2022 November 19

    Last night (in the middle of the night!) Ian Cooper took some photographs in Colquitz River Park in Saanich:

Asian Lady Beetle Harmonia axyridis (Col.: Coccinellidae)  Ian Cooper

Female linyphiid spider (Ara.: probably Neriene sp.)  Ian Cooper

Male linyphiid spider (Ara.: probably Neriene sp.)  Ian Cooper

Female and male linyphiid spiders (Ara.: probably Neriene sp.)  Ian Cooper

and more from the Galloping Goose Trail in View Royal:

Pimoa altioculata (Ara.: Pimoidae)  Ian Cooper

Probable crane fly (Dip. – Nematocera:  Tipulidae) Ian Cooper

2022 November 18

    Ian Cooper sends a photograph of the spider Pimoa altioculata.  He writes:  These spiders are normally very skittish and difficult to photograph because they tend to flee to the deeper recesses of their webs at the slightest disturbance. Fortunately, this one lingered out in the open long enough to take multiple photos and video clips of it. Pimoa altioculata are one of my favourite spiders to encounter, as mature individuals like this one can be impressively large and have beautiful markings. They’re also much less common than other species I see on a regular basis.

Pimoa altioculata (Ara.: Pimoidae)  Ian Cooper

2022 November 16

Here are additional photographs – by Sharon Godkin – of the American Lady that was seen at Island View Beach on November 14.

American Lady Vanessa virginiensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Sharon Godkin

American Lady Vanessa virginiensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Sharon Godkin

Ian Cooper sends more photographs of little-known creatures from the Galloping Goose Trail in View Royal (the first picture) and Colquitz River Park in Saanich (the remaining seven).

Harvestman (Opiliones)  Ian Cooper

Crane Fly (Dip.: Tipulidae)  Ian Cooper

Crane Fly (Dip.: Tipulidae)  Ian Cooper

   When the dorsal surface of the head of the fly above is examined at high magnification, it is seen that ocelli are absent, showing that this insect is one of the small crane flies and not some similar Family.  The photograph was taken for the express purpose of determining the presence or absence of ocelli.

Tetragnatha versicolor (Ara.: Tetragnathidae)  Ian Cooper

Tetragnatha versicolor (Ara.: Tetragnathidae)  Ian Cooper

Porcellio scaber (Isopoda: Porcellionidae) Ian Cooper

Linyphiid spider (Ara.: Linyphiidae)  Ian Cooper

2022 November 15 late evening

    Vanessa alert!   Gordon Hart forwards two pictures of an American Lady photographed on November 14 at Island View Beach, near the gate just south of the main parking lot, by Don Kramer.

American Lady Vanessa virginiensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae) Don Kramer

American Lady Vanessa virginiensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae) Don Kramer

2022 November 15

    Identification of Melanoplus Grasshoppers.

    On November 1 and 4 we posted photographs of grasshoppers by Cheryl Hoyle and Aziza Cooper.  These were kindly identified for us by James Miskelly as Melanoplus sanguinipes.

   According to Merrill Peterson, there are about 50 species of grasshopper in the genus Melanoplus in the Pacific Northwest.  We have therefore labelled previous photographs of Melanoplus on this site as merely “Melanoplus sp.”  James tells us, however, that only three of these occur regularly on Vancouver Island, and they are not impossible to identify.  These are:  M. sanguinipes,  M. femurrrubrum and M. bivittatus.  James writes:  The species that is most similar to sanguinipes on Vancouver Island is M. femurrubrum, which does not have dark stripes on the outer face of the hind femur and (in our area) is rarely found outside of salt marsh habitat.  The third Melanoplus on Vancouver Island is M. bivittatus, which looks quite different.  It has a light stripe on each side that extends from above the eye through the pronotum and down the tegmen.  The outer face of the hind femur is dark above the midline and light below. It’s found in relatively moist meadows.

So – that should make it easy for all those who know what a pronotum, a tegmen and a femur are.  Of course, we have other grasshoppers to contend with, which are not in the genus Melanoplus.

Jeremy Tatum writes:  I saw my first male Winter Moth of the season at my Saanich apartment this morning.  I’m sure it won’t be my last.

Ian Cooper decided to go for a bike ride to Colquitz River Park and the Galloping Goose Trail in View Royal last night (November 14, 2022) to see what interesting creatures he might see.  He was not disappointed.  He asks that we enjoy his pictures.  I don’t think that will be hard.

Pimoa altioculata (Ara.: Pimoidae)  Ian Cooper

Linyphiid spider  (Ara,: Linyphiidae)  Ian Cooper

Metellina sp. (Ara.:  Tetragnathidae)  Ian Cooper

Antrodiaetus pacificus (Ara.: Antrodiaetidae)  Ian Cooper

Water Strider (Pond Skater)  (Hem.: Gerridae)  Ian Cooper

Arion subfuscus (Pul.: Arionidae)  Ian Cooper