Port Kennedy Revisited

 The season is beginning to tail off near Perth, but Matt suggested that inous was still a reasonable target at Port Kennedy, in spite of my having had a disappointing visit there earlier in the month. I'd spent Thursday night in Mandurah, so Port Kennedy was a very minor detour on the way home Friday morning.

Driving out of Mandurah, the air was full of Danaus plexippus - I would have easily counted over one hundred by the time I left the highway. I've noticed before how much more abundant the butterfly is south of the city - Matt suggests the foodplant is widespread in the swamps that are characteristic of the belt just beyond the dunes.

Typical Port Kennedy area - dry and sandy

I parked in the golf course car park, as the car was full of equipment which I wasn't keen to leave in full view at a remote spot - it also enabled me to change into something more suitable for the exploration. It was hot and breezy - in Europe these wind-swept coastal dunes would not have been an area I would have spent much time exploring, but my experiences at Trigg have taught me not to be so judgmental here in Australia. Having secured photographs of Hypochrysops narcissus and apelles offshore in a mangrove swamp at Cairns, I'm happy to try anywhere.

I walked around 400m south along the public road before turning east into the Scientific Park - immediately something caught my eye - a medium-sized Satyrid.

Geitoneura klugii - Marbled Xenica

Similar to minyas, which was everywhere a couple of weeks ago, but I think this is klugii - slightly later in the season, a little larger than minyas, and with the dark margin along the dorsum.

As with the others of this genus, it likes settling on bare ground, and quickly folds the wings after settling, making photography of this common species something of a challenge.

Then, a Lycaenid. Actually two or three of them, flying rapidly in and amongst a group of evergreen bushes. Finally one of them settles. Hard to identify it confidently through the lens, similar to Theclinisthes miskini, but the underside markings are paler, and the subtornal spots less prominent.

Theclinesthes hesperia - Western Bitter Bush Blue

Theclinesthes hesperia - something of a prize. Apparently it's disappeared from most of its localities around Perth, but obviously hanging on here at Port Kennedy.

I move on. It's hot, but not unpleasantly so. Following one of the firebreak tracks I come across an area of Scabiosa flowers, which are attracting numbers of plexippus.

Danaus plexippus - Monarch

 A good opportunity for a few new photographs of this spectacular species.

Danaus plexippus

The scabious flowers are proving very popular with the bees, too. Then I notice something else - another Lycaenid. My first thought is boeticus, but once it settles I can see that the underside is quite different.

Jalmenus icilius or inous?

 It's a Jalmenus species - not sure if it's icilius or inous.

Scabious corner - highly productive

The scabious here have created a butterfly hotspot.

Trapezites argenteoornatus - Silver Spotted Ochre

Along with the plexippus and Jalmenus, there are a couple of argenteoornatus, and another klugii.

Geitoneura klugii

Then what looks like merope but by the time I've climbed over the wire for a better look it's gone.

argenteoornatus and inous competing for nectar

I spend half an hour here - I think I've two different Jalmenus species, but Matt later disagrees. I defer to his informed judgment.

A fine specimen of Jalmenus inous - Varied Hairstreak

Matt's Comment: "The Jalmenuses are all J inous; I base that conclusion on the fact that they are near the coast. The distinction beteen inous and icilius is a bit vague and telling them apart is sometimes impossible. This taxonomic problem has been in the too hard basket for a couple of decades. What we call inous may just be a coastal colour form of icilius (or maybe not!)"


So, target achieved. Very happy to have Jalmenus inous "in the bag".

This has been a most productive morning - two completely new species, hesperia and inous, and grateful thanks to Matt for convincing me that Port Kennedy was worth another look. I retire to the golf club and sit in the aircon with a cold drink before heading back up the freeway.