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.

2022 July 26

2022 July 26

    Julie Michaux writes from Old West Saanich Road:  This little fellow appeared this morning, July 26, 2022, on our patio.  It is approximately two inches long.

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  It is Smerinthus cerisyi, and the reddish colour appearing on its back tells us that it has finished eating and is looking for somewhere to pupate.

Smerinthus ophthalmica (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Julie Michaux

2022 July 25 afternoon

2022 July 25 afternoon

    Jochen Möhr writes from Metchosin:

We continue to have an abundance of Essex Skippers here – wherever I go I disturb them from flowers or grasses.  I did not spot a single Woodland Skipper yet.  

We also continue to have our two (at least) Lorquin’s Admirals.  They have been here essentially since July 8 or so, that is for more than two weeks.  I think they may be competing males rather than a couple.  

In the evening at the light, we continue to have an abundance of Malacosomas.   Mostly females, but every now and then a male.  

And on top of that, I am gratified by the appearance of numerous greenish “Emeralds”.  Tonight at least three Common Emeralds  Hemithea  aestivaria.  But with these and Campaea perlata yesterday, and Nemoria unitaria the day before, we had three of these green beauties in a row!   

Malacosoma californicum (Lep.: Lasiocampidae)  Jochen Möhr

 

 Lep.: Crambidae – Scopariinae.  Jochen Möhr

 

Common Emerald Hemithea aestivaria (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jochen Möhr

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Seeing Val George’s photograph in this morning’s posting of a Polyphylla beetle reminded me that in recent years there has been uncertainty here about the local status and the identification of P. decemlineata  and P. crinita, so I asked coleopterist Charlene Wood to comment.  This is what she wrote:

While it’s not possible for me to see the thick hairs on the pronotum, the pronotum also tends to be more red compared with the elytra in this species, which is evident in Val’s photo. 

Perhaps all in our area are crinita according to the expert, Andrew Smith. Many records of decemlineata are misidentified along the west coast and Andrew noted that decemlineata might not occur in British Columbia at all.

Val’s photo is of a male. My son and I had a female on our doorstep yesterday morning also:

Polyphylla crinita  (Col.: Scarabaeidae)  Charlene Wood

   Marie O’Shaughnessy writes:  There was a nice fresh looking Painted Lady on the Mount Tolmie reservoir at 6.30 pm yesterday, along with 1 Pale Tiger Swallowtail, 3 Lorquin’s Admirals, 1 Western Tiger Swallowtail and a very worn Red Admiral

Painted Lady Vanessa cardui  (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Marie O’Shaughnessy

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Marie O’Shaughnessy

 

Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Marie O’Shaughnessy

2022 July 25 morning

2022 July 25 morning

    A welcome bunch of pictures of moths, beetles and slugs came in recently, from Cheryl Hoyle (Metchosin),  Val George (Oak Bay) and Jochen Möhr (Metchosin).

 

Polyphylla crinita  (Col.: Scarabaeidae)  Val George

 Choristoneura rosaceana (Lep.: Tortricidae)  Val George

 

Val writes: On July 24, this Rosaceous Leaf Roller, Choristoneura rosaceana, was on the wall of my Oak Bay house.  Also there were 2 Common Emeralds, Hemithea aestivaria, 2 Silver-spotted Tiger Moths, Lophocampa argentata, and 4 Idaea dimidiata.

 

 

Banana Slug Ariolimax columbianus (Pul.: Arionidae)  Cheryl Hoyle

 

Common Emerald Hemithea aestivaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Cheryl Hoyle

 

Nemoria unitaria (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Möhr

 

 

Campaea perlata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

Habrosyne scripta (Drepanidae – Thyatirinae)  Jochen Möhr

Idaea dimidiata (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jochen Möhr

    This moth, Idaea dimidiata seems to be quite abundant just now in many places.

 

 

Malacosoma californicum (Lep.: Lasiocampidae)  Jochen Möhr

 

 

Malacosoma californicum (Lep.: Lasiocampidae)  Jochen Möhr

 

Nadata gibbosa (Lep.: Notodontidae)  Jochen Möhr

 

In addition to this variety of moths at his Metchosin home, Jochen also reports a Polyphemus Moth.

Centrodera spurca (Col.: Cerambycidae)  Jochen Möhr

 

2022 July 23

2022 July 23

    The egg of the Lorquin’s Admiral is typically laid at the very edge of a leaf of Ocean Spray (as here below) or willow or crab apple.  This one was found at Swan Lake today.

Lorquin’s Admiral Limenitis lorquini (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2022 July 22

2022 July 22

    Cheryl Hoyle sends photographs of a slug and a moth from View Royal, July 20

Three-banded Garden Slug Lehmannia valentiana (Pul.: Limacidae)  Cheryl Hoyle

Sicya crocearia (Lep.: Geometridae)  Cheryl Hoyle

   Jochen Möhr photographed this moth in Metchosin this morning.  As yet we have not been able to identify it.  If we do so, of course we shall post the identification.

Unknown moth (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

   Jeff Gaskin reports that he saw a Satyr Comma at Royal Roads University today. Take the trail from Heatherbell Road at the gate.  Also, today , July 22, Kirsten Mills told him that she saw a male Purplish Copper by the McIntyre Road reservoir and two Pine Whites in the firs at the corner of the Pat Bay Highway and Sayward Road.