June 27
2019 June 27
Jeremy Tatum continues with his story of the extraordinary psychid moth Psyche casta (see June 26 morning). Last night I took the female moth and her case indoors, and I kept her in an airtight plastic box. This morning she had crawled completely out of the rear end of her case, so I took her and her case outside on to the balcony, and opened the box, to try and get a photograph of her. Within seconds a male flew on to the balcony. It was quite astonishing. I did eventually manage to get some sort of a photograph of the female, and anything more unlike an adult moth is hard to imagine.
Female Psyche casta (Lep.: Psychidae) Jeremy Tatum
After so much excitement, here is a more conventional caterpillar – a young Painted Lady caterpillar from Royal Roads University, well protected in the spiny thistle that she eats.
Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae) Jeremy Tatum
But I’m not the only one having an exciting time. Ren, Kirsten, Mike and Jochen have all had exciting finds. Ren Ferguson found a caterpillar of the Ceanothus Silk Moth wandering the forest floor on a small private island near Gabriola on June 16.
Ceanothus Silk Moth Hyalophora euryalus (Lep.: Saturniidae) Ren Ferguson
Kirsten Mills writes: Jeff Gaskin and I were butterflying along Nanaimo River Road yesterday , June 25, and we saw a Sylvan Hairstreak:
Sylvan Hairstreak Satyrium sylvinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae)
Kirsten Mills
Mike Yip writes from Nanoose: I checked a Dogbane patch in Whiskey Creek yesterday and found 9 Grey Hairstreaks, 2 Painted Ladies, 4 Pale Tiger Swallowtails, 2 Western Tiger Swallowtails, and 1 Cedar Hairstreak. I saw a new garden dragonfly today – Pacific Spiketail.
Grey Hairstreak Strymon melinus (Lep.: Lycaenidae) Mike Yip
Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae) Mike Yip
Cedar Hairstreak Mitoura rosneri (Lep.: Lycaenidae) Mike Yip
Pacific Spiketail Cordulegaster dorsalis (Odo.: Cordulegastridae) Mike Yip
Jochen Möhr’s moths in Metchosin this morning:
| Campaea perlata | 1 |
| Enypia packardata | 1 |
| Homorthodes hanhami | 1 |
| Iridopsis larvaria | 1 |
| Lacinipolia strigicollis | 4 |
| Lophocampa maculata | 1 |
| Nadata gibbosa | 1 |
| Perizoma curvilinea | 2 |
| Pero mizon | 1 |
| Protitame subalbaria | 1 |
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In addition to the above, two Yellow Douglas Fir Borers (which have been here for about a week) and a Ten-lined June Beetle.
Enypia packardata (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr
Homorthodes hanhami (Lep.: Noctuidae) Jochen Möhr
Perizoma curvilinea(Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr
Lacinipolia strigicollis (Lep.: Noctuidae) Jochen Möhr
Spotted Tiger Moth Lophocampa maculata (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)
Jochen Möhr
Campaea perlata (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr
Iridopsis emasculatum (Lep.: Geometridae)
Pero mizon (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr
Polyphylla crinita (Col.: Scarabaeidae) Jochen Möhr
Centrodera spurca (Col.: Cerambycidae) Jochen Möhr
Finally, two views of a Large Yellow Underwing moth, from Annie Pang:
Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae) Annie Pang
Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae) Annie Pang