INVERTEBRATE ALERT
This blog provides an informal forum for terrestrial invertebrate watchers to post recent sightings of interesting observations in the southern Vancouver Island region. Please send your sightings by email to Jeremy Tatum (tatumjb352@gmail.com). Be sure to include your name, phone number, the species name (common or scientific) of the invertebrate you saw, location, date, and number of individuals. If you have a photograph you are willing to share, please send it along. Click on the title above for an index of past sightings.The index is updated most days.

2024 November 17

2024 November 17


   Here are four pictures from Ian Cooper’s November 17 overnight photo shoot at View Royal, plus  a spider picture taken on November 14

Male linyphiid spider (Ara.: Linyphiidae)  Ian Cooper

Flat-backed Millepede  Scytonotus sp. (Diplopoda:  Polydesmidae)   Ian Cooper

Yellow-Bordered Taildropper  Prophysaon foliolatum (Pul.: Arionidae)  Ian Cooper

 

Robust Lancetooth Snail  Haplotrema vancouverense (Pul.: Haplotrematidae.)
Ian Cooper

Garlic Snail  Oxychilus alliarius   (Pul.:  Oxychilidae)  Ian Cooper

2024 November 16

2024 November 16

   More invertebrate photographs by Ian Cooper from View Royal:

Harvestman  Leptobunus parvulus (Opiliones: Phalangiidae)   Ian Cooper

Female European Earwig  Forficula auricularia  (Derm.: Forficulidae)  Ian Cooper

Probably Fungus Gnat,  (possibly Dynatosoma sp.) (Dip.: Mycetophilidae)  Ian Cooper

Globular springtail, Ptenothrix sp. (Collembola – Symphypleona – Dicyrtomenidae)
Ian Cooper

Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Ian Cooper

Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Ian Cooper

 

2024 November 15 evening

2024 November 15 evening

   Here are some photographs from Ian Cooper’s photoshoot in View Royal last night.  Thanks to Dr Robb Bennett for help with the spider identification.

Triangle Web Spider  Hyptiotes (probably gertschi )   (Ara.:  Uloboridae)   Ian Cooper

 

Callobius pictus (Ara.: Amaurobiidae)   Ian Cooper

Flat-backed Millepede Scytonotus sp. (Diplopoda:  Polydesmidae)   Ian Cooper

Springtail Orchesella villosa (Coll.: Orchesellidae)   Ian Cooper

Grey Field Slugs  Deroceras reticulatum (Pul.: Agriolimacidae)   Ian Cooper

Probably Fungus Gnat,  (possibly Dynatosoma sp.) (Dip.: Mycetophilidae)  Ian Cooper

2024 November 15 morning

2024 November 15 morning

No Invert Alerts were issued on November 13 or 14.

However, Jeff Gaskin tells us that Kirsten Mills saw a Cabbage White by the model aircraft field out at Martindale Flats on November 14, and a darner dragonfly species – either Paddle-tailed or Shadow -Darner was seen at Island View Beach.   Today is forecast to be a sunny day, so a butterfly is still possible.

Aziza Cooper saw a dragonfly, and photographed this drone fly yesterday at Jordan River.  Thanks to Dr Jeff Skevington for identifying it as Eristalis sp.

 

Eristalis sp. (Dip.: Syrphidae)  Aziza Cooper

 

 

2024 November 12

2024 November 12

No Invertebrate Alert was issued on November 11.

Jeff Gaskin writes:  Today, November 12th, there was one Darner (Aeshnidae) species of dragonfly over the ponds in Cuthbert Holmes Park.  I’m presuming it was probably a Paddle-tailed Darner but it could also have been a Shadow Darner.  It was seen at some distance from me.

Jeremy Tatum writes:  Here is the pupa made by the caterpillar shown on October 31 morning:

 

                       Great Brocade Eurois occulta  (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

 

Ian Cooper writes:  Here is an assortment of six pictures taken in *Colquitz River Park in Saanich, the #Galloping Goose Trail in View Royal, and the ^E&N Trail in Esquimalt.

 

#Unidentified Globular springtail (Coll.: Dicyrtomidae)   Ian Cooper

 

# Entomobrya sp.(Entomobryomorpha – Entomobryidae)
Ian Cooper

#Grey Field Slug – Deroceras reticulatum (Pul.: Agriolimacidae)   Ian Cooper

*Limax maximus (Pul.: Limacidae)  Ian Cooper

^Long-jawed Orb Weaver  Metellina sp. (Ara.: Tetragnathidae)   Ian Cooper

#Ant   (Hym.: Formicidae)  Ian Cooper