This blog provides an informal forum for terrestrial invertebrate watchers to post recent sightings of interesting observations in the southern Vancouver Island region. Please send your sightings by email to Jeremy Tatum (tatumjb352@gmail.com). Be sure to include your name, phone number, the species name (common or scientific) of the invertebrate you saw, location, date, and number of individuals. If you have a photograph you are willing to share, please send it along. Click on the title above for an index of past sightings.The index is updated most days.

2022 September 14

2022 September 14

    Jeff Gaskin writes: Today, September 14, I found three  Woodland Skippers in the community garden at Gorge Park.  I heard from Geoffrey Newell today about some nice butterflies he found on September 9.  First of all he saw a Mourning Cloak at Esquimalt Lagoon and then he saw three Pine Whites at Witty’s Lagoon.

 

  Here is a harvestman, photographed by Ian Cooper and kindly identified for us by Dr Philip Bragg:

Leptobunus parvulus (Opiliones: Phalangiidae)  Ian Cooper

 

Leptobunus parvulus (Opiliones: Phalangiidae)  Ian Cooper

 

   Ian Cooper photographed a Drone Fly Eristalis tenax at Colquitz River Park, September  8.  Viewers might like to compare it with the somewhat similar E. arbustorum, shown on August 24 evening.

Eristalis tenax (Dip.: Syrphidae) Ian Cooper

   Ian photographed a male and a female Common (European) Earwig.  Note the shape of the pincers.

Male Common Earwig Forficula auricularia (Derm.: Forficulidae)  Ian Cooper

 

emale Common Earwig Forficula auricularia (Derm.: Forficulidae)  Ian Cooper

   Ian also photographed this Triangle Spider in Colquitz River Park, September 10:

Hyptiotes gertschi  (Ara.:  Uloboridae)  Ian Cooper

       Also an unidentified geometrid caterpillar:

Unknown geometrid caterpillar (Lep.: Geometridae)  Ian Cooper