2016 September 19

   On the September 13 posting we showed a picture, from Rosemary Jorna, of a snail and a springtail.  We are now happy to say that Jeremy Gatten has identified the snail for us.  Thank you, Jeremy Gatten!  Viewers will have to scroll down to September 13 to see the new label.

   That reminds me.  From time to time we post a picture as “unidentified”.  If any viewer thinks that s/he might be able to identify one of these – or indeed if anyone thinks that we might have misidentified something – please do let us know!  jtatum at uvic.ca

      After a bit more thought, we are going to upgrade Libby Avis’s photographs of a geometrid caterpillar on the September 17 posting from “probably” Rheumaptera hastata to just Rheumaptera hastata.  No longer “probably”!

   Libby sends photographs of two colour varieties of another geometrid caterpillar – Cyclophora dataria from oaks at Nanoose, September 18.

 Cyclophora dataria (Lep.: Geometridae)   Libby Avis

Cyclophora dataria (Lep.: Geometridae)   Libby Avis

   Gordon Hart’s Polyphemus caterpillar (see September 16) has constructed a big, tough cocoon (photograph below) to pupate inside.  His hawk moth caterpillar has buried itself in a few inches of sterilized potting soil.

Polyphemus Moth Antheraea polyphemus (Lep.: Saturniidae)  Jeremy Tatum

    And now for some more grasshoppers.  The first photographed by Rosemary Jorna at Muir Creek. The second photographed by Val George at Uplands Park.  Both on September 15.  Thank you, Claudia Copley, for the identifications.

Clear-winged Grasshopper Camnula pellucida (Orth.: Acrididae)  Rosemary Jorna

Two-striped Grasshopper Melanoplus bivittatus (Orth.: Acrididae)  Val George

   Rosemary Jorna photographed the dragonfly shown below at Skipping Rock Pool (Sooke River) on September 18.  Thanks to Rob Cannings for the identification as a young female Sympetrum costiferum. Rob writes:  It’s probably youngish and the tan-red colour is not unusual in this species, especially females, especially in young ones. You can see the orange/yellow along the leading edge of the wing, which is usual in this species, especially in young specimens. It’s rather faint here. The pterostigmas are useful for identifying some species, including this one — the black borders front and back are characteristic. The dark line on the dorsum of abdominal segments 8 and 9 is also a useful character.

Saffron-winged Meadowhawk Sympetrum costiferum (Odo.: Libellulidae) 

Rosemary Jorna

2016 September 17

   Libby Avis sends photographs of a caterpillar found on alder at Turtle Lake, Alberni Valley, September 9.  This is the Spear Moth, also known as Argent and Sable, Rheumaptera hastata.

 Rheumaptera hastata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Libby Avis

Rheumaptera hastata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Libby Avis

2016 September 16

   Gordon Hart came across two demonstration-size caterpillars within a few minutes and a few feet of each other at his Highlands garden today.

 Cerisy’s Eyed Hawk Moth Smerinthus cerisyi (Lep.: Sphingidae)  Gordon Hart

Polyphemus Moth Antheraea polyphemus (Lep.: Saturniidae)  Gordon Hart

   There are still lots of Cabbage Whites around, and Jeremy Tatum watched one ovipositing on Cakile at Weir’s Beach today.  There’s a photograph of one of the eggs below.

Cabbage White Pieris rapae (Lep.: Pieridae)  Jeremy Tatum

   The Pale Tiger Swallowtail caterpillar that Devon Parker found on Mount Sicker (see September 9 posting) pupated today.  Photograph below.

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Jeremy Tatum

  Jeff Gaskin writes:  Kirsten Mills, tells me that on Tuesday September 13 she and Marie O’Shaughnessy saw a Pine White in East Sooke Park by Aylard Farm.

2016 September 14 morning

   Now is the season for woolly bear caterpillars.   Two different sorts appeared on the September 11 posting.  Ron Flower sends pictures of a third species, from Panama Flats, September 12.  These are colour varieties of the Yellow Woolly Bear Spilosoma virginica.  Keep a look-out for the Banded Woolly Bear.  October is their peak season, but a few will probably be spotted in September. Panama Flats is a good location to find them.

Spilosoma virginica (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Ron Flower

Spilosoma virginica (Lep.: Erebidae – Arctiinae)  Ron Flower

   Ron also photographed a male Purplish Copper on Grindelia at the sand parking lot by the pump house on Island View Beach, September 12.

Purplish Copper  Lycaena helloides (Lep.:  Lycaenidae)   Ron Flower

   Jeff Gaskin tells us that yesterday, September 13, he and the Tuesday Group saw a Red Admiral in flight over the Lochside trail between Dooley and Sayward Roads.

   Rosemary Jorna sends some photographs of grasshoppers from Broom Hill.  Thanks to James Miskelly for the identifications.

Camnula pellucida (Orth.: Acrididae)  Rosemary Jorna

 Trimerotropis fontana (Orth.: Acrididae)  Rosemary Jorna

Trimerotropis fontana (Orth.: Acrididae)  Rosemary Jorna

2016 September 13

   Tonight:  At Fraser  159, UVic,  7:30 pm.  Catherine Scott will talk about her observations on Latrodectus hesperus  (Ara.: Theridiidae) at Island View Beach.  This will be of great interest to all viewers of this site.

   Rosemary Jorna sends an interesting photograph from Broom Hill.  Thanks to Jeremy Gatten for identifying the snail for us.   The tiny invertebrate next to it is of interest.  Thanks to Rob Cannings who identified it as a springtail of the Family (recognized by the globular shape) Sminthuridae.  Whether springtails regularly feed on snail slime or whether the springtail randomly encountered the snail in passing will need to be resolved by further observations, although Rosemary writes that it kept going back to make contact with the snail. Rob writes: Springtails eat many things, from fungal hyphae and spores to bacteria and components of decomposing plant and animal material of all sorts. I bet they could get lots of nutritious things from snail slime.

Northwest Hesperian Snail Vespericola columbianus (Pul.: Polygyridae)

Jeremy Tatum comments.  At one time, springtails were insects – but the taxonomists have been busy since then.  We now have an Arthropod Subphylum called Hexapoda, which includes two Classes,  Insecta and Entognatha.  Springtails (Order Collembola) are now Entognatha, no longer Insecta.  Another animal that many of us are familiar with (but we wish we weren’t), which was an insect but is now an entognath, is the Firebrat (Order Thysanura, Family Lepismatidae)  that shares our homes with us. At least I think that’s what it was last year.  Who knows what the next revision will bring?