2021 August 23

   Colias alert continued.   Jeremy Tatum writes: Because I have difficulty in distinguishing Colias species (I suspect I’m not the only one!) I asked Mark Wynja whether his suphur  (see yesterday’s posting) might possibly be a Western Sulphur (a non-migratory species that we get in the higher elevations on Vancouver Island) rather than the Clouded Sulphur (a migratory species, which is very rare here).  Mark replies:  Of the three likely Sulphurs the field marks match that of a female Clouded. I also sent the photos to both Mike Yip and Joachim Bertrands. They agree that it is a Clouded and not a Western. Joachim is very familiar with them as he has seen quite a number of Clouded this year in the BC interior. The silver center spot on underside hind wing of a Western is cleanly bordered by a single thin red circle and no little red satellite circle. The upperwings of the females are also different .

   Mark also reports:   After my sighting on August 20th Mike Yip saw a Sulphur at beach along Deep Bay Drive on Aug 21, and I saw a female Clouded Sulphur on Aug 22 on Deep Bay Drive. This is almost 5 km away from where the initial photograph was taken on Aug 20th.

  Jeff Gaskin reports:  A Lorquin’s Admiral was in the Cecilia Ravine Park,  and 14 Ringlets were  seen from Markham Road Camosun College lands and the Horticultural Centre lands yesterday, August 22.

  Richard Rycraft sends pictures of a Mint Moth Pyrausta californicalis from his garden.  There is indeed Mint in his garden although these moths were seen flying around Thyme.  Thyme and Mint are in the same botanical Family;  it would be interesting to know which plant these moths spent their caterpillar lives on.

Mint Moth Pyrausta californicalis (Lep.: Crambidae)  Richard Rycraft

   Ben Buszka spotted this blue horned caterpillar in a backyard in Sooke.  It is Smerinthus ophthalmica. This was at one time called Cerisy’s Eyed Hawk Moth S. cerisyi – but that species has now been split into C. cerisyi and C. ophthalmica, and our  population is supposed to be ophthalmica. As far as I know, writes Jeremy Tatum, it has not yet acquired an English name.  Suggestions, anyone?   Unfortunately this caterpillar will not survive – the several white spots on or near its head are eggs of a tachinid fly.

Smerinthus ophthalmica (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Ben Buszka