2020 June 17 evening

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  At Panama Flats this afternoon I saw five Cabbage Whites and three Essex Skippers.  There was a massive and extensive display of blackberry bushes in full flower, but not a swallowtail in sight.  However, at 6:15 pm this evening I saw a Western Tiger Swallowtail fly over the reservoir – the first swallowtail of any species that I have seen this year.  That was the only butterfly I saw at the top of Mount Tolmie.

  Kim Beardmore photographed this Sheep Moth caterpillar along the Munn Road power lines today.  These caterpillars can give you a rash if handled.

Sheep Moth Hemileuca eglanterina (Lep.: Saturniidae) Kim Beardmore

   Wendy Ansell writes:  Today (Wednesday) we saw 1, possibly 2, Lorquin’s Admirals and 1 Western Tiger Swallowtail at Playfair Park.  By the way, we frequently see 1 or 2 Western Tiger Swallowtails in our yard on Cordova Ridge, 1 so far today.

   Jeff Gaskin  writes:  Kirsten Mills and I  had some good butterflies in Nanaimo and Duncan today, June 17.  Along the trail near the Duncan sewage lagoons we saw from between 6 – 8 Western Tiger Swallowtails, and 1 Pale Tiger Swallowtail.

 On Nanaimo River Road:  For 15 kilometres from the Trans Canada Highway we saw 15 Pale Tiger Swallowtails,  4 Western Tiger Swallowtails,  5 Western Spring Azures,  1 Lorquin’s Admiral, and 13 Clodius Parnassians.  The Clodius Parnassians were found between the 8.5 km point to the 15 km point.

  More tomorrow – couldn’t get everything up today! – Jeremy T.

2020 June 17 morning

   Jeremy Tatum writes.  I have never seen the genuine Silverfish Lepisma saccharina in Victoria.  Perhaps some viewer will find one and photograph it for Invert Alert.  The usual animal I see is the Firebrat Thermobia domestica (see May 12).  The Silverfish likes cool places; the Firebrat likes warm places.  The animal below, Ctenolepisma longicaudata,  is somewhat intermediate in appearance between the two, though is more akin to the Firebrat than to the Silverfish.

Ctenolepisma longicaudata (Thysanura:  Lepismatidae)  Jeremy Tatum

   Annie Pang sends photographs of two micros:

Udea profundalis (Lep.: Crambidae)  Annie Pang

Brown House Moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella (Lep.: Oecophoridae) Annie Pang

   Melanie Boyle sends a photograph of a pug, Eupithecia sp., from her window on Cortes Island:

Eupithecia sp. (Lep.: Geometridae)  Melanie Boyle

2020 June 16

   Rosemary Jorna sends a picture of a pair of bugs in her Kemp Lake garden.  These are probably Banasa sp, most likely Banasa dimiata.

Probably Banasa dimiata (Hem.: Pentatomidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin yesterday morning:

1 Callizzia amorata 

1 Enypia packardata

1 Eupithecia sp.

1 Hydriomena sp.

2 Iridopsis emasculatum 

1 Lacinipolia cuneata

2 Lophocampa maculata

2 Stenoporpia excelsaria

1 Tyria jacobaeae

1 Venusia obsoleta/pearsalli

Stenoporpia excelsaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Lophocampa maculata (Erebidae – Arctiinae) Jochen Möhr

Lacinipolia cuneata (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin this morning:

1 Callizzia amorata 

1 Enypia packardata

1 Eupithecia cretaceata

1 Lacinipolia cuneata

2 Lophocampa maculata

2 Nadata gibbosa (were also there yesterday, forgot to include them in the previous list)

3 Stenoporpia excelsaria

1 Tyria jacobaeae

1 Venusia obsoleta/pearsalli 

  The Eupithecia cretaceata below, photographed by Jochen, is one of the larger pugs, and one that it is relatively (i.e. relative to most other pugs) easy to identify.  Its caterpillar feeds on the flowers of Veratrum viride, which is generally described as one of the most deadly poisonous (to humans) plants in our countryside.

Eupithecia cretaceata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jochen also reports seeing a Western Tiger Swallowtail, an Anise Swallowtail and a Western Spring Azure (also known as Echo Blue) on his Metchosin property.  He sends a photograph of the Azure nectaring on Ceanothus

.

Western Spring Azure Celastrina echo (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Jochen Möhr

2020 June 15

  Rosemary Jorna sends a beautiful photograph of a clearwing moth.  They are not seen very often, and are hard to photograph, so this is quite an achievement.  We have several native clearwings (Sesiidae), but this one is a rather recent European invader, Synanthedon myopaeformis, known variously as the Red-belted Clearwing or the Apple Clearwing.

Red-belted Clearwing Synanthedon myopaeformis (Lep.: Sesiidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Rosemary has also been photographing some bees in the Kemp Lake area.  Thanks to Linclon Best and Annie Pang for identifications.

Bombus occidentalis (Hym.: Apidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Bombus caliginosus or vosnesenskii (Hym.: Apidae)  Rosemay Jorna

Bombus melanopygus or bifarius (Hym.: Apidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Mr E photographed these beetles and a spider near Sooke.  Scott Gilmore identifies the beetles as Pidonia scripta.   The spider is young, which makes identification difficult, but Robb Bennett says probably Misumena, though possibly Mecaphesa.  Why is the spider facing away from the beetles?  Is it frightened, or hasn’t it noticed them, or is it being cunning?  One viewer suggests that it is just embarrassed at possibly being mistaken for a voyeur.

Pidonia scripta (Col.: Cerambycidae)

and probably Misumena sp. (Ara.: Thomisidae)     Mr E

Rosemary Jorna photographed the following fearsome-looking mygalomorph spider near Kemp Lake:

Antrodiaetus pacificus  (Ara. – Myg.:  Antrodiaetidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Antrodiaetus pacificus  (Ara. – Myg.:  Antrodiaetidae)  Rosemary Jorna

2020 June 14

   Jochen’s moths from Metchosin this morning.  No photos.

1 Callizzia amorata 

1 Enypia packardata

2 Iridopsis emasculatum 

1 Lophocampa maculata

1 Tyria jacobaeae

1 Nadata gibbosa (same one, still there and still alive)

Lynda Dowling, from Happy Valley Herb Farm, sends via Gordon Hart a photograph of a  Mesoleuca gratulata photographed in May this year:

Mesoleuca gratulata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Lynda Dowling

   Claudia Copley sent the photographs below (taken by Darren Copley on June 12) of a chrysalis on the house of a friend, Chris Nation, in Gordon Head. The caterpillar that formed it was seen there in June 11, and it had formed the pupa by the following day.  This makes a nice record of breeding of a California Tortoiseshell here.   In case you are wondering, the butterfly within is facing to the left in the first photo below, and it has its back to you in the third photo.

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Darren Copley

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Darren Copley

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Darren Copley

  Jeremy Tatum writes:  Today I went to Munn Road hydro line – butterfly hotspot – for a couple of hours, and I saw one Western Spring Azure – the first butterfly of any sort that I have seen since June 1.  Twelve straight days without a butterfly – I’m getting desperate!