Boreal Bluet Damselfly
Enallagma boreale
Descrption: Males are blue and black while females may be blue and black or green or yellow as well. They are about 32mm or 3.2cm long.
Ecology: Common and widespread in ponds and lakes throughout BC.
Notes: There are 7 American species of Boreal Bluets and they may be difficult to identify in the field; though in BC the Boreal Bluet is the most common and widely distributed. This picture was taken in the summer of 2006 on a log in Carlson Lake, a middle elevation mountain lake in coastal BC.
Black Meadowhawk
Dragonfly
Sympetrum danae
Description: Males are almost black once mature, grow to about 38mm or 3.8cm in length. Females and the young are patterned in black and yellow, as this one is.
Ecology: This is a relatively long-livedd species that appears later in the dragonfly season, around mid-summer and are among the last to be seen in the fall. This dragonfly has a wide distribution throughout BC and is a common species; it is also found in Europe and northern Asia.
Notes: This one was found near Carlson Lake, BC in the coastal mountains. It was August 2003.
Blue-Eyed Darner
Aeshna multicolor
Description: A large (70mm) dragonfly, males are dark brown (black from a distance) in colour with blue and green patterns and sky blue eyes. Females may be similar or in colour or may be brown and yellow.
Ecology: Hatch from aquatic nymphs in June and fly until the hard frosts come in October. Common throughout the southern half of BC.
Notes: This is an injured one my son found near our house in the summer of 2005. I often see them in mountain lakes where thy will feed on the abundant damselflies that frequent the lakes.
Green Darner
Anax junius
Description: Like all darners the green darner is a larger dragonfly with a long abdomen, females are typically chocolate brown and green while males are chocolate brown, green and often blue.
Ecology: Frequent wetland areas, widespread in North America.
Notes: This photo was taken by Ian Guthrie on Galiano Island, summer 2006 photo. Thanks to Ian for the use of his photo.
Bumble Bee
Bombus sp.
Description: : Smaller 10-20mm insects with a thick coating of fuzzy hair on their bodies making them appear larger than they really are, and making their wings look too small to support their bodies in flight. The fuzzy hair keeps them warm while they fly and allows them to fly in cooler temperatures than other bees, which can be an advantage in mountainous areas.
Ecology: Found in clearings and meadows throughout all of BC.
Notes: This one was photographed on the edge of a tiny mountain lake at higher elevation in the Tetrahedron, July 2006 photo, in was sipping on the nectar of a leafy mountain aster which was very abundant at that lake.
Hover Fly
Syrphus sp.
Description: About 10mm in size, often looking much like a wasp, an evolutionary adaptation known as mimicry where a harmless looking species looks like a species that is dangerous or poisonous when it is not. Unlike wasps hover flies have short antennae and a flattened, not cylindrical abdomen, and they have no stinger but do possess yellow bands on their abdomens similar to a wasp and may wave their front legs in front of them to appear like the long antennae of a wasp.
Ecology: Widespread at all elevations throughout BC.
Notes: Difficult to differentiate at the species level due to lack of available information. This one was photographed on my hand at middle elevation at Richardson Lake in July 2006.
Paper Wasp
Polistes fuscatus
Description: Long slender wasp (~ 18mm) black in colour with yellow stripes on abdomen and thorax. Builds single layer open paper nests underneath overhangs (trees, buildings, etc) and a narrow “waist” and slender wings.
Ecology: A social insect widespread in small colonies in open areas in southern BC, in both natural and human habitats.
Notes: A common insect found in attics, sheds, barns and overhangs. Not an aggressive wasp, seldum resulting in stings, but the sting is quite painful.
Orb Weaver Spider
Aranaeus spp
Description: Size is usually around 11mm, just over 1cm, they are generally brownish or even rusty brown in colour and will typically have a distinctive cross-like whitish marking on the back. Its most easily distinguishable feature however is its common “orb” web that we are all so familiar with.
Ecology: These are a common spider found in forests and gardens throughout BC.
Notes: This one made a web on my friend’s porch in the summer of 2003.
Wolf Spider
Family Lycosidae
Description: Up to 10mm in size, brown in colour, with little hairs all over its legs and abdomen.
Ecology: Common in open, especially grassy areas throughout BC.
Notes: The female spiders lay eggs and wrap them in a silk bag and then carry them with them on their abdomen, making them look like a larger spider with a bluish or off-white abdomen (the egg sac). When the young hatch they cling to the hairs on their mother’s body. This one was photographed in our shed where we lived in Halfmoon Bay, BC, September 2005 photo.
Tent Caterpillar Moth
Malacosoma californicum
Description: The moth itself is small, brown, furry and very inconspicuous but the caterpillar is easily recognized because of the silk tent that they create. The female moth lays all her eggs in an egg mass on a deciduous tree and when they hatch the caterpillars stay together and create a tent to shelter them from predators during the day, they then feed on the leaves of their host tree at night and leave the nest when they are ready to pupate when they create a white perogie shaped cocoon.
Ecology: This caterpillar is very common in Southern BC at low to middle elevations in most years, In coastal BC it is a common site on Red Alders as well as willows and poplars, nests are seen in late May or early June; this picture was taken in West Sechelt, BC June, 2001.
Cyanide Millipede
Harpaphe haydeniana
Description: A millipede is different from a centipede in that it has two pairs of legs per segment and thus has many more legs, they also tend to be larger than centipedes. Millipede does not mean "1000 feet", they always have much less (and a centipede can never have 100 feet, it usually has about 30). This millipede usually measures about 3-5cm long, it has characteristic orange markings on each segment and produces cyanide as a defensive mechanism giving it a slightly almond scent.
Ecology: This millipede is very abundant in southern BC coastal forests; it feeds on plants and detritus (decaying organic matter).
Notes: This picture was taken at Wakefield Creek in Sechelt, BC June, 2001.
Giant Crane Fly
Tipula spp.
Description: Looks somewhat like a giant mosquito, of the many species of crane flies these are the largest, their abdomens are orange and the females have a pointy tip to their abdomen. Legs are quite long, which sometimes causes them to be confused with “daddy long legs” which is usually the name of an arachnid.
Ecology: Found in forested and developed areas throughout BC.
Notes: Often found while mating with abdomens attached end to end as in this June 2004 photo from the mud room of my old house
Antheraea polyphemus
Description: Large bright green caterpillar with tiny spikes. Moth is beautiful reddish brown with 2 large fake eyes on its posterior wings and 2 smaller fake eyes on its front wings.
Ecology: A widespread moth in southern Canada, caterpillars found feeding on birch, dogwood, alder leaves, etc.
Notes: This 2 inch long caterpillar was found on an alder tree in Porpoise Bay Provincial Park, near Sechelt, BC in August 2004, there were several seen that day.
Anise Swallowtail
Papilio zelicaon
Description: a beautiful butterfly with a wingspan of about 7cm, black with yellow markings. Different from other swallowtails because it is smaller and has more balck in its wings than the Tiger Swallowtail who also has a black line running through the middle of its hind wing. Slender body is furry black and lined with yellow.
Ecology: Caterpillars feed on anise as well as cow parsnip and parsley, found in clear open areas.
Notes:This one was found resting on a lilac bush in my front yard summer 2004. Swallowtails have ‘tails’ on their wings so that birds grasp the tails and fly away with that rather than the butterflies themselves
Stink Bug
Brochymena sp.
Description: About 13mm in size always easy to identify at the genus level by their odour, they really do stink! They have broad pointy shoulders and a large triangular plate on their back. Colour varies from brownish, black or green, depending on the species.
Ecology: Widespread throughout BC, some feed on insects, especially caterpillars, while others feed on the juices of plants or seeds.
Notes: This one was photographed at my old home in Halfmoon Bay, low elevation, September 2005 photo.
Pink Faced Jewel Beetle
Buprestis lyrata
Description: Easy to identify by its pinkish (orange-ish up close) markings on its face and underside on the tip of its abdomen. The rest of the 17mm long body is black.
Ecology: Found in forests throughout southern BC where the wood-boring grub larvae feed on pin and fir trees.
Notes: This one was photographed at Chapman Creek in late May of 2006.
Spruce Sawyer Beetle
Monochamus scutellatus
Description: A 20mm long black beetle with a pointy abdomen, an exotic looking beetle with huge long curled antennae (not counted in the 20mm size making them appear much larger than that). Males have longer antennae but the female’s bodies are larger.
Ecology: Emerge in summer from pupae in the bark of dead spruce trees, found in forests throughout BC.
Notes:This one likely came from Carlson Lake at middle elevation on the Sunshine Coast, we were up there one day in July of 2006 and when we came home we had found this male had hitchhiked a ride home with us in the back of the truck.
