2019 April 5

   Gordon Hart writes:  I was at a store in a commercial area near Uptown in Victoria yesterday (Thursday, April 4) and I saw a fresh  Western Brown Elfin on a hedge.

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  The moth shown below emerged yesterday.  It was reared from a caterpillar found last year on Snowberry on Mount Tolmie.

Behrensia conchiformis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2019 April 4

   Jeremy Tatum writes that he saw a Satyr Comma along Lochside Drive just north of Blenkinsop Lake on April 2.  On April 3, the moth shown below emerged, after being reared from a caterpillar found last year by Mike and Barb McGrenere in their Cordova Bay garden.  It is now flying around somewhere in the Blenkinsop Valley.

Zale lunata (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2019 April 2 morning

   Gordon Hart sends a photograph of Enchoria lacteata  from his Highlands garden, April 1.

Enchoria lacteata  (Lep.: Geometridae)  Gordon Hart

   Val George writes: This Satyr Anglewing (Comma) was near the Nature House at Swan Lake (48.464866/-123.374436) yesterday afternoon, April 1.  Also, a pristine Mourning Cloak flew past me at the same location.

  Jeremy Tatum writes:  The last two years were poor for both of these species.  Are going to have a come-back this year?

Satyr Comma Polygonia satyrus (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Val George

Satyr Comma Polygonia satyrus (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Val George

2019 April 1

   Mike Yip writes:  Still pretty quiet for butterflies in Nanoose. Yesterday I saw one Mourning Cloak on Cross Road.   At the Notch at least four male Orangetips were flying frantically about as well as one Propertius Duskywing and many Cabbage Whites.

   Mike sends two photographs of the day-flying geometrid moth Epirrhoe plebeculata –  this is the one I keep asking viewers to look out for egg-laying.  Now you know what to look for!

Epirrhoe plebeculata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Mike Yip

Epirrhoe plebeculata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Mike Yip

   And, talking of day-flying geometrids, Jeremy Tatum and  Bill Savale saw a fine Archiaeris infans in the woods at Royal Roads University on  March 30.  But no  butterflies.

   Jochen sends pictures of more moths from Metchosin.  Some moths can be hard to identify for certain, so we have left some of them as “sp.”

Xanthorhoe defensaria (Lep.: Geometridae)   Jochen Möhr

Cerastis enigmatica  (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Cucullia sp. (Lep.: Noctuidae)   Jochen Möhr

Probably Euxoa sp. Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Möhr

Cladara limitaria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Möhr

   Libby Avis writes from Port Alberni that she saw two Feralia deceptiva  and both light and dark Pleromelloida conserta  last night, and Mesoleuca gratulata  on March 30.

2019 March 31

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Have been so busy with Invert Alert recently (a welcome problem!) that I overlooked Val  George’s recent report of his first butterflies of the season, a California Tortoiseshell on Mount Tolmie, and a Cabbage White checking out the kale in his garden in Oak Bay on March 29.

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis antiopa (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Val George

   Geoffrey and David Newell report two California Tortoiseshells from Mount Douglas today, March 31, as well as many Sara Orangetips and a Propertius Duskywing.

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis antiopa (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Geoffrey Newell

    Ken Vaughan sends a photo of a California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica from the Mount Tolmie reservoir on 30 March 2019 at about 4:00 PM.

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Ken Vaughan

   Gordon Hart writes:  The Green Commas continue here in the Highlands, with three yesterday. We also saw one faded Satyr Comma Polygonia satyrus, a Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa hyperborea and a Moss’ Elfin Callophrys mossii mossii. We have been planting and encouraging more of the Moss’ Elfin larval food plant, stonecrop Sedum  spathulifolium.  Still lots of Epirrhoe plebeculata around, and I will look for Mesoleuca gratulata.

Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Gordon Hart

Moss’s Elfin Incisalia mossii (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Gordon Hart

   And just as we go to press, a nice underside of a California Tortoiseshell, photographed by Val George on the summit of Mount Douglas 48.492834/-123.345710 today, March 31.  Also there were seven  Sara Orangetips and one Cabbage White.

California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Val George