2016 April 17

   Gordon Hart sends a photograph of a lacewing, Nothochrysa californica.

Nothochrysa californica (Neu.: Chrysopidae)  Gordon Hart

Jeremy Tatum:  Here is a moth that emerged today from a pupa found on Stinging Nettle at Swan Lake.

Udea profundalis (Lep.: Crambidae)  Jeremy Tatum

 The potter wasp below was in my Saanich apartment today.

Potter wasp  Ancistrocerus sp. (Hym.: Vespidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2016 April 16

   Another Friendly Reminder.  Contributors please do try to remember that it is a huge help if you

     1. Send photographs as an attachment, not in the body of the message.

     2. Say where the animal was.  (Not “in my back yard” – I don’t know where your back yard is!)

     3. Say when you saw it.  (Not “yesterday”.  The date, please!

  Thank you all!

   Scott Gilmore sends from Lantzville photographs of a prominent moth and a ladybird beetle (the latter found by his son), both of which were lifers for him.  To the uninitiated, the moth may look like just another of the hordes of featureless grey or brown noctuids.  But to the enthusiast, it’s an exciting moth.  Not a noctuid at all, but a notodontid, an exciting family known as “prominents”.  The caterpillar of Gluphisia severa feeds on Populus.  The ladybird is the Two-spotted Ladybird.

Gluphisia severa (Lep.: Notodontidae)  Scott Gilmore

Two-spotted Ladybird  Adalia bipunctata (Col.: Coccinellidae)

Scott Gilmore

   Rebecca Reader-Lee writes that on April 15 Emma found the spider shown below on the floor inside the house.  Robb Bennett tells us that it is either Coriarachne brunneipes, or Bassaniana utahensis.  He writes that they both pretty much look the same at the “whole spider” scale.

Coriarachne brunneipes or Bassaniana utahensis  (Ara.:  Thomisidae)

  Rebecca Reader-Lee

2016 April 15

   Annie Pang sends a photograph of a bee fly, Bombylius sp.  This is a large genus, but the fly shown seems to resemble closely a female B. major.  They throw their eggs down the holes of mining bees.

 Bee fly Bombylius sp. (probably major)  (Dip.: Bombyliidae)  Anne Pang

2016 April 14

MONTHLY BUTTERFLY COUNT

   Gordon Hart writes:

Hi Butterfly Counters.

This weekend marks the beginning of the 2016 Butterfly Count season. As always, the count period is from the third Saturday to the fourth Sunday – nine days, or April 16-24 this year. You can submit a count anytime over this period, and you can do more than one count, just use a separate form for each count. In the case of repeat counts or more than one person counting an area, I will take the highest count for each species.

Please use the form at https://www.vicnhs.bc.ca/?p=33 on the Victoria Natural History Society website.

The count area is the same as the Christmas Bird Count circle. For butterfly identification there are numerous internet sites, but most or all Victoria species are listed on E-Fauna. If you select by photographer, all the photos under James Miskelly’s name are of Victoria species: http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/efauna/photoGallery/Gallery.aspx?gr=showall&pid=175&photographer=miskelly,%20james&specrep=0

I am now acting as coordinator of the count, as Aziza is taking a break. Please let me know if you want to be removed from this list. If you know of anyone who would like to be added, please ask them to send me their email address.

If you would like a suggestion for an area to count, please send me an email.

In addition to the counts, a monthly butterfly walk is held on the first Sunday of each month – May 1st,  is the next walk. We start at the summit of Mount Tolmie at 1pm, and decide where to go from there. The walk will be cancelled if the weather is cool or rainy.

Thank-you for submitting your sightings and happy counting! 

Gordon Hart

Butterfly Count Coordinator

Victoria Natural History Society

Jeremy Tatum writes:  Here is a moth from my Saanich apartment, and a snail from UVic, both photographed today.

 Hypena californica (Lep.:  Erebidae – Hypeninae)  Jeremy Tatum

Cepaea nemoralis (Pul.: Helicidae)    Jeremy Tatum

2016 April 13,  morning

   Some more wonderful pictures from the Highlands District from the last few days contributed by Thomas Barbin.  First, a leafhopper bug – the Blue-green Sharpshooter Hordnia atropunctata:

Two images of a sawfly, probably Tenthredinidae, not only because this is the largest sawfly family, but because the other families usually have rather distinctive antennae.   I am reminded that this site is perpetually in need of someone who can help with Hymenoptera identification, so, if that is you, please let us know!

Now a close-up of a click beetle.

Click beetle  (Col.:  Elateridae)   Thomas Barbin

If you have strong nerves, proceed to the next photograph, rated PG:

Ant  (Hym.:  Formicidae – Formicinae)  Thomas Barbin

If you managed to get past that one, prepare for the last two – jumping spiders.  Robb Bennett suggest they may both possibly be Evarcha proszynskii, but he says that he can’t be completely sure.

Jumping spider, possibly Evarcha proszynskii (Ara.:  Salticidae)  Thomas Barbin

Time for something a little more gentle, I think.   Here is a Moss’s Elfin, photographed by Jeremy Gatten.

Moss’s Elfin Incisalia mossii (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Jeremy Gatten.

And a caterpillar that Jeremy Tatum found on Snowberry at Swan Lake on April 12:

Jeremy Tatum writes:  The moth below was on the wall of my Saanich apartment a week or so ago.  Eric LaGasa suggests that it might be Agonopterix fusciterminella, though it would need dissection to confirm.

Possibly Agonopterix fusciterminella (Lep.: Depressariidae)  Jeremy Tatum

The moth below, identified by Eric LaGasa as Argyrotaenia franciscana, from Blenkinsop Lake, was reared from Oemleria cerasiformis.