This blog provides an informal forum for terrestrial invertebrate watchers to post recent sightings of interesting observations in the southern Vancouver Island region. Please send your sightings by email to Jeremy Tatum (tatumjb352@gmail.com). Be sure to include your name, phone number, the species name (common or scientific) of the invertebrate you saw, location, date, and number of individuals. If you have a photograph you are willing to share, please send it along. Click on the title above for an index of past sightings.The index is updated most days.

April 9 morning

2018 April 9 morning

 

   Jochen Moehr has had some excellent moth nights in Metchosin recently.  Here are a few of his recent moths.  Thanks to Libby Avis for identifications.  More in this evening’s posting!

 

 

Hydriomena manzanita (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

Hydriomena manzanita (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

Egira simplex/crucialis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

Orthosia hibisci (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

Cissusa indiscreta (Lep.: Erebidae)  Jochen Moehr

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

 

Scott Gilmore sends pictures of a “micro” moth from Upper Lantzville:

 

Telphusa sedulitella (Lep.: Gelechiidae)  Scott Gilmore

Telphusa sedulitella (Lep.: Gelechiidae)  Scott Gilmore

 

April 7

2018 April 7

 

   Rosemary Jorna photographed two tiny invertebrates in the Kemp Lake area.  First a springtail, and we are indebted to Dr Frans Jannsens for identifying it to subfamilial level:

 

Springtail (Entomobryomorpha: Tomoceridae – Tomocerinae)  Rosemary Jorna

 

Second, a flat-backed millipede.  Thomas Barbin recalled having photographed (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/8607841) a similar one some time ago, which was identified as probably Scytonotus sp.

Probably Scytonotus sp. (Polydesmida: Polydesmidae)

Josemary Jorna

 

Jeremy Tatum writes:  Since I am an astronomer, I have to insist absolutely that Spring began at precisely 2018 March 20d 14h 59m PDT, though a prolonged cold period since, followed by a prolonged grey and rainy period makes this hard for some to accept.  Some insist that Spring doesn’t really begin until the first Orangetips appear.  Well I am glad to report that Nathan Fisk wrote yesterday from Fort Rodd Hill Learning Meadow: One or two Sara Orangetips flitting about the buttercups and sipping from the dew. What a wonderful sight!

 

Jochen Moehr reports a bounty of moths from Metchosin.  I’ll post some of them today; some will have to wait until tomorrow or the day after!   Thanks to Libby Avis for the identifications.

Cerastis enigmatica (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

Spodolepis danbyi (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Moehr

Egira perlubens (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

 

Scott Gilmore sends photographs of a jumping spider.  Jeremy Tatum writes: I had originally tentatively labelled this as a Bronze Jumper Eris militaris.  We are grateful to Robb Bennett for pointing out that it is really Phanias, most likely P. albeolusI asked Robb if the things that look like eyes on the top of he cephalothorax really are eyes – and he said yes!  He says that salticids are famous for having 360 degree vision.

 

Phanias  (probably albeolus) (Ara.: Salticidae) Scott Gilmore

Phanias  (probably albeolus) (Ara.: Salticidae) Scott Gilmore

Phanias  (probably albeolus) (Ara.: Salticidae) Scott Gilmore

   Scott also sends photographs of a small dark-winged fungus gnat that he found indoors.  Genus possibly Bradysia.

 

Dark-winged fungus gnat, possibly Bradysia sp. (Dip.: Sciaridae) Scott Gilmore

Dark-winged fungus gnat, possibly Bradysia sp. (Dip.: Sciaridae) Scott Gilmore

 

April 6

2018 April 6

 

   Carl Hughes writes: I was uncrating a shipment of natural stone today and a moth flew out. Shipments are fumigated so you would think there is no way anything can survive but I saw it fly out.

 

American Tissue Moth Triphosa haesitata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Carl Hughes

 

 

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Alas! The swallowtail chrysalis shown on March 8 was filled with a dozen tachinid maggots.  The maggots came out of the chrysalis case today and promptly pupated.  We show the puparia below.  Perhaps not one of the most attractive of insects.

 

Tachinid puparium (Dip.: Tachinidae)  Jeremy Tatum

 

Tachinid puparia (Dip.: Tachinidae)  Jeremy Tatum

 

   Libby Avis sends a photograph of a “beautiful little” (pulchella) moth from Port Alberni this morning.  A “lifer” for Libby – which can’t happen very often!

 


Orthosia pulchella (Lep.: Noctuidae) Libby Avis

April 3

2018 April 3

 

   Hans Roemer found and photographed a cocoon of Antheraea polyphemus in his Saanich garden:

 

Polyphemus Moth Antheraea polyphemus (Lep.: Saturniidae)  Hans Roemer

 

   Jeremy Tatum found one caterpillar on Indian Plum Oemleria cerasiformis at Lochside Drive near Blenkinsop Lake:

 


Aseptis adnixa (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

 

 

…and another one on Snowberry at Mount Douglas Beach Park:

 


Neoalcis californiaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jeremy Tatum

 

 

   The only adult moth at my apartment this morning was the little micro shown below:

 


Agonopterix sp. (Lep.: Depressariidae) Jeremy Tatum

April 1

2018 April 1

 

   Nathan Fisk writes that in Oaklands cemetery yesterday, he saw a lone Cabbage White among myriad bee flies, Bombus vosnesenskii and honey bees nectaring on introduced bulbs and Spring Gold. 

 

Cabbage White Pieris rapae (Lep.: Pieridae)   Nathan Fisk

 

   Jochen Moehr sends photographs of two more moths from Metchosin.  One is an Orthosia praeses,  perhaps a little past its best-before date;  the other is a pristine-fresh beautiful Feralia deceptiva.

 


Orthosia praeses (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

 


Feralia deceptiva  (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

 

 

   Gerry and Wendy Ansell write: We saw our first butterflies of the year yesterday.  We were at Sooke Potholes Regional Park across from the farthest parking lot, on a sunny west-facing slope.  Two anglewings (commas) were spiraling upwards together.  When they were resting I got a few photos that I was hoping would identify them but the underside does not show well.  We are labelling them tentatively as Green Commas.  I’ll attach the pictures and you can see what you think.

 

   Well, viewers, writes Jeremy Tatum, what do you think?  The “comma” mark on the underside of the hindwing seems a bit V-shaped, rather than ear-shaped, which makes me wonder if we shouldn’t maybe even rule out gracilis.  We’d be happy for any comments.

 


Polygonia sp. (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Wendy Ansell

 

 


Polygonia sp. (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Wendy Ansell

 

 

The comma mark

 

 

   Today, April 1, seven hardy souls braved a bitter cold wind and went on the first Butterfly Walk of the year.  (They take place on the first Sunday of each month during the butterfly season.)  We took the same route as on last year’s April Butterfly Walk, which took place on April 2, 2017, along Lochside Trail beside Blenkinsop Lake, and, amazingly, we found exactly the same number of butterflies as last year.  The complete list follows.  As Churchill is reputed to have said (we’re not sure if he actually did so): “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”