2016 April 22

   Thomas Barbin sends photographs of a few arthropods observed on April 21 in the Highlands District.

 Exoskeleton of a cicada nymph (Hem.: Cicadidae)  Thomas Barbin

Soldier beetle Silis sp. (Col.: Cantharidae)  Thomas Barbin

 Soldier beetle Silis sp. (Col.: Cantharidae)  Thomas Barbin

Sawfly Dolerus sp.(Hym.: Tenthredinidae) Thomas Barbin

 Sawfly Dolerus sp. (Hym.: Tenthredinidae) Thomas Barbin

Sawfly Dolerus sp. (Hym.: Tenthredinidae) Thomas Barbin

 

 Jumping spider (Ara.:  Salticidae) Thomas Barbin

   Robb Bennett writes that the spider is probably a male Evarcha proszynskii, though he cannot be completely sure of this.

   Annie Pang recently photographed a robber fly, and she (and InvertAlert!) are grateful to Rob Cannings, who supplied the following identification and comments:    The robber fly is a species of Nicocles. It’s a female and is probably N. canadensis, although the species (and especially females) are often difficult to identify even if one has a specimen under a microscope. There are several species in our area. They all have dark markings on the wings and males have the last couple of abdominal segments flattened and silver coloured. The only reddish species, Nicocles rufus, in Canada is restricted to dry habitats on the BC southwest coast.

 Robber Fly Nicocles (probably canadensis) (Dip.: Asilidae)   Annie Pang

   Nathan Fisk writes:  Had a fantastic day in the hills around Thetis Lake yesterday (April 21) – so many creatures around. Saw a pair (male/female) of Propertius Duskywings sunning, both male and female Western Spring Azures sunning, two Cabbage Whites floating, Grey Hairstreak feeding on Spring Gold and two or three Pale Tiger Swallowtails sunning on fresh oak leaves. To cap it off I observed a Red Admiral back at Fort Rodd getting the last of the days heat.  What a day!

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Nathan Fisk

2016 April 22 morning

Annie Pang sends a photograph of a green lacewing  from Gorge Park, April 20.

Green lacewing (Neu.:  Chrysopidae)   Annie Pang

      Scott Gilmore writes:  There are lots of things flying in the late afternoon in Upper Lantzville over the last few days. Some of the good stuff includes

1  A new beetle family for me Heteroceridae, the Variegated Mud-loving beetles.

2. Cryptarcha ampla.

3. A wasp from the genus Atanycolus was found flying in our house. Thanks to Ross Hill for the identification.

Variegated mud-loving beetle (Col.: Heteroceridae)

Scott Gilmore

 Cryptarcha ampla (Col.: Nitidulidae)  Scott Gilmore

Atanycolus sp. (Hym.: Braconidae)  Scott Gilmore

   Jeremy Tatum comments:  I hope viewers appreciate just how small the insects are that Scott is managing to photograph!   Another thing to appreciate is that braconids are constantly in motion.  Many braconids are parasitoids of moth caterpillars, so I see them fairly often, though I think this one is a beetle-grub parasitoid.

   Rosemary Jorna writes:  15 to 20 of these were crawling over the stucco of our home near Kemp Lake on the evening of April 20 .   Scott Gilmore writes: This is Agriotes lineatus, a European introduction that is very common in gardens and around homes here on the island. The species is identifiable from the variable width and colour of the striae (lines) on the eltyra.

Agriotes lineatus (Col.: Elateridae)  Rosemary Jorna

2016 April 21

   Jeremy Gatten writes from Saanichton:   I had my first Coryphista meadii last night (April 20) – two or three actually. 

   This species can be difficult to distinguish from Triphosa haesitata, so Jeremy Gatten has sent us a straight photograph of Coryphista meadii plus a copy of the photograph in which he has circled two features that he finds to be indicative of Coryphista meadii, namely the black discal spots and the short tooth on the hindwing margin (gives an uneven pattern, whereas Tissue Moth seems regularly toothed).

Coryphista meadii (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jeremy Gatten

Coryphista meadii (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jeremy Gatten

   Jeremy Tatum writes that he, too, had his first Coryphista meadii of the year on April 21 – as in the photograph below.  Probably not much help for identification!

Coryphista meadii (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jeremy Tatum

   They were on the underside of a Mahonia leaf near Munn Road.

   Jeremy Gatten also found a micro moth, which he describes as "quite a nice sight last night – it is Retinia picicolana."  He writes:  I don’t know anything about its life history, but it appears to have a distribution from southern BC through California (not sure if it extends beyond to the south).  The fuzzy little orange head gives it a rather endearing quality.

Retinia picicolana (Lep.: Tortricidae)   Jeremy Gatten

   [Jeremy Tatum remarks:  I have had one or two tiny micro moths in my apartment recently, also with fuzzy little orange heads.  But in that case (Tineola besselliella, the Common Clothes Moth) neither the fuzzy little orange head nor anything else gives it, in my view, any endearing quality!]

  Jeremy Tatum writes:  Today, I did a Butterfly Count along the Pathfinder Trail (along one of the hydro lines off Munn Road).  Besides Sara Orangetips and Western Spring Azures, I encountered several (not quite all) of the local Small Brown Jobs – Western Brown Elfin, Moss’s Elfin, Cedar Hairstreak, Two-banded Grizzled Skipper, Propertius Duskywing.  I also saw several day-flying geometrids:  Mesoleuca gratulata, Rheumaptera hastata, Leptostales rubromarginaria, Epirrhoe plebeculata.

   Jody Wells spotted a California Tortoiseshell on Mount Douglas on April 20, as he writes: “begging to be photographed”. 

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)

Jody Wells

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)

Jody Wells

2016 April 20

   Jeremy Tatum photographed this White-shouldered House Moth Endrosis sarcitrella at his Saanich apartment, April 20.

White-shouldered House Moth Endrosis sarcitrella (Lep.: Oecophoridae) Jeremy Tatum

Annie Pang photographed a bumblebee at Gorge Park, April 18.   We are grateful to Jared Amos for suggesting that it is a good match for Bombus fervidus

Bumblebee Bombus (possibly fervidus)  (Hym.:  Apidae)  Annie Pang

Jeremy Tatum writes:  At 6:30 this evening, April 20, there were 2 California Tortoiseshells, a Red Admiral and a Mourning Cloak together on the Mount Tolmie reservoir, as well as a Painted Lady near the Jeffery Pine.  And earlier in the afternoon there were two Mourning Cloaks near the Swan Lake nature house.

Jeff Gaskin sends the following sightings:  On April 18, a Sara Orangetip at the Interurban campus of Camosun College.  On April 19, a Mourning Cloak over Bowker Avenue.  And on April 20, while on a walk along Hector and Conway Roads, he recorded 1 Propertius Duskywing, 3 Sara Orangetips, 6 Cabbage Whites and 29 Western Spring Azures.

2016 April 20 morning

   Rosemary Jorna writes: I saw my first Western Tiger Swallowtail on Kemp Lake Road as we drove out yesterday morning (April 19).  When we arrived at parking lot 2 at Sooke Potholes Regional Park there were two Western Spring Azures puddling in bird droppings and a fresh Mourning Cloak. I took the picture below when we returned some hours later. There were five Western Spring Azures feeding on dog dung and two others flying .

Western Spring Azures Celastrina echo (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Rosemary continues: When we stopped for lunch at Peden Bluff this industrious spider started spinning a web between my shirt and my back pack.  We watched for quite a while and then moved it off to the bush at trail side. 

    Robb Bennett identifies it for us (thank you. Robb!) as an immature linyphiid of the genus Neriene.

Neriene sp. (Ara.: Linyphiidae)   Rosemary Jorna

   Rosemary continues:  This tiny moth on a Blue-eyed Mary was the only insect obliging enough to hold still long enough to photograph on the slope of Peden Bluff.

Adela septentrionella (Lep.: Incurvariidae)  Rosemary Jorna.

    Wendy Ansell writes: Gerry managed to spot this dragonfly at Layritz Park (Monday Apr 18) and I was wondering if anyone could identify it for me. 

    Yes!   We are grateful to Rob Cannings who kindly identified it for us as a female California Darner Rhionaeschna californica.

California Darner Rhionaeschna californica (Odo.: Aeshnidae)  Wendy Ansell

   Mike Yip sends  photographs of a moth, and two butterflies from Nanoose that had me guessing!

   Jeremy Tatum comments on the moth, Epirrhoe plebeculata.  I am very interested in this moth.  The literature has the larval foodplant as Galium, but I think this is very unlikely. If anyone sees this moth ovipositing, save me the egg or, if you can’t find the egg, please let me know what plant you think it laid on.

Epirrhoe plebeculata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Mike Yip

Western Brown Elfin Incisalia iroides (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Mike Yip

Western Pine Elfin Incisalia eryphon (Lep.: Lycaenidae) Mike Yip

   Aziza Cooper writes:  On Mount Tolmie on April 19 from 5:15 pm to 6:30 pm there were:

California Tortoiseshell – 2

Western Brown Elfin – 2

Sara Orangetip – 1, quite worn and not very orange.

Cabbage White – 1

Western Spring Azure – 2

Painted Lady – 1, perching on a Norway Spruce next to the road north of the reservoir.

Western Brown Elfin Incisalia iroides (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Aziza Cooper

Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Aziza Cooper

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  We’re in a spell of hot, sunny weather, so there may well be a second posting today, in the evening.  Keep the observations and photos coming!