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The Butterfly Watch Program
What plants do adult butterflies feed on? Which plants attract butterflies?
Painted Lady (Vanessa kershawi) feeding. Photo: E Steele-Collins
We know the life history of our South Australian butterflies, and the different food plants that their caterpillars eat. We also know, from overseas records, which exotic and introduced flowers attract adult butterflies to gardens.
It has been observed, however, that given the option of an introduced plant versus a native South Australian plant, that adult butterflies prefer the native plant(even if there are lots of exotic plants close by).
butterfly proboscis. Photo: L Hunt
We do not have a comprehensive list of native plants that attract adult butterflies. Through Butterfly Watch we hope to be able to make a list of nectar plants that butterflies have been observed feeding on and be able to provide keen gardeners with information on which native South Australian plants are suitable for the butterflies that visit their garden.
Nectar is the food of butterflies (and moths) and is taken up through the long proboscis which is normally tightly coiled below the butterfly’s head. Without an appropriate nectar source in an area, butterflies may not be able to breed as nectar is necessary for sustaining the activities of butterflies especially for mating and egg laying.
See a list of indigenous nectar plants on the Butterfly Gardening website
Where are the butterflies?
The right plants in the right place can help butterflies survive.
Bitter-bush Blue butterfly. Photo: L Hunt
Host plants are food for the caterpillar stages. These plants are being re-introduced into areas where they formerly occurred. The Bitter-bush blue butterfly's hostplant Adriana quadripartita var klotzschii or 'coast bitter bush' is being planted on coastal dunes. In wetland areas, the saw sedge Gahnia spp. is being planted as this is the host plant of several small brown skipper butterflies.
Sometimes butterfly habitat is threatened by spraying or removal of their host plant. For example, the caterpillars of several blue butterflies feed on native mistletoes in the Mt.Lofty Ranges. In some areas where mistletoes are numerous eradication is being proposed by local government. This may have the potential to eradicate colonies of butterflies as well as the mistletoe.
We need to know where colonies of butterflies exist and through Butterfly Watch hope to identify butterfly populations in areas of remnant vegetation and where their host plants occur to ensure the future survival of local butterfly species.
Adelaide indigenous plant maps for the Central, Northern and Southern areas of Adelaide can be found on the Urban Forest Biodiversity Program website. These are an excellent way of finding out which plants are suitable for your local area.
A list of indigenous butterfly host plants for the Adelaide urban, Mt.Lofty Ranges and Adelaide coastal strip can be downloaded below:
Indigenous Larval Host Plants for the Adelaide Area
You can also use this list as a planting guide if you wish to breed butterflies in your garden.
Adelaide indigenous plant maps for the Central, Northern and Southern areas of Adelaide can be found on the Urban Forest Biodiversity Program website. These are an excellent way of finding out which plants are suitable for your local area.
What can I do?
Meadow Argus butterfly. Photo: L Hunt
You can help plan conservation programs:
- Download the Butterfly Watch Observation Form
Complete and send it to the Discovery Centre of the South Australian Museum with your observations on butterflies feeding and the locations of butterflies.
- Take note of which native plants adult butterflies are feeding on and take a photograph to help us identify the nectar plant and the butterfly.
- Record where you see butterflies. If we know where populations of butterflies occur we can advise local government, Land and Coast Care groups and other conservation agencies so that plans can be made to revegetate with caterpillar host plants and to ensure disturbance to areas of significant butterfly colonies is minimized.
If you would like to identify your butterfly, or to find out more about photographing and observing butterflies, see the Butterfly Identification section under Quick Links (above).
Using Your Camera or Sketchbook
Have your camera handy at all times.
Two-spotted Line-blue butterfly. Photo: L Hunt
When you see a butterfly in your garden or reserve observe it carefully. What is the colour of the wings and how does it fly? How large or small is it. What plants is it visiting? Is it flying around a flowering plant looking for nectar or is it flying around a host plant looking for a place to lay eggs?
If the butterfly rests on a flowering plant and looks like it will start to feed, carefully approach with your camera and notebook or sketch pad. Wait until the butterfly uncurls its proboscis and starts to feed or lay eggs. When feeding the butterfly will be still and absorbed in feeding however you will not have a lot of time to observe the butterfly markings or to take a photograph.
Make no sudden movement and be careful not to brush against the bush or cast your shadow or the butterfly will know you are there and fly off.
When the butterfly has flown off to feed on another plant, observe the plant. How tall is it? Is it a tree, shrub, small herbaceous plant or ground cover? What colour and shape are the flowers? Take a photograph of the plant, especially the flower or make a drawing. Try to identify the plant by consulting a book in your library or take a piece of the plant to your local nursery for identification.
Next…
Use the Butterfly Identification section under Quick Links (above). Then complete the Butterfly Watch Observation Form and send it to the South Australian Museum Discovery Centre with your photograph or drawing. Don’t forget to fill out the photo release form in case we want to use your photo for exhibition or display. If used, you will be acknowledged.
Digital Images
Use a high resolution, 300 dpi if that is possible and TIF or RAW setting if available. If your picture is a good one it may be useful for exhibition or publication and in this case very large files and a high dpi are required.
If your camera does not allow high resolution settings and only JPEG files your image can still be used on a website or on a CD.
Remember digital cameras often have a time lag between when you press the shutter and when the picture is taken. So hold the camera very still.
Only use optical zoom not digital zoom or digital close up as this merely enlarges the pixels, enlargement can be done on the computer later.
If emailing your photograph please reduce the file size and advise if you have a larger file available. Also please include your name or initials in the file name.
How is the information to be used?
'Bring the Butterflies Back to Adelaide' Campaign
Hi my name is Rebecca and I am a student at Flinders University. My project entails observing butterflies feeding from flowers of both native and exotic plant species in native areas. I will be performing surveys in Belair National Park and possibly Brownhill Creek as well as doing some manipulations in flight cages to observe more closely the relationship between butterfly and flower morphologies. I hope that the information that I gather can be of assistance in the conservation of our local butterflies.
In addition to Rebecca’s work Butterfly Conservation SA Inc. in conjunction with the South Australian Museum, Urban Forest Biodiversity Program, Greening Australia, Trees for Life and Local Government will be promoting the planting of host and nectar plants in Adelaide gardens through a 'Bring the Butterflies Back to Adelaide' campaign due to be launched in July 2007.
The nectar plant information gained through Butterfly Watch will greatly increase our knowledge of native and exotic nectar plants being used by adult butterflies and this information will be added to a proposed website and flyers being prepared for this campaign as well as in a proposed book entitled ‘Attracting butterflies to your garden’.
Information on the distribution of butterfly species will be made available to appropriate conservation agencies so that they may plan revegetation projects to assist the retention of butterfly colonies in vulnerable areas.
The best Butterfly Watch photographs received at the South AUstralian Museum were displayed at the butterfly exhibition in October and November 2007. Selected photographs are featured on the Butterfly Conservation SA website.
Additional Information
Books
Australian Butterfly Books:
- Houston, T.F. (1994). Bring Back the Butterflies: Butterfly Gardening for Western Australians.
- Clyne, D. (2000). Attracting Butterflies to your Garden.
- Jordan, F. and Schwencke, H.(2005). Creating more Butterflies. Earthling Enterprises, Qld 84pp.
- Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club Inc. (1994). Butterflies of Tasmania,104pp
- Fisher, R.H. (1978). Butterflies of South Australia. Handbooks Committee out of print
- Braby, M.F (2000). Butterflies of Australia. Their identification, Biology and Distribution. 2 vols. 976 pp CSIRO Publishing.
- Braby, M.F (2004). The complete Field Guide to Butterflies of Australia. CSIRO Publishing 340pp.
Moths:
- McQuillan, P and Forrest,J.A. (1985) A guide to Common Moths of the Adelaide Region. South Australian Museum, Adelaide. 52 pp.
- Common, I.F.B. (1990). Moths of Australia. Melbourne University Press. 533pp.
Adelaide Plants:
- Bagust, P. and Tout-Smith (2005). The Native Plants of Adelaide. SA Urban Forest Biodiversity Program 132pp
Other Information
- British Butterfly Conservation Society Ltd., Gardening for Butterflies
- Butterfly Conservation South Australia Inc. Newsletters
Websites:
- Alternatives to invasive garden plants, Greater Adelaide Region
- BioCity – Centre for Urban Habitats
- Butterfly Conservation SA Inc
- Butterfly Gardening
- Gardening Fact sheet from: Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management
- Greening Australia
- South Australian Butterflies
- Trees for Life
- Urban Forest Biodiversity Program
- Where have all the butterflies gone?
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