2017 June 26

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  A few Painted Ladies, Red Admirals, Lorquin’s Admirals, Western Tiger Swallowtails and one West Coast Lady on the Mount Tolmie reservoir at 6:00 p.m. tonight.  On looking closely at the West Coast Lady, I became fairly sure that it may well have been the same individual that Val George photographed a few days ago (see June 16 posting).  I find that I can pick out the West Coast Lady in flight – the orange seems a slightly different shade than the orange of the Painted Ladies.

Ken Vaughan writes:  I was out to Beaver Lake on Saturday morning, and I took some photographs.

Tule Bluet Enallagma carunculatum (Odo.: Coenagrionidae) Ken Vaughan

Pacific Forkail Ischnura cervula (Odo.: Coenagrionidae)  Ken Vaughan

Red Admirable Vanessa atalanta (Lep.: Nymphalidae) Ken Vaughan

Blue Dasher Pachydiplax longipennis (Odo.: Libellulidae)  Ken Vaughan

Western Pondhawk Erythemis collocata (Odo.: Libellulidae) Ken Vaughan

Banasa dimiata (Hem.: Pentatomidae)  Ken Vaughan

Jeremy Tatum comments:  For those still a little uncertain about beetles and bugs, Banasa dimiata is about as typical a bug as you can get.  The tip of the pronotum in dimiata is usually yellow.  This introduces a note of uncertainty into the identification.  Maybe it is another species.  If any expert out there can help, please let us know.  Ken sees a green chalice on the back.  I see it, too.  Can you?

Ken has chosen to use the name “Red Admirable” for Vanessa atalanta.  Although the name used most often these days is Red Admiral, it has been suggested that “Admiral” was originally “Admirable”, and it has lost a syllable along the way.  It has been advocated that we should restrict the name “Admiral” to the Limenitis  group.  It is true that Moses Harris, in his 1840 book The Aurelian, called atalanta “The Admirable”.  However, if we go back still further, to the seventeenth century, James Petiver, who introduced many of the English names for butterflies, called it the Red Admiral – so it looks as though Harris added a syllable, and today’s “Admiral” agrees with Petiver’s original name.

Rosemary Jorna photographed the beetle below at Jordan River on June 22.  There are more species of beetle than of any other Order in the animal Kingdom – which means, unfortunately, that we cannot always identify each one with certainty.  However, thanks to Charlene Wood, we know at least the Family of this one – Bupestridae.

Bupestrid beetle (Col.: Bupestridae) Rosemary Jorna

Annie Pang photographed a bee-like robber fly in Gorge Park, June 25.  Annie is showing us what a great variety of creatures are to be found even in a rather urban park, without trekking far into the wilderness.  Rob Cannings comments:  This is a female Laphria, either L. asturina or L. fernaldi. I believe there is a good possibility that both these names refer to the same species and any small colour differences used in keys to separate them are insignificant. Anyway, that’s the identification situation concerning the common southern BC Laphria with red hairs on the abdomen!

Bee-like robber fly Laphria asturina/fernaldi (Dip.: Asilidae)  Annie Pang

Bee-like robber fly Laphria asturina/fernaldi (Dip.: Asilidae)  Annie Pang

Rosemary Jorna writes:  Sid found this spider while cleaning the garage today, June 25, Kemp Lake Area.   Sean McCann writes:  This is Steatoda grossa, the False Black Widow.  Very common in places like garages!

False Black Widow Steadota grossa (Ara.: Theridiidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Jochen Moehr writes: I watched a P. rapae busily depositing eggs on some brassicaceous plants on Taylor Beach, close to the cliff drop-off among the drift wood.  I also took some pictures of the plants.  They clearly are some kind of Brassicaceae, but I was unable to get clues to the identification.  Jeremy Tatum responds:  Cabbage Whites quite often lay their eggs on these plants on the seashore.  The plant is Sea Rocket Cakile sp., but it will need a better botanist than I to say whether it is the native American Sea Rocket C. edentula or the European Sea Rocket C. maritima.  I believe both occur here.  If some botanist can help us, please do so!  (More detailed pics of the plant are available.)

Two Cabbage White ova Pieris rapae (Lep.: Pieridae) Jochen Moehr

Cheryl Hoyle sends photographs of two larvae found in Saanich today, June 26.

Silver-spotted Tiger Moth Lophocampa argentata (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)

 Cheryl Hoyle

Giant sawfly larva  Trichiosoma triangulum (Hym.: Cimbicidae) Cheryl Hoyle

2017 June 25

   Reminder:  Please send photographs as attachments in .jpg format.  It makes life so very much easier for me.  Jeremy Tatum.

Jeremy Tatum writes:  Peter Boon photographed an interesting moth in the Nanaimo River estuary on June 23.   Not only could I not identify it, but it turns out that it was one that I hadn’t even heard of!  Libby Avis identified it for us as Leucania dia – and she reports that she had also found one a few days ago in Port Alberni.  This moth was until recently regarded as a subspecies of another species of wainscot moth; it was named a full species only a few years ago, in 2010.

Leucania dia (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Peter Boon

   Peter Boon writes:  During a hike up Mount Becher today I found 4-5 commas patrolling the mid-lower slope trails.  One seemed to like perching on my hat, so I took it off to snap a photo or two. Lower down on the old ski runs I found a fresh Western Meadow Fritillary. Also seen on the lower slopes was a Pale Tiger Swallowtail.

   Butterfly enthusiasts are asked to look carefully at Peter’s comma photographs and to let us know which species you think it is.  Please do let us know what you think, and why. [Added later:  Problem solved.  See June 27 entry.]

Comma Polygonia sp. (Lep.:  Nymphalidae)   Peter Boon

Comma Polygonia sp. (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Peter Boon

Western Meadow Fritillary Boloria epithore (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Peter Boon

Western Meadow Fritillary Boloria epithore (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Peter Boon

   Jochen Moehr writes:  I continue to enjoy the drive up to our new Metchosin property.  I always encounter up to four Papilios and some Pieris rapae.  Today I saw my first Lorquin’s Admiral of the year.  And I was able to take pictures of this Papilio eurymedon. 

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Jochen Moehr.

2016 June 24

   Aziza Cooper writes:  Yesterday, June 23, about 4 pm, I went to Government House on Rockland Street. The usual hotspot is a lawn in an opening in the Douglas firs due east of the big main house.  I was enthralled to see a constant flurry of Western Tiger Swallowtails chasing around the clearing with up to six dancing together up to the treetops. I estimated 15 individuals circulating around the area. I watched them for 20 minutes or more admiring their constant motion and numbers.

   Also there were one each of Pale Tiger Swallowtail, Cabbage White, Red Admiral and Lorquin’s Admiral.  At the herb garden west of the big house, there was an Anise Swallowtail and a Lorquin’s Admiral, and six other Cabbage White butterflies around the grounds.

   The swallowtail show is really worth a visit!

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  The tiger swallowtails were putting on a good show, too, on Mount Tolmie last night.  I’m sure the scientists will differ, but I got the strong impression that they were cavorting around and chasing each other for the pure joy of it.

Swallowtails Papilio (Lep.: Papilionidae) Aziza Cooper

Anise Swallowtail Papilio zelicaon (Lep.: Papilionidae) Aziza Cooper

   Jeremy Tatum writes: The moth below emerged today from a cocoon formed by a caterpillar found last year on Douglas Fir in East Sooke Park.

 Panthea virginarius (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2017 June 23

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I just discovered that the June 18 – 22 postings all had the wrong dates; they were all advanced by one day.  I have now corrected these.

   Jochen Moehr writes from Metchosin:  My confidence in our new place being blessed with biodiversity continues to increase.  This morning, driving up there around 8:30 a.m., I encountered four different Papilio individuals while driving along Lindholm Road.  I always see at least one or two.  We also always have mud puddling Papilios on the newly seeded slope, which we are irrigating.  Today, finally, I was able to get a picture of one of them, which I attach. 

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Jochen Moehr

   Rosemary Jorna writes:  Things come in pairs at Jordan River. We were on the beach there last night (June 21) watching the sun go down and saluting it with friends and wine. When I went to wash the glasses this morning I found two young slugs had come home with us, each sleeping it off in a separate wine glass. They now reside on our property as I did not realize we would be back in Jordan River today.   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I am fairly ignorant about slugs, but to me this one looks rather like the introduced European Lehmannia valentiana.   Hint for slug and snail photographers:  It is best if you can do exactly what Rosemary has done – i.e. photograph the animal from the right hand side so that we can see the pneumostome, which I think is always on the right.  The exact position of the pneumostome on the mantle helps enormously with the identification.  If you are not sure what the pneumostome is, have a guess, and you’ll almost certainly be right!

Lehmannia valentina (Pul.: Limacidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Aziza Cooper sends a photograph of a bee on a daisy at Goldstream Park, June 21. Trouble is, we have so many insects here that it is not always possible to identify every one accurately even from a good photograph. This one is probably either a halictid or an andrenid, and it may be safest to leave it at that.

Bee – not sure which one!  (Hymenoptera)  Aziza Cooper

   Peter Boon writes:  I took a stroll around the Nanaimo River estuary today.  It was quite windy but I found my first-of-year Purplish Copper. I then went out to the roadside verges of Nanaimo River Road. The Dogbane was in flower but butterflies were few and far between. In a couple of hours there I found at least 3 Pale Tiger Swallowtails, 2 Western Tiger Swallowtails, 1 Cedar Hairstreak, 1 first-of-year Lorquin’s Admiral, 1 White (probably Margined) and 1 first-of-year Clodius Parnassian.

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I saw my first-of-year Lorquin’s Admirals today – about three of them near the Mount Tolmie Reservoir at 4:30 pm.

   More pics in the queue – awaiting identification.

2017 June 22

   Val George sends a photograph of a Purplish Copper from Island View Beach, June 22.

Purplish Copper Lycaena helloides (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Val George

   Nathan Fisk reports 5 Lorquin’s Admirals and 4 swallowtails at the first parking lot at Saxe Point Park.  He sends a photograph of one of the admirals.

Lorquin’s Admiral Limenitis lorquini (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Nathan Fisk

   Louis Beaudoin photographed the spectacular caterpillar below at Lantzville a few days ago.  Jeremy Tatum writes:  At first I had no idea what it was, but I am now fully convinced that it is an unusual colour variety of Hyles lineata, the White-lined Hawkmoth.  More typical colours are seen on the postings for 2014 August 29 and September 1, though Barb McGrenere photographed one more like this on the 2015 June 24 posting.   Thanks to Louis, and to Scott Gilmore for passing the photograph on to us.

White-lined Hawkmoth Hyles lineata (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Louis Beaudoin