What is there not to love about the muppet haircut and the beautiful emerald green of Hemithea aestivaria? The underside that you can't see here is a pale creamy green. The emerald moth is found through out Europe and has been introduced to the Pacific Northwest. Apparently the first that were observed around Vancouver was 1979. In Europe the caterpillars are known to feed on willow, oaks, birch and a number of other deciduous trees. On southern Vancouver Island  they have been seen feeding on dogwood and snowberry. Here are some photographs of the caterpillar: http://facweb.furman.edu/~snyderjohn/tatum/218-221.htm

I am completely smitten with jumping spiders. This fellow, Salticus scenicus measures in at about 5 mm, is quick as greased lightning and is relatively common here at Leaning Oaks and across North America. The species name, "scenicus" is derived from the Greek skenikos, meaning "of the stage" or theatrical and "Salticus" is Latin for dance. When they turn to look at you with their eyes (total of eight, four facing forward) and wave their chelicerae and pedipalps like some sort of battle threat or odd dance, you can understand the source of the name

It does not spin a web to capture prey, but hunts actively for its dinner. The photo below is a different individual that has tackled a fly much larger than itself! I had to include it, even though it wasn't a great photo. They do produce silk, using it for safety lines, to make egg sacs and to build overnight retreats. The colours on the Zebra Jumping Spider vary, as do the width and spacing of the stripes. 

I was very sad to read that this jumping spider is considered a native of Europe and has been introduced throughout the northern hemisphere...I'd like to think that they belonged here! 

Wall lettuce (Mycelis muralis ) is an introduced annual, biennial or perennial herb often found in the garden, in cracks in rocks and in disturbed areas around Leaning Oaks.  It is yet another yellow-flowered introduced weed in the garden, and like Dandelion, Hairy Cat's Ear and Sow Thistle, it is spread by wind borne seeds. It was formerly included in the genus Lactuca which includes the familar garden lettuce, and like those species has a milky sap. 

Nipplewort (Lapsana communis) is another alien species well established at Leaning Oaks.  A common weed in the garden and along path edges it thrives in the light shade under our Garry Oaks.  The plant starts it's growth as a basal rosette, but shoots up quickly in June and July produces yellow daisies on branches inflorescences.  Several websites say the plants common name is from the similarity of the buds to human nipples.  This, I think, is the result of botanists spending unhealthy amounts of time isolated from human companionship in remote locations. 

An alternate explanation is that the plant was used to treat ulcers on nipples.  This species is also used as a spring vegetable, although I have never tried it so I can't vouch for its palatability.  

Oxeye Daisy is a widespread, common introduced plant,found in meadows, fields, and disturbed areas. Formerly this was considered to be a species of Chrysanthemum.  That genus has been split into several genera and this is now called Leucanthemum vulgare, which is greek for "white flower".  It is a short-lived perennial with very long lasting flowers.  Because the species is so widespread it has a multitude of common names besides the one we are using here, includingMoon-Daisy, Moon Daisy, Marguerite, Oxeye Daisy, Dog-daisy,  and Dog Daisy.  It is seldom eaten by cows and since it can become quite common in hay fields and pastures it is regarded as an important  agricultural weed.  

Now I've never tried these, but I'm curious, I see that the buds are being picked and pickled and sold as Ox-eye Daisy Capers   http://www.wildfoods.ca/products-vegetables-ox-eyedaisycapers.html).

June 9-15 was BC Invasive Species Week, so we decided to  highlight a few more of the non-native invasive species found here at Leaning Oaks.  Hairy Cat's-ear ( Hypochaeris radicata ) is a yellow flowered perennial with a more or less flat basal rosette with a   leafless, branched flowering stem.  Flowers are superficially Dandelion-like (see 91), hence another common name of False Dandelion.  Unlike Dandelion, the stems are solid and not hollow.  It is a common weed of lawns, cracks in pavement and disturbed areas.  Like dandelions the seeds are spread by the wind.    The leaves are supposed to be hairy like the hair on a cat's ear.  I clearly have not looked at enough cat's ears to see the resemblance. 

And, just in; "the flowers of this weed are an important spring food for black bears on Vancouver Island". Thanks Helen! Maybe we'll get bears....

The Bubble Story

Once a newly hatched spittlebug is hatched it will wander until it finds a suitable host plant with a succulent supply of sap.  The beak is inserted down to the xylem and they begin to suck considerable quantities of sap. The excess water and sugar is forced through the gut and out the anus where it adheres to the plant and nymph which moves the liquid over its body using the back legs. The nymph breathes through spiracles on the outside of the abdomen. Bubble making happens by vigorous movements of the abdomen as the nymph sucks air into its abdominal breathing tube and forcing it out, while pumping its abdomen and moving it every which way. There is a mucilaginous substance that is exuded from glands on the abdomen that keeps the bubbles from collapsing…and why the goober balls feel so slimy when you get them on your legs as you are walking.  This foam keeps away predators, keeps the wee nymph moist and insulated.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0020179087900096 (the froth composition...should you care to know)


The species that we found (pretty sure....I'd like to find an adult to be 100%) on Leaning Oaks is Philaenus spumarius - and *sigh*, it is a European introduction. There are other possibilities here for other species so we will keep looking. It can be a economic pest on some crops if in high densities or when the froth acts as a vector for fungi.  So far our rosemary is doing just fine--

Oh--and if you want to identify your spittlebugs, Agriculture Canada has a book for you! On line courtesy of the Entomological Society of Canada:
http://www.esc-sec.ca/aafcmonographs/insects_and_arachnids_part_10.pdf

Beautiful, tall, the bees love them...and they are exotic. This is one of those alien European species that we let live where it grows in somewhat disturbed areas. Digitalis purpurea is a source of digitoxin, a glycoside that has been used as a heart stimulant since 1785; HOWEVER it is toxic and self medication is definitely a no no. The medical uses and early research are outlined here: http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/digitalis-purpurea-common-foxglove   

Common foxgloves show up regularly in folk tales as well, providing clothing for the faeries and gloves for foxes so they can creep into the chicken coop.

 
The Miracle of the Bees and the Foxgloves
BY ANNE STEVENSON
Because hairs on their speckled daybeds baffle the little bees,
foxgloves come out to advertise for rich bumbling hummers,
who crawl into their tunnels-of-delight with drunken ease
(see Darwin’s chapters on his foxglove summers)
plunging over heckles caked with sex-appealing stuff
to sip from every hooker its intoxicating liquor
and stop it propagating in a corner with itself.

And this is how the foxflower keeps its sex life in order.
Two anthers—adolescent, in a hurry to dehisce--
let fly too soon, so pollen lies in drifts around the floor.  
Along swims bumbler bee and makes an undercoat of this,
reverses, exits, lets it fall by accident next door.  
So ripeness climbs the bells of Digitalis, flower by flower,
undistracted by a Mind, or a Design, or by desire.

Creeping Buttercup (Ranunculus repens)  is an aggressive introduced species that spreads by both runners and seed.  At Leaning Oaks it is more or less confined to the cultivated portions of the garden (despite my efforts) and to the lawn and other disturbed areas.  Fortunately, most of our meadow is too dry for Creeping Buttercup to do very well.  Contact with the sap of this species can cause skin blisters, so weeding this out wearing gloves is a good idea.  There is a cultivar with a yellow variegated leaf called "Buttered Popcorn" - however, it is just as invasive as the wild type and worth avoiding. 

Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella)is an introduced species with arrowhead shaped leaves that spreads by underground runners.  The female flowers (there are separate male and female plants) are burgundy red and the plant is not unattractive when in bloom.  It is a very adaptable species, and grows in a wide variety of habitats.  Here it grows in cracks in the bedrock in our Garry Oak meadow.  The leaves are edible, and lemony-tart and make a good addition to a salad, soup or as a component of a salad dressing. Note however that they are high in oxalic acid, which is toxic in large quantities, so use in moderation.  Other common names include Red Sorrel, Common Sorrel and Field Sorrel.