2018 March 29

   Jochen Moehr sends, from Metchosin, a photograph  of a Venusia sp.  No one seems to know the difference – if any – between V. pearsalli and V. obsoleta, so we generally call them just Venusia obsoleta/pearsalli.  To all outward appearances they seem to be identical.  Says Jeremy Tatum – Oh, to find the caterpillars!  If they are really separate species, I bet the caterpillars would be different.

Venusia obsoleta/pearsalli (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

Message from Gordon Hart:

Hello Butterfly Watchers,
It may seem overly optimistic, but the first butterfly walk of the year will be on Easter Sunday, April 1. We meet at the top of Mount Tolmie by the reservoir, at 1.00 p.m. You can park in the parking lot there, or in the large lot north of the summit. After a look around the summit, and depending on the weather, we will decide on a destination from there.
See you on Sunday,
Gordon

Jeremy Tatum writes:

   Among the many emails received this morning was one announcing what may be a similar site to this one but dealing with microscopic organisms, concentrating, as we do, on Vancouver Island.  We have had some quite small animals on this site, such as very small mites, springtails and beetles.  We had a mention of a sighting (but not a photograph) once of a rotifer.  But the new site dealing with truly microscopic organisms sounds an intriguing idea.  Go to micronaturalist.ca to find further details.  We should encourage this new site, and I look forward to its success. 

   What happens if you photograph a tiny mite – should you send it to Invert Alert or to Micronaturalist?  I would say either, or, or both!  

2018 March 24

   Jeff Gaskin writes:  Today, March 24, Kirsten Mills tells me that she saw her first Cabbage Whites, two of them, in Fisherman’s Wharf .

  Jeremy Tatum writes:   I still haven’t seen a butterfly, so I am reduced to photographing whatever turns up, such as the brown lacewing at my Saanich apartment this morning, shown below.  And while at Blenkinsop Lake, I saw (but alas I was sans camera) a magnificent large, black mottled mayfly – surely a little early in the year.  I assure you that it was not a March Fly!

Brown lacewing  (Neu.: Hemerobiidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2018 March 23

Jeremy Tatum writes:  I thought I’d put together here the three photographs of the unknown pyraloid that have appeared on this site.

1. Photographed by Rosemary Jorna, Peden Bluffs, 2016 March 21.  Invert Alert 2016 March 30.

2. Photographed by Moralea Milne, Camas Hill, 2018 March 15.  Invert Alert 2018 March 18.

3. Photographed by Moralea Milne, Camas Hill, 2018 March 21.  Invert Alert 2018 March 22.

Unknown pyraloid      Rosemary Jorna

Unknown pyraloid      Moralea Milne

Unknown pyraloid      Moralea Milne

A possible identification suggested by Libby Avis is Sarata caudellella (Pyralidae – Phycitinae).  It closely resembles a moth that Libby photographed in Port Alberni in 2009 – see Bug Guide under this species.  Although the species is not on the Pohl et al. B.C. list, there are records for Alberta and Washington.

According to MONA, the larval foodplants of Sarata are unknown.  However, many years ago I reared a phyticine caterpillar from Vaccinium ovatum.  I have no photographic or other record, though my memory is that the moth that emerged may have been this or a similar one.  This is about as vague as it could be, but, combined with Moralea’s observation (see March 28) of one flying out of a Manzanita bush, it suggests that any micro caterpillar found in an ericaceous shrub would be well worth rearing.

While on the subject of insects that are difficult to identify, the ichneumon shown below was in my Saanich apartment this morning.   Shall we say that it bears some resemblance to Ophion luteus – but I wouldn’t want to put that down as a definitive identification.

Insect bearing some resemblance to Ophion luteus (Hym.: Ichneumonidae)

  Jeremy Tatum

2018 March 22

   Moralea sends two photographs of unidentified moths on Camas Hill, March 21.  One is rather undistinguished in appearance with no very obvious identification features.  The other is another specimen of the moth first noticed by Rosemary Jorna in 2016, and which is very well marked, and should be (but hasn’t been so far!) easy to identify.  Moth-ers are very interested to find out what this one is.  See also March 18.

Unidentified moth (Lep.)  Moralea Milne

Unidentified moth (Lep.: Pyraloidea)  Moralea Milne

2018 March 21

   Bud Logan photographed a rather fierce-looking spider at about 500 metres elevation in Strathcona Park.  Thanks to Dr Bennett  for identifying it as a male orbweaver of the genus Araneus, probably A. saevus

Male Araneus (probably saevus) (Ara.: Araneidae)  Bud Logan

Male Araneus (probably saevus) (Ara.: Araneidae)  Bud Logan