2018 June 18 morning

   Request:  Earler this week David Harris and Jeremy Tatum went to the railway line north of Cowichan Station to see the Margined Whites there.  We also saw several blues which we suspect may have been Western Tailed Blues.  We would be very grateful if other butterflyers would go up there and have a look and confirm (or otherwise) this identification.

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  David Harris, Bill Savale and I went to Boas Road near Spectacle Lake yesterday, hoping to see a Boisduval’s  Blue.  We saw one blue that might have been one, but we could not confirm.  By way of compensation we saw two Western Pine Borer Beetles Chalcophora angulicollis (Col.: Buprestidae).  We went on from there to the Kinsol Trestle, where, in addition to many Western and Pale Tiger Swallowtails  and Lorquin’s Admirals, we saw several Cedar Hairstreaks  and two Clodius Parnassians.

    Aziza Cooper reports  2 Pale Swallowtails.  1 Western Tiger Swallowtail and 2 Painted Ladies

from Mount Tolmie on the evening of June 16.   Jeremy Tatum reports that the Mount Tolmie reservoir was on excellent form last night (June 17), with all three swallowtails (look on the Philadelphus shrub for the Anise), two admirals (Lorquin’s and Red), two ladies (look around the Jeffery Pine for the West Coast) and a Western Spring Azure.

  Aziza Cooper reports from Welch and Livesay Roads, 10:30am, June 17,  2 Western Tiger Swallowtails, 2 Lorquin’s Admirals and a Cabbage White.

Aziza Cooper sends a photograph of a Western Pondhawk feeding on a hapless damselfly.

Western Pondhawk Erythemis collocata (Odo.: Libellulidae)  Aziza Cooper

   Jeff Gaskin writes:   Out at Ten Mile Point on June 17, where I was doing my butterfly count for June,  I saw 5 Pale Tuger Swallowtails, 7 Western Tiger Swallowtails, 3 Lorquin’s Admirals, and 12 Cabbage Whites.

   Ron Flower writes: On Sunday  June 16 Nora and I went to Goldstream River were we found over a dozen Purplish Coppers and even more Cedar Hairstreaks.  We also saw 5 Lorquin’s Admirals,

 7 Western Tiger Swallowtails  and 2 Pale Tiger Swallowtails.

Female (left) and male Purplish Coppers Lycaena helloides (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Ron Flower

Cedar Hairstreak Mitoura rosneri (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Ron Flower

   Val George writes:   On June 17, there were two Grey Hairstreaks at the summit of Mount Douglas.

Grey Hairstreak Strymon melinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Val George

2018 June 17

   As promised, here are Val George’s photographs of some of the butterflies seen on yesterday’s VNHS field trip (see yesterday’s posting).

Male Purplish Copper Lycaena helloides  (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Val George

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon  (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Val George

Cedar Hairstreak Mitoura rosneri  (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Val George

Hydaspe Fritillary Speyeria hydaspe  (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Val George

   My remark yesterday that we hadn’t received many recent reports of Pale Tiger Swallowtail Produced one from Jochen Möhr:

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon  (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Jochen

2018 June 16

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Lorquin’s Admirals and Western  Tiger Swallowtails are general now and are at

their best (although we haven’t actually received any recent reports of Pale Tiger Swallowtail.)   

   Yesterday evening there were three or four Painted Ladies on the Mount Tolmie reservoir.  This

evening there were a Painted Lady and a Red Admiral there, as well as an Anise Swallowtail on the

Philadelphus bush at the reservoir entrance.

   Jochen Möhr sends a photograph of a chrysalis of a Sara Orangetip from a fence in his garden.

Sara Orangetip  Anthocharis sara (Lep.: Pieridae) Jochen Möhr

   Jeff Gaskin writes:  Today, June 16, I found my first of the year Essex Skippers in Esquimalt Gorge

Park.  There were at least ten of them there.

    David Harris and Jeremy Tatum went to the railway line north of Cowichan station today.  On the way

there, David spotted a Red Admiral at Goldstream Park.  On the railway line we met three more

 butterfly-ers  –Rick Schortinghuis,  Ben van Drimmelen and a Ms Johnson, who

Jeremy hopes will forgive him

for forgetting her first name.  We saw several Margined Whites and Cedar Hairstreaks, as well as

several blues whose identities we could not be 100 per cent certain of.  We think probably Western

Tailed Blues, though it is possible that they may have been late Spring Azures, or even some other

species.  Some of them seemed to be attracted to Cascara trees.  It would be nice if some other

observers might go there and try to identify these blues with certainty.

  Jeremy Tatum writes:  Just after I had written the above paragraph, I received the following from Val

George!:-

 Only three members (Rick Schortinghuis, Ben van Drimmelen, and myself Val George) participated in the VNHS Birds and Butterflies trip to the Duncan area today, June 16.  We went to the dock road at Cowichan Bay, Providence Farm, Cowichan River, Mount Prévost, and Cowichan Station.  Twelve species of butterflies were seen:  Western Tiger Swallowtail, Pale Swallowtail, Anise Swallowtail, Cabbage White, Margined White, Western Spring Azure, Green Comma, Cedar Hairstreak, Purplish Copper, Hydaspe Fritillary, Lorquin’s Admiral, and Essex Skipper.  Some photos are attached.  

Jeremy continues:  but it is past my bedtime – so we’ll eagerly wait to see the photos tomorrow!

2108 June 15

   Jeremy Tatum and David Harris went hopefully in overcast conditions to Eddy’s Storage on Stelly’s Cross Road yesterday, and we did manage to see a few Field Crescents still there.  Presumably in sunny weather there will still be quite a few to see there.  We also saw an adult Essex (European) Skipper.  Next stop was Gordon and Anne-Marie’s house and garden in the Highlands.  It was still overcast there and the only butterfly we saw was a rather late Western Spring Azure, which (if it is not the same species as the Holly Blue familiar to David in England) was a lifer for him.  The highlight there was a wonderful tea with cookies put on for us by Anne-Marie.

   Annie Pang sends a photograph of a Lorquin’s Admiral seen from the underside – plus a pair of Harmonia axyridis ladybird beetles.

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

with two  Harmonia axyridis (Col.: Coccinellidae)

Annie Pang

   Jochen Möhr has been trying his hand – and camera – at bees, and photographed several. We haven’t managed to identify them to species, though Annie Pang suggests that the first is probably Bombus melanopygus

Probably Bombus melanopygus (  Hym.: Apidae)   Jochen Möhr

Unidentified bee    Jochen Möhr

Unidentified bee    Jochen Möhr

Unidentified bee    Jochen Möhr

Unidentified bee    Jochen Möhr

   Jody Wells sends photographs of two butterflies from Mount Tolmie, June 14.

Propertius Duskywing Erynnis propertius (Lep.: Hesperiidae) Jody Wells

Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Jody Wells

2018 June 14

Message from Gordon Hart

Hello Butterfly Counters,

The June count runs nine days from the third Saturday, June 16, to the fourth Sunday, June 24. You can submit a count anytime over this period, and you can do more than one count, just use a separate form for each count. In the case of repeat counts, or more than one person counting an area, I will take the highest count for each species.

Please use the form at https://www.vicnhs.bc.ca/?p=33 on the Victoria Natural History Society website .

The count area is the same as the Christmas Bird Count circle (attached). For butterfly identification there are numerous internet sites, but most or all Victoria species are listed on E-Fauna. If you select by photographer, all the photos under James Miskelly’s name are of Victoria species. Here is the link: http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/efauna/photoGallery/Gallery.aspx?gr=showall&pid=175&photographer=miskelly,%20james&specrep=0

If you would like a suggestion for an area to count, please send me an email.

The May count had 818 butterflies of 16 species. In June, some spring species may be missing, but the number of individuals should be similar.

In addition to the counts, a monthly butterfly walk is held on the first Sunday of each month – the next walk will be on July 1. We start at the summit of Mount Tolmie at 1pm, and decide where to go from there. I will send out another reminder near the month-end.

Thank-you for submitting your sightings and happy counting!

Gordon Hart

Butterfly Count Coordinator

Victoria Natural History Society

Count circle map link:

http://christmasbirdcount.ca/bcvi/CBCMaps.html#VictoriaMap

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Yesterday’s Garden Tiger caterpillar decided to stretch out today for another photograph:

Garden Tiger Arctia caja  (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)   Jeremy Tatum

   Jochen Möhr had a big haul at Metchosin yesterday.  Thanks to Libby Avis for the identifications.

Hydriomena marinata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Eupithecia probably miserulata or misturata) (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Iridopsis larvaria/masculata  (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Perizoma curvilinea (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   The next one is a “micro” from the Family Crambidae, Subfamily Scopariinae.  Libby writes:  Best guess Eudonia commortalis or Scoparia basalis but they’re a difficult group. Someone told me work needs to be done on them. See what Jeremy thinks.  Jeremy thinks:  I heartily agree!

Eudonia commortalis or Scoparia basalis (Lep.: Crambidae)  Jochen Möhr

Schizura ipomoea (Lep.: Notodontidae)  Jochen Möhr

Acronicta dactylina (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Drepana arcuata (Lep.:  Drepanidae –Drepaninae) Jochen Möhr

Spotted Tiger Moth Lophocampa maculata (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)

Jochen Möhr

Lorquin’s Admiral  Limenitis lorquini (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Jochen Möhr