2018 August 29

   Jochen Möhr’s moths in Metchosin this morning:

1 Ennomos magnaria

1 Feltia jaculifera

5 Lacinipolia pensilis

6 Neoalcis californiaria

2 Tettracis pallulata

Dioryctria sp.(Lep.:  Pyralidae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

2019 August 28

   Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin yesterday morning:

1 Coryphista meadii

1 Ennomos magnaria

5 Eulithis xylina

1 Feltia jaculifera

1 Lacinipolia pensilis

1 Lacinipolia strigicollis

1 Nemoria darwiniata

1 Neoalcis californiaria 

1 Pero mizon

2 Pyrausta perrubralis

Eulithis xylina (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Jochen Möhr’s moths from Metchosin this morning:

1 Eulithis xylina

8 Lacinpolia pensilis

1 Nemoria darwiniata  

4 Neoalcis californiaria

1 Noctua pronuba

1 Pero mizon

1 Pyrausta perrubralis

1 Ypsolopha canariella

   Jochen sends photographs of two Neoalcis californiaria.  One is typical; the other is rather unusual.

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.:  Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.:  Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jochen found this one in his bathroom:

Platyptilia carduidactyla (Lep.: Pterophoridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Cheryl Hoyle sends some photographs from View Royal.  The first one was photographed on August 12; the others on August 27.

Dr Rob Cannings identifies the fly as a robber fly, Neomochtherus willistoni — common around here in late summer.  He writes:  Note the rather long, triangular ovipositor, longer than in Machimus, a genus of similar looking robber flies.

Neomochtherus willistoni (Dip.: Asilidae)  Cheryl Hoyle

Melanoplus sp. (probably sanguinipes or femurrubrum or similar) (Orth.: Acrididae)

Cheryl Hoyle

Cabbage White Pieris rapae (Lep.: Pieridae)  Cheryl Hoyle

   Jeremy Tatum writes: My guess at the dragonfly below was Aeshna palmata, but Dr Cannings was kind enough to put me at my ease by saying that females of this species and Rhionaeschna multicolor can be hard to tell apart from photographs.  He points to the pale areas beside the base of the T-spot on the top of the face, which make it more likely that the photograph is of the latter species.

Blue-eyed Darner Rhionaeschna multicolor (Odo.: Aeshnidae)  Cheryl Hoyle

   Cabbage Whites and Woodland Skippers are still common, but other butterflies are becoming scarce. Gordon Hart saw a Pine White at Pedder Bay on August 26, and a Lorquin’s Admiral at his Highlands property today.

2019 August 27

   Ron Flower writes:  Yesterday, August 26, we went to Beacon Hill Park where we saw one Painted Lady and a handful of Woodland Skippers, all around the sundial and surrounding flower  beds.  Later, on Mount Tolmie, we saw two Painted Ladies.  Earlier in the week on August 22 at home in Royal Oak we had a Western Tiger Swallowtail fly through our yard.

Annie Pang sends pictures of a male Pine White from Esquimalt Gorge Park at the beginning of August.

Male Pine White Neophasia menapia  (Lep.: Pieridae)  Annie Pang

Male Pine White Neophasia menapia  (Lep.: Pieridae)  Annie Pang

2019 August 26 afternoon

   A very nice find by Kirsten Mills at McIntyre reservoir last week – a caterpillar of the Bedstraw Hawk Moth Hyles gallii.    I was wondering if one of them might turn up sometime, since there have been three reports of the adult moth on Invertebrate Alert this year.   One of the larval foodplants is Bedstraw,  Galium sp.   An extra letter “l” seems to have slipped into the scientific name of the moth.  It  also feeds on Epilobium.

Bedstraw Hawk Moth Hyles gallii (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Kirsten Mills

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  There were still several Ringlets and Purplish Coppers in the grassy fields inland from Island View Beach today, and of course lots of Woodland Skippers and Cabbage Whites.

2019 August 26 morning

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Yesterday, August 25, I saw a Lorquin’s Admiral at Iron Mine Bay.  In the evening there were still three Painted Ladies on the top of MountTolmie.

   Below is a caterpillar found yesterday on Salmonberry at Iron Mine Bay.

Habrosyne scripta (Lep.: Drepanidae – Thysanurinae) Jeremy Tatum

   Here is a rather uncommon dragonfly photographed on August 18 by Rick Avis at Ash River in the Alberni Valley.

Sinuous Snaketail Ophiogomphus occidentis (Odo.: Gomphidae)  Rick Avis