2018 May 12 evening

 

  Jeremy Tatum and Bill Savale went to the railway line north of Cowichan Station today.  Very few butterflies there, but we did see about four Margined Whites, a Satyr Comma and a Mylitta Crescent.

 

   The Herb Robert (on which the Margined White nectars) is only just starting.  The ditch by the side of the railway track is nearly dry, and what little water was in it seemed rather dirty and polluted.  There was no Narcissus (on which the Margined Whites oviposit) there, which does not augur well for the future of this butterfly there.  There was, however, lots of Hesperis matronalis, which does serve as an alternative larval foodplant (though some regard this plant as an undesirable invasive species).

 

  We saw three things there that are not invertebrates and therefore don’t strictly belong on this site, but I mention them for interest since they are not often seen in the immediate area of Victoria, namely, Wild Ginger,  California Tea, and Northwestern Toad.

 

  Nothing on the Mount Tolmie reservoir or around the Jeffery Pine at 6:45 this evening.

 

 

   Moralea Milne writes:  Excellent Moth Talk last night by the wonderful team of Libby and Rick Avis  – then this fabulous creature (photo below) turned up on my doorstep in Metchosin last night. Nothing like a photo of a moth to show that I need to do some painting! I shall send out an email with a list of moth resources later. Thank you for your continued interest in our natural world, and I hope your next few months, until our September 21st Talk and Walk (on vultures), supplies you with many opportunities to enjoy our native flora and fauna.

 

Ceanothus Silk Moth Hyalophora euryalus (Lep.: Saturniidae)  Moralea Milne