2016 March 19

   Jeremy Tatum sends photographs of two insects from his Saanich apartment this morning.

Anthrenus verbasci (Col.: Dermestidae)    Jeremy Tatum

  Val George reports his first butterfly of the year – a Mourning Cloak on Mount Douglas, yesterday, March 18.

  Rosemary Jorna sends a photograph of a spider from her garden in Kemp Lake Road, March 17.  Thanks to Robb Bennett for identifying it for us.  He writes:  A classic Pardosa wolf spider – high head and relatively long and spindly legs. Usually difficult to identify from photographs, but I think the image is of Pardosa vancouveri  –  it is the most common dark Pardosa around here at this time of year. Other genera of wolf spiders in our area are usually more heavy-bodied and with thicker head and lower heads.

Pardosa vancouveri (Ara.: Lycosidae)    Rosemary Jorna