2015 September 29

   Val George’s plusiine caterpillar from his Kale plants (August 28 and September 10), which we initially speculated might be Trichoplusia ni, turned out to be Autographa californica.  The photograph below shows an adult from one of these caterpillars. It emerged today, and was released in the Blenkinsop valley.

Autographa californica (Lep.: Noctuidae)   Jeremy Tatum

   Aziza Cooper writes:  On Saturday September 26 at Aylard Farm I photographed a Green Darner eating a Cabbage White. Darren Copley mentioned that this was a migratory dragonfly, and it was being studied to find its wintering area.   Today, Monday, September 28, I saw a Red Admiral at the hawk lookout near Beechey Head.  During the butterfly count period I saw ten Cabbage Whites, all but one from my car as I was driving in Victoria, and the last near my home. There were no butterflies at my regular butterfly count area, the Goldstream campground railroad tracks – not one Pine White.

Green Darner Anax junius (Odo.: Aeshnidae)

with Cabbage White Pieris rapae (Lep.: Pieridae)

Aziza Cooper

   Annie Pang photographed the bee below in the Gorge on September 14.  She writes: I’ve never seen anything like it – the thorax a metallic green and yet the abdomen is yellow and black striped.  Sort of looks like a “half’n’half” wasp.  Really would like as much info on this one as anyone can come up with please!

  Jeremy Tatum responds:  We do really need someone who can help with identification of Hymenoptera. I had originally erroneously labelled this as a chrysidid wasp, and I am grateful to Scott Gilmore for pointing out that it is actually a halictid bee of the genus Agapostemon

 Sweat bee Agapostemon sp. (Hym.: Halictidae)  Annie Pang

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  The big bug below, which often attracts attention at this time of year, turned up at my Saanich apartment today.

Western Conifer Seed Bug Leptoglossus occidentalis (Hem.: Coreidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2015 September 28

Jeff Gaskin writes: Today around noon, September 27, there was a Mourning Cloak and 2 Cabbage Whites along Vincent Avenue near Tillicum Road  This again is in the Gorge neighbourhood.

Devon Parker writes:  I found four native butterfly species today, September 27, near/at Nitnat. 1 Mourning Cloak at the gate of the Nitnat Fish Hatchery. 1 Red Admiral at the north end of Nitnat Lake by the fish pens. 1 Mourning Cloak next to the bridge on the way to the fish hatchery. 1 Grey Hairstreak at the intersection of the Carmanah turn off and Nitnat Main.

Val George writes: On September 26, I was with a BC Field Ornithologist group at the hawk watch in East Sooke when a (rather latish) Pine White butterfly flew through the tree canopy.

Jeremy Tatum writes.  I’ve had to be content with Cabbage Whites in the last few days.

There are still quite a few around – especially in the cabbage and kale patches near McIntyre Pond, Central Saanich.

Rosemary Jorna sends photographs of a fly and a ladybird beetle from Kemp Lake, September 28.

Hover fly (Dip.: Syrphidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Seven-spotted Ladybird Coccinella septempuncata (Col.:  Coccinellidae)  Rosemary Jorna

2015 September 26

In case you are wondering if your computer missed a beat, no it didn’t – there wasn’t a September 25 posting.

On September 24 I reported a sighting of Autographa californica nectaring “in classical plusiine style”.  In case any viewer is wondering what than means, Devon Parker photographed his own Autographa californica nectaring “in classical plusiine style” on his lemon tree yesterday.  See that haustellum probing for nectar!  [An elephant has a proboscis; a moth has a haustellum.  (But in ordinary conversation, proboscis is just fine!)]

Autographa californica (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Devon Parker

  Rosemary Jorna writes:  Literally thousands of these impossibly small bugs flew out of the Salal this morning when we were clearing a trail in Otter Point this morning.  They only seemed to be on the Salal.   [Jeremy Tatum writes:  This is the first image we’ve had of these bugs on this site.  There are hundreds of species, so I shan’t attempt an exact identification.]

Whitefly (Hem.: Aleyrodidae)  Rosemary Jorna

2015 September 24

Today we have reports of insects large and small. Barbara Dashwood reports a large one – the caterpillar of a Polyphemus Moth at Gorge Road on September 22.  And Scott Gilmore reports a small one.  Scott writes:  Yesterday at work in the men’s washroom I saw a larger Moth Fly (family: Psychodidae) than I normally find in my bathroom at home. Turns out it is a Filter Fly, Clogmia albipunctata.  Just goes to show it is always worth keeping your eyes out for insects no matter where you are! Bathrooms are the best place to find this rather interesting group.  [Jeremy Tatum comments:  We rarely have pictures of psychodids on this site, but, on looking back, I see that we did have an unidentified psychodid contributed by Ken Vaughan on September 19, 2012.]

Filter Fly Clogmia albipunctata (Dip.: Psychodidae)

Scott Gilmore

      Ann Nightingale sends a photograph of a Painted Lady from McIntyre reservoir, Central Saanich, September 15.

 Painted Lady Vanessa cardui (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Ann  Nightingale

  Butterflies are becoming a little scarce now, although Jeremy Tatum counted 21 Cabbage Whites in the Martindale Valley yesterday.  Please keep reporting these and other species, so we know the last dates of sightings.  Jeremy writes that today he watched an adult Autographa californica nectaring at Red Clover in classical plusiine style in the Martindale Valley.

2015 September 23

Welcome to autumn!  Apologies for no news for a few days – have been having a little computer trouble, but I think I have it organized now. 

Jeff Gaskin writes:  A Red Admiral flew across Douglas Street and south of Bay Street around 11:30 a.m. on September 21.

Wendy Ansell writes: Today (September 22) Gerry and I saw 3, possibly 4, very fresh Red Admirals by the beach at Aylard Farm, East Sooke Regional Park.  There was also 1 Pine White further west along the trail.

Rosemary Jorna sends photographs of Araneus diadematus.  This is called the Common Garden Spider – but so are a few other species of spider!  This one is a European species.  She also sends a photograph of a Drone Fly Eristalis tenax, also a European. Jeremy Tatum writes: The fly bears a sufficient resemblance to a drone Honey Bee that it had me guessing for a while – I wasn’t 100 percent certain whether I was looking at a fly or a bee!  Rosemary’s photographs were taken from Broomhill in Otter Point or in Kemp Lake Road.

Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Drone Fly Eristalis tenax (Dip.: Syrphidae) Rosemary Jorna

   Jody Ells sends a photograph of a grasshopper from Saanichton Spit.  Can anyone identify it for us?

Grasshopper (Orth.: Acrididae) Jody Wells

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Lots of Banded Woolly Bears in the Martindale area today, though more had been trodden on than one would expect by accident.  I can’t help wondering if the normal reaction of many humans on seeing a caterpillar is to tread on it – just as the normal reaction to seeing a nice mushroom is to kick it over.