2021 March 26

   For me (writes Jeremy Tatum) one of the more interesting of the creatures that Ian Cooper has been photographing in recent days (and nights!) is the animal below.  I was sure that it was the caterpillar of a small moth, but I simply could not figure out what Family it was.  Well, it sure fooled me – it is not a moth caterpillar after all.  Dr David Wagner,  Charlene Wood and Ian himself have all identified it as the larva of a soldier beetle (Cantharidae).  This one was photograhed by Ian on lichens on a tree trunk.   This is the second interesting beetle larva to appear on these pages this week.  See also March 24 morning.

Soldier beetle larva  (Col.: Cantharidae)  Ian Cooper

   The animal below is probably the larva of a crane fly – probably Tipula paludosa. Also seen in the photograph are several tiny snails.  The larger of them, with the columnar shells, are probably Lauria cylindracea.  The smaller ones are probably of a different family.

Probably Tipula paludosa (Dip.: Tipulidae)   Ian Cooper

Unknown earthworm   (Oligochaeta)  Ian Cooper

Dark-bodied Glass Snail Oxychilus draparnaudi (Pul.: Daubebariidae ) Ian Cooper

Upper, probably Lauria cylindracea (Pul.: Lauriidae)

Lower – unknown!      Ian Cooper

   The snail below has had several English names, one of which is Leopard Slug – from the colour form shown below, a form that Ian says he doesn’t see very often.

Limax maximus (Pul.: Limacidae)   Ian Cooper

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

Arion distinctus (Ara.: Arionidae)  Ian Cooper

Sheetweb spider (Ara.: Linyphiidae)   Ian Cooper

Ptenothrix sp. (Coll.: Symphypleona,  Dicyrtomidae)  Ian Cooper

2021 March 25

   Ron Flower writes:   About time  – I just saw our first butterfly today,  a Cabbage White in our yard in Royal Oak.

2021 March 24 afternoon

   It is about time we had some earthworms on this invertebrate site – after all, I’m pretty sure they’re invertebrates!

   Here are two from Colquitz River Park photographed by Ian Cooper.  Unfortunately, we don’t know anyone who can identify earthworms – if anyone can help, do let us know.  I believe the usual earthworm to be found in the Victoria area is the European species Lumbricus terrestris, and the first photograph below, of a pair in cop. might possibly be this species.  On the other hand, Ian points out that they also bear a close resemblance to the native Arctiostrotus vancouverensis.   The second (and the third, which is a close-up of the same individual) looks like a different species – perhaps one of our native earthworms.  But who knows?

Unidentified earthworms (Oligochaeta)   Ian Cooper

Unidentified earthworm (Oligochaeta)   Ian Cooper

Unidentified earthworm (Oligochaeta)   Ian Cooper

   It is spring, and it seems that earthworms are not the only creatures with that in mind:

Probably Deroceras reticulatum (Pul.: Agriolimacidae) Ian Cooper

We don’t know what this next slug is:

Unidentified slug (Pulmonata)   Ian Cooper

  Ian Cooper writes that this is a woodlouse of sorts, but its very rounded, ‘dome like’ form does not appear to be Porcellio scaber or Oniscus asellus; it might possibly be a Common Pill Woodlouse – Armadillidium vulgare. 

Possibly a Common Pill Woodlouse – Armadillidium vulgare (Isopoda:  Armidillidiidae)

 Ian Cooper

2021 March 24 morning

   Mr E sends a photograph of the creature below running rapidly just outside his doorstep.  I thought it was going to be a difficult creature to identify, writes Jeremy Tatum, but I sent it to two beetle enthusiasts, Charlene Wood and Scott Gilmore, who had no difficulty in identifying it immediately as the larva of the snail-eating ground beetle Staphinotus sp., probably S. angusticollis, whose adult form has appeared several times on this site, most recently just two days ago (March 22).

Staphinotus (probably angusticollis)  (Col.: Carabidae)   Mr E

   Here is another fine portrait of a globose springtail, kindly identified for us by Dr Frans Janssens in Antwerp.   To aid in its identification (there are lots of similar species!), Frans writes:  Note the striped butt patch in the shape of a small Christmas tree.

  It’s good to learn all these technical terms such as “butt”!

Dicyrtomina minuta f. saundersi  (Coll.: Dicyrtominidae)   Ian Cooper

2021 March 23

       More photographs by Ian Cooper from Colquitz River Park and the Galloping Goose Trail in View Royal.  

Adult Limax maximus. Light colored variant (Pul.: Limacidae) Ian Cooper

Young Limax maximus (Pul.: Limacidae) Ian Cooper

Springtail  Orchesella villosa (Coll.: Orchesellidae) Ian Cooper

Pimoa altioculata (Ara.: Pimoidae)  Ian Cooper

Sac spider Anyphaena sp. (Ara.: Anyphaenidae)   Ian Cooper