2015 July 6

   Aziza Cooper writes:  Yesterday’s VNHS monthly butterfly walk went to Boas Road near Spectacle Lake. In spite of the smoke obscuring the sky and blocking the sun, the temperature was very warm and the butterflies were active. Six butterfliers found six species:

Grey Hairstreaks – nine on Pearly Everlasting flowers by the side of the road; one more in the clearcut.  [Pearly Everlasting flowers are also a larval foodplant – Jeremy]

Western Tiger Swallowtail – 1

European (Essex) Skipper – 1

Cabbage White – 3

Pine White – 1

Lorquin’s Admiral – 2

We searched for the Boisduval’s Blue, but didn’t see it today. Several very interesting insects were found by Jeremy and photographed by Aziza.

Several of us went on to Spectacle Lake where there were many dragonflies near the swimming beach – Eight-spotted Skimmers and others.

At our meeting place at the top of Mount Tolmie, we saw one Anise Swallowtail. A bonus sighting there was three Black Swifts.  [Birds – not hepialid moths!  Jeremy]

What Aziza doesn’t say is that I don’t think any of us had ever seen so many Grey Hairstreaks all in one day and in pristine condition, and that we found it a huge thrill – Thank you so much Aziza, from all of us!.

Grey Hairstreaks Strymon melinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Aziza Cooper

   The next insect is one that we found and photographed just to remind ourselves that we shouldn’t be calling any insect a “bug”.  Beetles, butterflies, wasps, dragonflies are not “bugs”.  The insect in the photograph is a bug – identified by Scott Gilmore as a mirid bug of the genus Lygus.

Lygus sp.  (Hem.: Miridae)    Aziza Cooper

   The next insect is not a bug.  It is in the Order that includes wasps, and my guess (Jeremy Tatum) is that it is an ichneumonid of the genus Rhyssa or a near relative.  It uses its long ovipositor to bore deeply into wood to lay its eggs on wood-boring larvae of other insects. 

Probably Rhyssa or near relative (Hym.: Icheumonidae)  Aziza Cooper

   Nor is this a bug – it is a moth of the Family Pterophoridae.  The best-known moth of this family in our area is Emmelina monodactyla, which looks quite like this one, but my recollection of this moth is that is was rather smaller than Emmelina monodactyla, and probably a different species.  Although it is very visible in the close-up photograph, from any distance its colour seemed to match that of the Pearly Everlasting flowers so well that it was not easy to spot.

Unknown moth (Lep.: Pterophoridae)   Aziza Cooper.

   On the same day, July 5,  Barb McGrenere reports:  At Mount Tolmie this afternoon, Mike and I saw:
Western Tiger Swallowtail 5
Anise Swallowtail  1
Pale Swallowtail  2
Cabbage White  2
Lorquin’s Admiral  6
European (Essex) Skipper  1

Then, at Finnerty Gardens (UVic) we saw:
Western Tiger Swallowtail  4
Lorquin’s Admiral  2
Pine White  1
Cabbage White  5

2015 July 5

   Aziza Cooper writes:  On July 4 I went to look for the Boisduval’s Blue which Dave Robichaud reported weeks ago. It was very hot and dry with very few flowers still in bloom. I was able to find one about 10 metres from the trailhead at the end of Boas Road. It was in the bracken fern on a withering fireweed. Also there was one worn Grey Hairstreak, a flyby hairstreak and two Lorquin’s Admirals along the road.

Boisduval’s Blue Icaricia icarioides (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Aziza Cooper

Grey Hairstreak Strymon melinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Aziza Cooper

    Jeremy Tatum writes:  Cheryl Hoyle sends us a photograph of a moth from View Royal today, July 5.  It is a species of Drepanulatrix.  This genus always gives us trouble in identification.  Usually we have to try to choose from D. foeminaria, D. secundaria and D. monicaria.  Often the photographs that we are sent resemble monicaria more than the other two – as does this one.  The snag is that monicaria does not seem to be on the official list of British Columbia moths.  However as far as I can tell the moth in Cheryl’s photograph does seem to be Drepanulatrix monicaria – and that is how I am going to label it.

Drepanulatrix monicaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Cheryl Hoyle

2015 July 3

   Bill Katz sent a photo of a large beetle – and we assure viewers that the picture of the shoe was taken just for size comparison, and that the beetle was in no danger from it!  Beetle enthusiast Scott Gilmore comments:  My son and I were just drooling over the picture. Wow! What a stunning beetle! Not one I have ever seen but it sure looks like Prionus and the only member of that genus in BC is Prionus californicus. The California Root Borer. From the length of the antennae it must be a female. 

Prionus californicus (Col.: Cerambycidae)  Bill Katz

   I don’t know whether it made Scott drool further, although I am sure it must have pleased him when he writes:  A few nights ago I had a small beetle land on my arm as I was looking for insects at my CFL light. Vassili Belov was able to identify it as a Pleasing Fungus Beetle Cryptophilus integer, a species not previously recorded from BC. This beetle is often associated with stored products so it is not a surprising find.

Cryptophilus integer (Col.: Erotylidae) Scott Gilmore

   Jeff Gaskin writes: Yesterday, July 2, on Mt Tolmie just around 6 p.m. there were 4 Painted Ladies and with the Western Tiger Swallowtails I saw 2 Pale Swallowtails.

  Jeremy Tatum writes: Today, July 3, I visited Gordon and Anne-Marie Hart at their home in the Highlands.  We saw Red Admirals, Lorquin’s Admirals, Western Tiger Swallowtails, Pine Whites, Essex Skippers and a Sheep Moth in their garden.

  Barb McGrenere writes:  Today, Mike and I went to Km 14 along Nanaimo River Road to look for Dun Skipper and other butterflies.  After some searching, we found a small patch of Spreading Dogbane (almost finished flowering) where there were several Grey Hairstreaks, one or two Dun Skippers, a few European (Essex) Skippers and one Mylitta Crescent.  Also along the road were several Western Tiger Swallowtails, and a possible Clodius Parnassian (didn’t get a close look, it just flew by).

Grey Hairstreak Strymon melinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae) Barb McGrenere

Dun Skipper Euphyes vestris (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Barb McGrenere

Mylitta Crescent Phyciodes mylitta (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Barb McGrenere

   Jeremy Tatum writes: Cheryl Hoyle sends a picture of a small moth from View Royal.  Thanks to Scott Gilmore for identifying it after I made one of the most embarrassing misidentifications imaginable!  It’s a good thing that I can hide behind this computer terminal with no one to see me.

Oecogonia quadripuncta (Lep.: Symmocidae) Cheryl Hoyle

2015 July 2

   Scott Gilmore writes:  With the heavy wind in Lantzville I was surprised to see a couple of moths at my light this morning – one I have not seen before. I think it is Leucania farcta but I am not sure I can rule out Mythimna oxygala. Either way it was nice to see.  Jeremy Tatum writes:  I can’t tell, either.  To add to the complications, some splitters split farcta into Leucania farcta and Leucania oregona.  I’m going to take the easy way out and label this one “wainscot moth”, which is a general name for this group of moths, most of whose caterpillars are grass-feeders.  It’s almost certainly one of the above three species.

Wainscot moth (Lep.:  Noctuidae)  Scott Gilmore

   Gordon Hart writes:  We saw our first Pine White of the year today on a Buddleia flower.  Jeremy comments:  I have just looked through the Invert Alert Index, and I see that the earliest date that a Pine White has been photographed on this site since it started in 2010 was on July 21, 2013.  That’s doubtless not the earliest date that one has ever been seen in our area, but there’s no doubt that July 2 is a very early date. I don’t know if anyone has ever seen one in June.  Let us know if you have.

Pine White Neophasia menapia (Lep.: Pieridae)  Gordon Hart

  Jeremy Tatum writes:  I visited Mount Tolmie this afternoon.  The temperature must have been close to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.  There were no nymphalids basking on the reservoir – they don’t usually come until at least 6:00 pm or later. But there were lots and lots of Western Tiger Swallowtails flying around and over the reservoir.  It was quite an exciting sight.