2016 June 17

   Gordon Hart writes:  Time flies, and the June count will be this Saturday, June 18 for nine days ending Sunday, June 26.  Please use the submission form on the VNHS website:  www.vicnhs.bc.ca/?p=33

Most of the spring butterflies are gone or in reduced numbers, but there is still a good variety of species out there on a good day.

If you need suggestions for a place to count, please email me (hartgordon19 AT gmail.com). If we get more than one count for a location, I will use the high numbers for each species. If you want to be removed from this list, please let me know. If you know someone who wants to be on the list, please ask them to email me.

The next monthly butterfly walk will be on Sunday July 3, and we will likely go farther afield, perhaps Shawnigan or Cowichan areas, so we will be meeting at the Mt Tolmie summit at 10 a.m., not 1p.m., to allow for travel time, and perhaps avoid the July heat (assuming there is some!).  I’ll send out another reminder closer to the date. Of course, it is weather-dependent. Thanks for participating in the count, and enjoy the butterflies!

   Rosemary Jorna writes:  This morning June 16 2016 I came upon a hatching of spiderlings [probably Araneus diadematus – Jeremy Tatum]  on a forest trail on crown land along King Creek  in Otter Point.

Probably Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Probably Araneus diadematus (Ara.: Araneidae)  Rosemary Jorna

   Mike Yip writes:  A grocery trip to Nanaimo today afforded an excuse to check out the dogbane butterflies on Nanaimo River Road. It was still cool at 11:30 am and only the Clodius Parnassians, Lorquin’s Admirals, and Pale and Western Tiger Swallowtails were flying, but as it warmed more butterflies started to appear: 5 Dun Skippers, 3 Hydaspe Fritillaries, 6 Cedar Hairstreaks, 3 Grey Hairstreaks, 1 Sylvan Hairstreak, and 1 Red Admiral.

Clodius Parnassian Parnassius clodius (Lep.: Papilionidae)  Mike Yip

Cedar Hairstreak Mitoura rosneri (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Mike Yip

Dun Skipper Euphyes vestris (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Mike Yip

Hydaspe Fritillary Speyeria hydaspe (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Mike Yip

Sylvan Hairstreak Satyrium sylvinum (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Mike Yip

2016 June 16

   Rosemary Jorna sends photographs of some mites.  One was on her camera lens, obviously anxious to be photographed, at Rhododendron Lake on June 12, and two on the side of a jar in her kitchen (Kemp Lake Road) on June 15. Thanks to Heather Proctor for identifying the mites as probably Anystis sp.

Anystis sp. (Acariformes: Anystidae)  Rosemary Jorna

Anystis sp. (Acariformes: Anystidae) Rosemary Jorna

   Mike Yip writes from Nanoose Bay today:  A Propertius Duskywing was a pleasant surprise in my lavender patch today.

Propertius Duskywing Erynnis propertius (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Mike Yip

Propertius Duskywing Erynnis propertius (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Mike Yip

2016 June 15
   Jeremy Tatum writes:  At 6:00 pm this evening (June 15) I visited the Mount Tolmie reservoir, and I saw there a Red Admiral and three ladies, which I believe were probably all Painted Ladies.  Yet two of them weren’t “quite right”, and I wonder if one of them might have been the lady reported a few days ago by Jeff as a “lady sp.”  Also a few weeks ago I kept seeing a lady that I wasn’t sure of.  Marie photographed one, which certainly seemed to be a Painted Lady.  It would be interesting if photographers could obtain some images of one or two of the ladies on the reservoir on sunny evenings.

   Jeremy Tatum continues:  The caterpillar of the Western Spring Azure that was shown on June 11 has now pupated.  Here is the pupa:

Western Spring Azure Celastrina echo (Lep.: Lycaenidae)  Jeremy Tatum

2016 June 14

   Gordon Hart writes:  It’s almost time for the next count ( June 18-26), so I have attached a summary of the May count.  There were about 12 observers and 40 reports for 13 species of butterfly. That is down from last month and May 2015 when 19 species were seen.  It was the end of the season for Spring Azures with 15 seen, compared to 151 last year. On the other hand, Ringlets or Large Heath were seen in large numbers in several places. Lorquin’s Admiral were early this year, as none were seen in May 2015.

Here is a table:

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  Here is the Satyr Comma caterpillar from Lochside Drive which I mentioned in the June 13 posting.

Satyr Comma Polygonia satyrus (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Jeremy Tatum

   And here is a small moth from the outside wall of my Saanich apartment building this morning.

Idaea dimidiata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jeremy Tatum

Annie Pang sends a photograph of a very trusting Lorquin’s Admiral.

Lorquin’s Admiral Limenitis lorquini (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Annie Pang

Cheryl Hoyle sends a photograph of an Elder Moth seen on June 13.

Elder Moth Zotheca tranquilla (Lep.: Noctuidae) Cheryl Hoyle

Warning – Not for the squeamish!

   Gordon Hart writes:  The attached pictures are a little gruesome, so you don’t have to post them. There was a White-footed Deer Mouse that had been killed by a neighbour’s cat on our lawn. I walked by it some time later and saw it move. A few seconds later, a sexton beetle  probably Nicrophorus defodiens , laden with mites, emerged from under the remains. Apparently the mites are a beneficial parasite who hop off onto the dead mouse to eat eggs and young maggots of the flies that land there, leaving more food for the beetle. The mites could never get to the food source on their own. There is one picture of the beetle with flies and mites, one with a wasp and one close-up of the beetle and mites. Perhaps one picture is enough!  I just could not decide which one I should send so I sent three – you can edit it to one or none.

Jeremy Tatum replies:  Viewers have had their warning – so I’m showing all three, of course! The green fly in the second photograph is a female greenbottle Lucilia sp.  I believe the wasp is Vespula – can anyone tell the species?  Thanks to Heather Proctor for identifying the mites as Poecilochirus sp.

Sexton beetle Nicrophorus defodiens (Col.: Silphidae)

Sexton beetle Nicrophorus defodiens (Col.: Silphidae)

Greenbottle Lucilia sp.(Dip.: Calliphoridae)

 Gordon Hart

Sexton beetle Nicrophorus defodiens (Col.: Silphidae)

Wasp Vespula sp.(Hym.: Vespidae)

 Gordon Hart

2016 June 13

   Val George writes:  I photographed this Chalk-fronted Corporal (Ladona julia) when on the Victoria Naturalists trip to Rhododendron Lake (near Nanaimo) on June 12.  [Jeremy Tatum comments:  This is the first time we have had a photograph of this species on the Invertebrate Alert site.]

Chalk-fronted Corporal Ladona julia (Odo.: Libellulidae)  Val George

   Jeff Gaskin writes:  Yesterday, June 12, after 4:30 pm. on Mt Tolmie, there were 2 Red Admirals, 1 Painted Lady, 1 Lady species, 3 Lorquin’s Admirals, and 1 each of Pale Tiger and Western Tiger Swallowtails.

   Jeremy Tatum writes:  I walked along Lochside Trail yesterday (June 12) from Lohbrunner’s to Blenkinsop Lake, and there were Red Admiral caterpillars on the nettles all the way. Dozens of them.  I thought I was going to draw a complete blank on Satyr Commas, but I did eventually find one caterpillar.  He is a bit shy at the moment, but I’ll try and take his photograph tomorrow.  I still haven’t seen an adult Satyr Comma this year.