2017 August 11 evening

Aziza Cooper writes:  On August 9, I found this colourful spider on my car in the Central Saanich driveway where I’m house-sitting.

Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Aziza Cooper

   Jeremy Tatum writes: I found a young (first or second instar) Lorquin’s Admiral caterpillar on Aspen at Blenkinsop Lake today.  I have not found them on Aspen before – but this one seemed to be feeding well.

2017 August 11 morning

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Here is a Cyclophora dataria from my Saanich apartment this morning.

Cyclophora dataria (Lep.: Geometridae) Jeremy Tatum

   Jeremy continues.  On the August 9 posting, I reported a sighting of a clearwing moth (Sesiidae) from Swan Lake.  I now have some idea which species it might have been.  Scroll to August 9 to see.

   And here’s a real rarity – an American Lady – photographed by Martin Dollenkamp on August 8 at Black Creek!  Communicated by Mike Yip.  Butterfly enthusiasts should keep a look out for it – there may be more!

American Lady Vanessa virginiensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Martin Dollenkamp

2017 August 10

      Jeremy Tatum writes:  The very young caterpillar shown on July 28 has now grown up a bit:

Western Tiger Swallowtail Papilio rutulus (Lep.: Papilionidae) Jeremy Tatum

   Mike Yip writes from Nanoose Bay: I saw a Bedstraw Hawk Moth last week in Parksville.  Common Woodnymphs have been flying up here for the past week, but I haven’t got a photo yet.

Bedstraw Hawk Moth Hyles gallii (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Mike Yip

2017 August 9

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I found a spider in my apartment this morning that was so huge that I couldn’t fit it all into the frame:

Eratigena atrica (Ara.: Agelenidae) Jeremy Tatum

   Aziza Cooper writes: On Monday, August 7, I found one Purplish Copper at McIntyre Reservoir along the south side rim road. Also there were Cabbage Whites and one Western Pondhawk dragonfly.

Purplish Copper Lycaena helloides (Lep.: Lycaenidae) Aziza Cooper

Western Pondhawk Erythemis collocata (Odo.: Libellulidae) Aziza Cooper

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I was at Swan Lake today, and I saw what I took to be a small metallic blue ichneumonid or braconid.  I had more or less decided that it was too small to be an ichneumonid and therefore it was probably a braconid when I suddenly realized that I was in entirely the wrong Order!  It was a sesiid (clearwing) moth. It was a smaller and different species from the Synanthedon bibionipennis twice recently reported on this site, but it didn’t stay for me to get a good look at it;  it darted off as they so often do.  So rarely do I see sesiids, and so exciting are they, that I take note of them even when it is just a fleeting glance at an unidentified one.

2017 August 8

   Val George photographed a puzzling moth in his Oak Bay garden on August 6.  Thanks to Libby Avis for confirming Val’s tentative identification as Cyclophora dataria.  If you enjoy playing the game “spot the difference” have a look at Ken Vaughan’s July 31 photograph of Scopula quinquelinearia – and you’ll appreciate some of the difficulties we sometimes have with identification!

Cyclophora dataria (Lep.: Geometridae)  Val George

   Jeff Gaskin writes:  This morning (August 8) the Tuesday birding group saw the following butterflies:  3 Lorquin’s Admirals, a still looking good Western Tiger Swallowtail, 18 Woodland Skippers, and 5 Cabbage Whites.

  Kurtis Herberger writes: On Sunday night (August 6) we had a special visitor stop by. I’m no beetle expert but I believe it is a male Prionus californicus.  (Thank you, Scott Gilmore for confirmation.)  Also known as California Root Borer. It was still around the next morning so we took a few pictures before watching him quickly dig down into the soil in our native plant garden. It was huge at almost 3 inches long and his antennae were just as wide. It looked so exotic and seemed like it should be living in a cloud forest in South America and not on a dry B.C island.

[Jeremy Tatum writes:  These beetles are huge – but 3 inches would probably be a world record.  Shall we settle for maybe 2.5 inches max?]

Prionus californicus (Col.: Cerambycidae) Kurtis Herperger

  There are some Baird’s Sandpipers near the Victoria Airport just now, feeding on some sort of insect larva.  Jody Wells sends some photographs, and it would be interesting to identify the larvae.  Jeremy Gatten suggests possibly leatherjackets, and Jeremy Tatum agrees, though probably neither Jeremy would bet his life savings on it.  Opinions (with reasons) welcome.

Baird’s Sandpiper Calidris bairdii (Cha.: Scolopacidae)

with possibly leatherjacket – larva of Crane Fly (Dip.: Tipulidae)

Jody Wells

Baird’s Sandpiper Calidris bairdii (Cha.: Scolopacidae)

with possibly leatherjacket – larva of Crane Fly (Dip.: Tipulidae)

Jody Wells

Baird’s Sandpiper Calidris bairdii (Cha.: Scolopacidae)

with possibly leatherjacket – larva of Crane Fly (Dip.: Tipulidae)

Jody Wells