2022 March 13

    Jeremy Tatum writes:  This small moth was in my Saanich apartment a few days ago.  Fairly sure that it is a slightly worn Indian Meal Moth.  Not native in these parts.  I don’t think it’s native to India, either.  So called because the caterpillar feeds on Indian Meal, whatever that is.

Indian Meal Moth Plodia interpunctella (Lep.: Pyralidae)  Jeremy Tatum

   Jeremy continues:  This unprepossessing caterpillar was on Carey Road, Victoria, this morning:

Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2022 March 6 afternoon

    Jeff Gaskin writes:  Today, March 6th, my mom had a Mourning Cloak pass through her yard on Wascana Street. I saw it too.

2022 March 6 morning

    Gordon Hart writes from his Highlands home:  I can add two more species to the butterfly list for March 5. There were two Mourning Cloaks in the yard and a Green Comma.   I also heard from Gordon Usipiuk of Colwood who saw a Mourning Cloak in his yard as well.

Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa (Lep.: Nymphalidae)   Gordon Hart

Green Comma Polygonia faunus (Lep.:  Nymphalidae)  Gordon Hart

2022 March 5

    Rosemary Jorna sends photographs of three tiny invertebrates from the bark of a maple tree near Kemp Lake, March 3.  To give an idea of their small size, you can see the very tip of Rosemary’s finger at the bottom of each photograph.  Thanks to Dr Robb Bennett for the identification of the spider.  Robb writes:   I think that’s an anyphaenid. We have two species here: Anyphaena aperta and Anyphaena pacifica. Pacifica is more widespread but, around Victoria and Vancouver Island at least, aperta is much more common. And there are many specimens out and about right now.

Anyphaena sp. (Ara.: Anyphaenidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Rosemary found 13 of the snails. You’ll need to look carefully to see two of them in the photograph.

Threaded Vertigo Snail  Nearctula sp. (Pul.: Vertiginidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Snout mite (Acari: Bdellidae)  Rosemary Jorna

  Butterfly!  Jeremy Tatum reports the second butterfly reported to Invertebrate Alert this year.  (See February 17 for the first.)   A remarkably fresh and cooperative California Tortoiseshell was on the Mount Tolmie reservoir at 4:00 pm this afternoon, March 5.  It attracted the attention of several people – and a dog – on the reservoir.  The dog made a lunge at it and very nearly caught it.  One spectator cried out: “Look! – a Monarch!”, and was very interested when I said what it really was.  The butterfly was sufficiently cooperative that it allowed Rosemary Weir to crouch down and get her camera within inches of it.  The resulting photograph is shown below.

For those new to the local butterfly scene it is worth knowing that the concrete reservoir on the top of Mount Tolmie is a great place for seeking hill-topping nymphalid butterflies in the late afternoon and early evening.

California Tortoiseshell  Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Rosemary Weir

2022 February 22,  aka   2022.02.22

   Aziza Cooper writes:  Very nice to see the signs of Spring.   Sunday, February 20, this bee was in a crocus patch on a lawn on Tattersall Road east of Quadra Street.   Jeremy Tatum responds:  But I haven’t seen many signs of Spring today.   Brrrr…. it’s cold!

Honey Bee Apis mellifera (Hym.:  Apidae)   Aziza Cooper