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.

April 25

2018 April 25

 

    Gordon Hart photographed a beetle at Witty’s Lagoon yesterday, and we are much indebted to Scott Gilmore for identifying it as an Oregon Tiger Beetle.  Gordon also writes that yesterday in his Highlands garden he saw two Green Commas, and a Sara Orangetip as well as a number of Western Spring Azures.

 

Oregon  Tiger Beetle Cicindela oregona (Col.: Carabidae – Cicindelinae) Gordon Hart

 

   Jochen Moehr continues to find lots of moths in his moth trap in Metchosin.  He counted 22 Melanolophia imitata this morning.  Here is one of them:

Melanolophia imitata (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Moehr

 

   Next is a pug, probably Eupithecia ravocostaliata, though since we are not entirely certain how to distinguish this species from E. nevadata, we’ll put both names in the caption.


Eupithecia ravocostaliata/nevadata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

 

   Next, another pug.  Jeremy Tatum’s best guess is that it is either E. annulata or it isn’t.

Probably Eupithecia annulata (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

 

Hydriomena manzanita  (Lep.: Geometridae)  Jochen Moehr

 

Triphosa haesitata (Lep.: Geometridae) Jochen Moehr

 

Alucita montana  (Lep.: Alucitidae)  Jochen Moehr

 


Nola minna (Lep.: Nolidae)   Jochen Moehr

 


Feralia comstocki (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

 

Behrensia conchiformis (Lep.: Noctuidae)  Jochen Moehr

 

Cissusa indiscreta (Lep.: Erebidae – Erebinae) Jochen Moehr

 

 


Adela trigrapha  (Lep.: Adelidae)  Jochen Moehr

 

 

    The California Tortoiseshell that has been seen on and off on the Mount Tolmie reservoir since April 19 was still there on April 24 at 3:30 p.m., when Marie O’Shaughnessy obtained this photograph:


California Tortoiseshell Nymphalis californica (Lep.: Nymphalidae)  Marie O’Shaughnessy

 

   Daniel Dönnecke writes:  I finally noticed some butterflies today on a hike in Mount Douglas Park.  There were four Sara Orangetips, a Western Spring Azure and three Propertius Duskywings.

Propertius Duskywing Erynnis propertius (Lep.: Hesperiidae)  Daniel Dönnecke