2020 August 12

   Jeremy Tatum writes:   The unkempt caterpillar shown yesterday has now had time to tidy itself up a bit:

Acronicta impleta (Lep.: Noctuidae)   Jeremy Tatum

   Jeremy writes:  I found this weevil at Blinkhorn Lake yesterday, kindly identified by Charlene Wood as an Obscure Root Weevil Sciopithes obscurus .

Obscure Root Weevil Sciopithes obscurus (Col.: Curculionidae)  Jeremy Tatum

   Jochen Möhr sends photographs of a butterfly and a moth from Metchosin today:

Male Pine White Neophasia menapia (Lep.: Pieridae)  Jochen Möhr

Hesperumia sulphuraria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jochen writes:  It is still a striking contrast to years ago, when I could count up to 28 Pine Whites just driving by the Royal Roads forest from the Colwood Fire Hall to the Royal Bay Bakery, a stretch of merely 0.6 km.  I have not seen a single one there this season yet .   Libby Avis writes from Port Alberni:  Not many butterflies here either this year.

But Jeff Gaskin writes:  Kirsten Mills is still seeing a number of Lorquin’s Admirals around these parts.  Today, August 12 she saw five on Wordsworth Street – and one was still quite fresh.  She also saw another one plus a Pine White in Browning Gyro Park.  Wordsworth Street and Browning Gyro Park are both places near Hillside Centre.  My mother still has a Lorquin’s Admiral  in her backyard and she lives on the Gorge near Harriet Road.  I last saw it today, Aug. 12.

Gordon Hart sends some pictures from Highlands:

Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Gordon Hart

Green Darner Anax junius (Odo.: Aeshnidae)  Gordon Hart

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Gordon Hart

(plus one we shan’t try to identify!)

Phlogophora periculosa (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Gordon Hart

(plus a sciarid dark-winged fungus gnat)

2020 August 11

Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin this morning:

 1 Biston betularia

1 Coryphista meadii

2 Cosmia praeacuta

3 Eulithis xylina

1 Lacinipolia strigicollis

3 Nemoria darwiniata 

1 Evergestis funalis

2 Oligia divesta

1 Panthea virginarius

Here’s the easy-to-identify colour variety of Coryphista meadii:

Coryphista meadii (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr

   Jeremy Tatum shows an Acronicta impleta from Salmonberry at Blinkhorn Lake this afternoon.  It has a rather unkempt appearance because it has just undergone ecdysis (in English, it has just changed skin), and it hasn’t tidied its new clothes yet.  It will look much smarter later on.  (Libby will probably guess why I was looking on Salmonberry at Blinkhorn Lake.  I didn’t find what I was looking for.)

Acronicta impleta (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

Mike Yip writes from Nanoose:   Common Wood Nymphs have been flying in my yard since Sunday. They were constantly on the move and impossible to photograph until I discovered their weakness – blackberry wine. I simply set up close to my small blackberry patch and waited.  Within 15 minutes  I had some very decent photographs.  [I’d say very decent indeed!   Jeremy Tatum]

 Male Common Wood Nymph Cercyonis pegala (Lep.: Nymphalidae – Satyrinae)  Mike Yip

 Male Common Wood Nymph Cercyonis pegala (Lep.: Nymphalidae – Satyrinae)  Mike Yip

2020 August 10

   Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin this morning.

1 Biston betularia

1 Callizzia amorata

3 Eulithis xylina

1 Fishia illocata

1 Lacinipolia strigicollis

1 Lophocampa argentata

1 Nemoria darwiniata 

1 Neoalcis californiaria

1 Oligia divesta

1 Panthea virginarius

1 Perizoma curvilinea

1 Sicya crocearia

1 Enypia packardata

1 Thallophaga taylorata

1 Xanthorhoe defensaria

Nemoria darwiniata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Cosmia praeacuta (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Callizzia amorata (Lep.: Uraniidae)  Jochen Möhr

Oligia divesta (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Perizoma curvilinea (Lep.: Geometridae) and Lacinipolia strigicollis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Lophocampa argentata (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Jochen Möhr

Sicya crocearia (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Enypia packardata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Thallophaga taylorata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jochen also notes there four Pine Whites and ten Woodland Skippers.

2020 August 9

   Jochen Möhr’s butterflies from Metchosin yesterday, and moths this morning:

1 Lorquin’s Admiral

1 Pine White

5 Woodland Skippers

1 Painted Lady

1 Campaea perlata

1 Eupithecia (annulata?)

1 Lophocampa argentata

2 Lacinipolia strigicollis (same as yesterday)

1 Nemoria darwiniata

1 Oligocentria pallida

3 Perizoma curvilinea 

1 Panthea virginarius

1 Pero (morissonaria?) (same as yesterday)

Oligocentria pallida (Lep.: Notodontidae)  Jochen Moehr

  A nice handsome Firebrat from Jeremy Tatum.  Am still waiting for someone to send a photo of a genuine silverfish.

Firebrat Thermobia domestica (Thysanura:  Lepismatidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2020 August 8

   Gordon Hart photographed the moth below at his Highlands home on August 4.  Since we could see only the underside of the wings, I despaired (writes Jeremy Tatum) as to whether we could identify it.  For Libby Avis, however, nae bother!  Libby writes:  “That one’s easy – for once!

Ceratodalia gueneata. We’ve had five this week in Port Alberni.  One of the few moths that always sit with their wings up. I would probably find it hard to identify it from the top side.”

Ceratodalia gueneata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Gordon Hart

     Jochen Möhr had a big haul in Metchosin  last night.  Thanks to Libby for help with the identifications.

1 Biston betularia 

1 Callizzia amorata

1 Campaea perlata

1 Coryphista meadii

1 Dasychira grisefacta 

1 Dichagyris variabilis

2 Lacinipolia strigicollis 

1 Lophocampa argentata 

3 Neoalcis californiaria 

1 Panthea virginarius

1 Perizoma curvilinea

1 Pero sp.

1 Syngrapha rectangula

1 Amorbia cuneata

1 Thallophaga (probably taylorata)

and one butterfly – a Painted Lady.

Dasychira grisefacta (Lep.: Erebidae – Lymantriinae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Dichagyris variabilis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Biston betularia (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Coryphista meadei (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Lophocampa argentata (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Jochen Möhr

Perizoma curvilinea (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Panthea virginarius (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Pero (maybe morrisonaria) (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Syngrapha rectangula (Noctuidae – Plusiinae)  Jochen Möhr

Syngrapha rectangula (Noctuidae – Plusiinae)  Jochen Möhr

Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Jochen Möhr

Thallophaga (probably taylorata) Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Amorbia cuneanum (Lep.: Tortricidae)  Jochen Möhr

   Gordon Hart’s moths from Highlands, August 6:

The first is one of those pugs that are awfully difficult to identify.  Jeremy Tatum writes:  I’ll label it possibly Eupithecia annulata – though it could well be something else!

Eupithecia (possibly annulata) (Lep.: Geometridae)  Gordon Hart

Eulithis xylina (Lep.: Geometridae)

plus one of those little crambids that we despair of identifying.

Gordon Hart

Nematocampa resistaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Gordon Hart

Catoptria latiradiella  (Lep.: Crambidae)  Gordon Hart