2021 May 30

 

   The caterpillar of Malacosoma californicum is so abundant and ubiquitous that we sometimes forget that it is in fact a very handsome beast!   So here’s a close look at one by Jochen Möhr:

 

 

Malacosoma californicum (Lep.: Lasiocampidae)  Jochen Möhr

Malacosoma californicum (Lep.: Lasiocampidae)  Jochen Möhr

   Aziza Cooper photographed a flying insect with very long legs and abdomen at Sooke Potholes on May 29.  Well, writes Jeremy Tatum, I agree with the Class Insecta, and I can go further and say Order Hymenoptera.  After that it gets a little more diffficult, but I think I’m fairly (although not absolutely) certain that the Family is Ichneumonidae.  That cuts it down to about 1000 species in the Pacific Northwest.   I’d be approaching the area of speculation if I were to suggest Genus Therion.

 

Ichneumonid wasp, possibly Therion sp. (Hym.: Ichneumonidae)   Aziza Cooper

 

   She also photographed a bee, and we’ll see if we can come up with an identification in the next few days.  [Added later: Steven Roias identifies the bee as Bombus vancouverensis.]

 

Bombus vancouverensis  (Hym.:   Apidae)  Aziza Cooper

   After those tricky ones, you’d think the next one, a swallowtail butterfly, would be a bit easier.  Well, the background colour is certainly pale.  But are those black stripes quite thick enough for a Pale Tiger Swallowtail?   I don’t always find our two tiger swallowtails easy to tell apart, but I’ll go out on a limb and say Pale Tiger Swallowtail for this one.  I’m sure if viewers disagree they’ll let me know in short order.  Jeremy Tatum

 

Pale Tiger Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon (Lep.: Papilionidae)   Aziza Cooper

 

Also seen by Aziza at the Potholes:  10 Pale Tiger Swallowtails, 2 Western Tiger Swallowtails and 3 Western Spring Azures.

 

   Jeff Gaskin writes on May 29:   Kirsten Mills and I saw seven species of butterflies on Mount Tolmie.  We saw all three swallowtails including one Anise at the summit; a Lorquin’s Admiral at the top of the stairs near the concrete reservoir, a few Western Spring Azures, a Propertius Duskywing and a few Cabbage Whites.  Also, of note we saw two Pale Tiger Swallowtails near the Pike Lake substation on Munn Road.  Western Tiger Swallowtails are finally starting to become more noticeable around Victoria as I even saw one down the street on Wascana near my folks’ place.