August 4 evening

    Rosemary Jorna sends a photograph of Lorquin’s Admiral from the Kemp Lake area, August 3.  Jeremy Tatum writes:  Although this is a common species, viewers are encouraged to continue to report sightings of it so that we can record the date of the last sighting of the season. I saw one at Royal Roads University, also on August 3, though I don’t think these will be quite the last of the year.

Lorquin’s Admiral Limenitis lorquini (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Libby Avis identified Jochen Möhr’s “dunno”  (see the midday posting of August 4) as Pyrausta perrubralis:

Pyrausta perrubralis (Lep.: Crambidae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jeremy Tatum found a rather pale variety of a Yellow Woolly Bear near McIntyre reservoir today.

Yellow Woolly Bear  Spilosoma virginica (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Jeremy Tatum

August 4 midday

Gordon Hart writes:

Hello Butterfly Watchers,

This is a reminder that the monthly VNHS Butterfly Walk will be on Sunday August 5. We will meet at the summit of Mount Tolmie by the reservoir at 1 p.m.    One possibility might be to go to Cordova (Saanichton) Spit to search for the Branded Skipper, but we can decide at the time.  The weather is supposed to be sunny, so hope to see you Sunday,

-Gordon

   Gordon also mentioned that yesterday in his yard in the Highlands he saw a large Fritillary (presumably Speyeria sp.)  He felt that its colour wasn’t quite right for the usual S. hydaspe, so it is a legitimate question to ask if maybe we have a few S. zerene in our area.

   Jeremy Tatum writes that he had an an exciting experience yesterday at Latoria Creek Park when he was startled by a large black-and-red moth that almost collided with his head as it flew past.  It was a Catocala, but obviously not possible to identify to species under such circumstances.

   Jochen Möhr writes that at his Metchosin home he had this morning:

2 Lophocampa argentata

2 Eulithis xylina

1 Oligia divesta

1 Lacinipolia strigicollis

and one dunno (pic attached).

   We’ll try and have the “dunno” identified and posted by this evening’s posting!

August 4 morning

   Rosemary Jorna sends a photograph obtained by Montana Stanley of the Sooke Region Museum of a Garden Tiger Moth at the Museum on August 2.

Garden Tiger Arctia caja (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Montana Stanley

   And Jochen Möhr has more moths from Metchosin. Thanks to Libby Avis for help with the identifications.

Oligia divesta (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Eulithis xylina (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr

Nemoria darwiniata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Schizura ipomoeae Lep.: Notodontidae)

Jochen Möhr

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

Lacinipolia strigicollis (Lep.: Noctuidae) Jochen Möhr

August 3

   Sending in your observations and photographs.   It takes a little while to prepare an Invert Alert (about ten minutes per photograph provided there are absolutely no problems or queries, or about an hour if there are six photographs, again if there are no problems.  Contributors can help the compiler immensely if they will do the following:

   *Submit photographs as attachments in .jpg format, and not in the body of the message.  (The few users of Macs may do something differently.)

  *Make sure that the date (not “yesterday”, but the date) and the place (not “my backyard”) of the photograph or observation, and the name of the photographer are included in the body of the message (not merely in the title).

  *You do not have to know the name of the animal you have photographed.  If you don’t know it, we shall try and identify it – but no guarantee of success!  If you do know what it is, please say so –  otherwise I have to spend unnecessary time trying to identify it again myself.

  *Please do check your text for grammar, spelling and punctuation.  I know this takes a little time, but if you don’t do it, the compiler has to.  And please, no abbreviations, and please capitalize proper nouns.  I do understand that some people find spelling and grammar easier than others, but do your best, and I’ll clean up anything you miss. 

   Thank you for your help, and for your contributions!

   Brent Beach sends a picture of a larva of the ladybird beetle  Harmonia axyridis.

Harmonia axyridis (Col.: Coccinellidae)  Brent Beach

   Rosemary Jorna sends a photograph of an Eight-spotted Skimmer from Kemp Lake Road, August 3.

Eight-spotted Skimmer Libellula forensis (Odo.: Libellulidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   More tomorrow!

August 2

   Nathan Fisk writes:  I’m writing in to report on the heart warming number of Woodland Skippers swarming the White-topped Aster in theFort Rodd nursery.  I’d conservatively estimate 75 Woodland Skippers, 10 Bombus vosnesenskii, 20 leaf-cutter bees and at least 3 other species are nectaring in this area. The make-up of the invertebrates changes over the course of a day with the bulk of the skippers showing after noon. A wonderful sight. 

  And Bryan Gates also comments on the Woodland Skippers in his garden.  He sends a photograph of one.

Woodland Skipper Ochlodes sylvanoides (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Bryan Gates

   Mistakes:   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Every now and again I make some sort of mistake – spelling, identification, date, whatever – when entering contributions.  Some of them are glaringly obvious and must be noticed by anyone who looks at the site.  But you are all so beautifully polite and don’t want to hurt my feelings, so you don’t mention it to me.  Please, please, please, if you spot a mistake of any sort:  let me know about it, so that I can correct it!