tambellup, have had some good summer falls Cranbrook and Kojonup. Phil, a of rain that will have built up some geologist and mining engineer in subsoil moisture prior to the start a previous life, now farms west of of cropping. Ray Froend’s article Kojonup. He is very knowledgeable on the water relations of banksias about remnant management and shows just how important this soil revegetation integrated with water is to the survival of natural sustainable agriculture. The Shire ecosystems. of Kojonup has made an office Best wishes for the coming year, available in the Memorial Hall, everyone. which will be shared with the Penny Hussey INDEX Contact details for Land for Wildlife Officers Black- cockatoo genetics research _____12 Bush Detective ___________________ 13 Name Location Phone Email Coming events ___________________ 16 Heather Adamson Mandurah (08) 9582 9333 [email protected] Editorial _________________________ 2 Impact of groundwater and decreased Avril Baxter Narrogin (08) 9881 9218 [email protected] rainfall on banksia ________________ 6 Fiona Falconer Coorow (08) 9952 1074 [email protected] In brief __________________________ 15 Wayne Gill Esperance (08) 9083 2100 [email protected] Is continual economic growth the ideal to aim for? _________________________ 11 Claire Hall Perth (08) 9334 0427 [email protected] LFW sites on electronic maps ________ 3 Mal Harper Merredin (08) 9041 2488 [email protected] Members page ___________________ 14 On the lookout for lorikeets _________ 8 Sheila Howat Bridgetown (08) 9761 2405 [email protected] Roos disperse canola seeds _________ 11 Penny Hussey Perth (08) 9334 0530 [email protected] Say no to gamba grass ____________ 10 Space invaders ___________________ 9 Cherie Kemp Busselton (08) 9752 5533 [email protected] Western Australian Orchids _________ 1 Zara Kivell Mundaring (08) 9295 9112 [email protected] Sylvia Leighton Albany (08) 9842 4500 [email protected] USE OF ARTICLES FROM WESTERN WILDLIFE Dorothy Redreau Albany (08) 9842 4500 [email protected] Material may be reproduced without permission as long as Philip Worts Kojonup (08) 9831 0832 [email protected] the source is acknowledged and the article is reproduced in its entirety without any alterations. If you wish to use only Irene Vo Perth (08) 9334 0404 [email protected] part of an article, please liaise with the Editor. 2 Newsletter of the Land for Wildlife Scheme YOUR LFW SITE ON ELECTRONIC MAPS FOR NRM PLANNING All planning and prioritising natural resource management recorded on a GIS mapping system for land management is now (NRM). Unless the sites are on a GIS for Natural Resource Management being done electronically via database accessible by the planner, planning?” Most people are happy Geographic Information Systems they will not be taken into account. for their site to be recorded, but (GIS). Whether it be for and landholders could find that their 0.04% stated they did not want their mining, agricultural production, precious bushland is earmarked for site location to be made available to revegetation, subdivision, drainage a communications tower or a gravel planners on GIS, and this preference or other on-ground works, planners pit – or that they are missing out on is scrupulously observed. and project managers are using the opportunity to benefit from a new In WW 8/1 Jan 2004, we computerised maps to outline their funding source. asked you to contact your LFWO ‘areas of interest’ and determine Thus it is important that LFW if you were concerned about this what features within those areas are provides the location of LFW sites process or wanted more information relevant to their project. to planners, on a project by project – especially if you do not want your It is important that these persons basis. No detail – not even your site recorded. Only two people know where the LFW sites are, name – just where there is a LFW followed this up, so we concluded because: site. If the planners want more detail, that all the rest had no objections. • they contain valuable native they would contact the LFWO who Requests for data are being vegetation; would ask for your permission to received at an increasing rate. All • the landholder is managing them provide it. the projects we are consulted about for biodiversity conservation; When LFW first started, GIS are aimed at building up a long-term and technology was in its infancy, so it picture of sustainability. If you do • most LFW landholders want to was not discussed during the LFW not want your LFW site/s to be recorded know and to be consulted about visit. But if you have joined us on these GIS databases, it is vital to let planning that may affect their since 2003, you will see at the end us know. land. of the report that we ask a standard Please contact Avril Baxter on Therefore these sites and their question: “Has the landholder any 9881 9240 or Penny Hussey on 9334 managers are a vital part of local concerns about the ‘LFW site’ being 0530 for more information. IF YOU DO NOT waNT YOUR LFW SITES TO BE RECORDED ON THESE GIS DATABASES, IT IS VITAL TO LET US KNOW! THE WAY WE WERE - SwaNS ON THE SwaN An early quote from Charles will not be a Swan to be seen, when Fraser, Colonial Botanist, a no doubt the original discoverers member of Captain James Stirling’s will be laughed at for so apparently expedition to explore the Swan preposterous a name.” River on 8th – 16th March 1827, to It seems Fraser was right! determine if it would be a suitable Although there have been, over the site for a settlement: years, many schemes proposed ‘to “The river abounds in fish and bring the swans back to the Swan’, Black Swans, Ducks, teal, pelicans none has been very successful.