I t’s a weird world

„ Stumped by ‘weird’ things Australia is full of unique and wonderful wildlife and the chances of coming across something unexpected, or unheard of, are high.

Last week, a woman living in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales did exactly that when taking her dog for a walk.

Spotting a large cluster of “weird-looking” grubs on the ground at Victoria Park, Goulburn, in the off-leash area, she was both transfixed and confused.

“Does anyone know what they are and if they are dangerous or harmless?” she asked on the community Facebook page.

The black, hairy grubs with yellow tips are known as the larvae of the native sawfly species, which feed on eucalypts and are often found in large groups on branches, or on the ground during the day.

They are also colloquially known as “spitfires” despite not actually spitting. The nickname does however describe a common observed behaviour, which Associate Professor of Biology, Dr Darrell J Kemp, explains.

“If disturbed they whip themselves around and regurgitate their foregut contents (usually a soupy mess of part-digested eucalypt foliage). That’s nasty enough to deter most predators I guess,” he previously told Yahoo News Australia.

Now that spring has sprung, the adult sawflies which are commonly seen in southeast Australia, will “emerge, mate and lay their eggs in eucalypt leaves and the life cycle will start again”.

The larvae will grow into wasps with four wings, without a stinger, according to the Australian Museum, and are not threatening to humans.

“Spitfires are completely harmless to humans and animals,” one person said in the comments of the Facebook post. However, the liquid they secrete can be irritating to the skin or eyes — something several said they had experienced first-hand.

“Us primary school kids at Heckenberg were all screaming and itchy ... our worse nightmare,” one local reflected.

“Definitely don’t touch them,” another said.

In response, the woman who saw them said she “will keep (her) dogs away if (she) sees them again”.

The larvae of sawflies can cause damage to the foliage of young trees, and can strip the branches of foliage, particularly at the tops. However leaf growth in the spring and summer usually replaces it, and it’s quite rare to lead to the tree being fully destroyed.

— Yahoo! News.

„ Dog eats man’s pass port

An American couple from Massachusetts said fears were high of missing their wedding in Italy after their dog ate the groomto-be’s passport just over a week before they were scheduled to depart for Europe.

However, Donato Frattaroli of South Boston, and his fiancée, Magda Mazri, went to city hall to fill out their intention of marriage forms on August 17, just over a week before their flight to Italy — where the couple’s wedding was scheduled for August 31.

Hours after their visit to city hall, a nightmare unfolded at the couple’s home when Chickie, their 1-and-a-half-year-old golden retriever, chewed through multiple pages of Frattaroli’s passport.

“I was pacing back and forth, not really in my right mind,” Frattaroli said. “Luckily, Magda had her wits about her.”

Mazri and Frattaroli said they received help from the offices of US Representative Stephen Lynch and US Senator Ed Markey, and following a passport appointment, Frattaroli received his new travel document— just two days before the couple was set to fly to Italy.

“We are just really fortunate and optimistic that everything worked our way,” Mazri said. “The most important thing is that we got married.”

Frattaroli said he will be getting a file cabinet or safe so that he can store his important documents in a safe place in the future. — NBC2 News.