2018 January 16

   Our viewers are certainly doing their best to keep this site open during the bleak midwinter!  First, a photograph of another overwintering noctuid moth, Lithophane baileyi, from Jochen Moehr in Metchosin.  The last entry in this site for this species was on October 29.

Lithophane baileyi (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

   Next, a remarkable series of tiny springtails, and a tiny snail, from Thomas Barbin in and around his Highlands garden.  Springtails used to be the Order Collembola, but apparently Collembola is now promoted to Subclass, containing several Orders.  I am trying to keep consistent and up-to-date on this site and in its Index!  In the title under each photograph I generally print the genus and species in italics.  Then, in parentheses, the Order – usually abbreviated to three letters, but written in full for the springtails – and the Family (-idae).

Hymenaphorura cocklei (Poduromorpha:  Onychiuridae)  Thomas Barbin

Left:  Ptenothrix sp. (Symphypleona: Dicyrtomidae)

Right: Sminthurinus elegans (Symphypleona: Katiannidae)

Thomas Barbin

Vesicephalus occidentalis (Symphypleona: Katiannidae)  Thomas Barbin

Vesicephalus occidentalis (Symphypleona: Katiannidae)  Thomas Barbin

   And even as I am processing the pictures above, in comes another one – this time an unknown noctuid or erebid caterpillar found on Sidney Island Spit by Ian Cruickshank.

Unknown caterpillar (Lep.: Noctuidae or Erebidae)  Ian Cruickshank

Unknown caterpillar (Lep.: Noctuidae or Erebidae)  Ian Cruickshank

2018 January 15

   Jochen Moehr sends a photograph of a noctuid moth from Metchosin.  Jeremy Tatum writes:  This one beat me, but Libby Avis identifies it as a dark specimen of Orthosia praeses  – one of the earliest noctuids to appear in the early weeks of the year.  Other early noctuids to look out for are Egira hiemalis and Eupsilia tristigmata. Also Scoliopteryx libratrix (formerly a noctuid but now an erebid) and the geometrid Phigalia plumogeraria. 

Orthosia praeses (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

   And what about butterflies?  Can we expect to see any soon?  For very many years the Red Admiral was never believed to stay in the British Isles during the winter – they either died or flew south, similar to our situation here.  However, in recent years Red Admirals – either as adult insects or as caterpillars – regularly spend the winter in southern England.  This year already there have been records of caterpillars (January 7) and adults (January 10) in Sussex.  Might it be worth looking out for them here?  We might also expect (or at least hope) to see Mourning Cloaks, except that last year was not a good year for them.

2018 January 8

   Scott Gilmore writes from Lantzville:  I spent a long time exploring about a square foot of my backyard on Saturday (Jan 6th) and found more things than I have had a chance to identify yet or even deal with the photographs. The first is a mite from the family Erythracaridae.   I really think it should be called the Candy Cane Mite. The second is a new snail for me, Lauria cylindracea, a European import. And the last is a family of beetle I have never seen before, the Primitive Carrion Beetles, family Agyrtidae. This is Necrophilus hydrophiloides and I found them inside a decomposing squash.

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Candycane Mite (Acari: Erythracaridae)  Scott Gilmore

Lauria cylindracea (Pul.: Pupillidae)   Scott Gilmore

Necrophilus hydrophiloides (Col.:  Agyrtidae)  Scott Gilmore

Scott also sends photographs of three spiders.  It’s a bit tricky to identify them, but thank you Robb Bennett for having a go!  Robb has the first two to genus and probably species.  He writes that the third one is a linyphiine linyphiid.  For those unfamiliar with the jargon, this means that it belongs to the Family Linyphiidae, and, within that, to the Subfamily Linyphiinae (sheet-web weavers).

Eratigena (probably agrestis) (Ara.:  Agelenidae)  Scott Gilmore

Xysticus (probably cristatus)  (Ara.: Thomisidae) Scott Gilmore

Ara.:  Lyniphiidae – Lyniphiinae      Scott Gilmore

2015 January 5

   Not many caterpillars around at the moment, but it’s not quite zero, for Morgan Davies sent a photograph of one on Sidney Island yesterday.   Not sure if we are going to be able to identify it to species, but it is surely either a noctuid or an erebid.

Unknown caterpillar  (Lep.: Noctuidae or Erebidae) Morgan Davies

   Scott Gilmore writes:  There was an interesting phenomenon noticed in Lantzville on January 3. There were huge numbers of very small worms found wriggling on what was left of our snow. I found out about it and quickly went to look in my backyard late last night. There were worms everywhere and they were all between 2 and 5cm long. 

   Jeremy Tatum remarks:  To my eyes these don’t look like the usual European Lumbricus species that we are used to.  Perhaps it is one of our native species.  Is there a viewer out there who can help us?

Unknown worm   Scott Gilmore

Unknown worm   Scott Gilmore

Unknown worm   Scott Gilmore