2019 February 5

   Scott Gilmore sends a photograph of his first moth of the season, yesterday, at Lantzville.

Egira hiemalis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Scott Gilmore

2019 February 1

   Nathan Fisk writes from Fort Rodd Hill Learning Meadow:  I found this beautifully coloured caterpillar amongst the grass yesterday. Delightful.

Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Nathan Fisk

   Jeremy Tatum found this moth today beside the door of the Swan Lake Nature House:

Oak Winter Highflier Hydriomena nubilofasciata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jeremy Tatum

2019 January 29

   Mark Wynja writes with sadness of the destruction of one of the best butterfly areas on Vancouver Island.  He writes:

This WAS the best spot to find butterflies in the Nanaimo area. It was also one the best places on Vancouver Island rivaling Mount Cokely and Mount Washington. Known as Km14 of the Nanaimo River Road. About 6 km of this road has had all the trees removed along the north side. For reference, you can see the large boulder in both photos, centered on the before photo and on the far left on the after photo. Heavy equipment has heavily damaged the roadside meadow of spreading dogbane and a nearby wetland has been obliterated.

                                                                                                                                 Mark Wynja

                                                                                                                                                Mark Wynja

2019 January 25

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Here is an Egira hiemalis from the wall of my apartment building in Saanich this morning.

Egira hiemalis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

      On January 12 we posted a photograph, by Sher Falls, of a Thick-headed fly Physocephala burgessi, perched on an Ox-eye Daisy, and we speculated on whether the fly was aware of the crab spider lurking underneath the flower.  This reminded Jeremy Gatten of a very similar photograph that he took a few years ago on Mount Washington, of the same species of fly on the same species of flower, also with a crab spider there.  But this time the fly, evidently initially unaware of the spider, is by now all too very much aware of it!

Physocephala burgessi (Dip.: Conopidae) and Misumena vatia (Ara.: Thomisidae)   Jeremy Gatten

2019 January 24

   The early spring moths are starting to appear!  Can butterflies be far behind?  Jeremy Gatten reports 3 Phigalia plumogeraria, 1 Hypena californica, and 1 Egira hiemalis from the walls of the Metchosin Community Hall yesterday, January 23.  He sends photographs of one of each.

Phigalia plumogeraria (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jeremy Gatten

Egira hiemalis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Gatten