Making Exceptions

Prairie blooms of Killdeer Plains

It brought a chuckle from the listeners—
a small group gathered for a workshop at Killdeer Plains, where experts in the field shared their knowledge of birds, plants, dragonflies and butterflies.

The basic rules to remember
to distinguish moths from butterflies,
when you stumble upon them in the field:

Moths usually fly at night; except when they don’t,
and usually have feathery antennae; except when they don’t,
and tend to rest with their wings held flat; except when they don’t,
and are of duller, drabber color; except when they’re not.

But within that lesson, a greater truth--
that the one who makes the rules, may break them.
Exceptions become the rule.

pink morph Bush Katydid,
Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area, north central Ohio,
7/19/09

Katydid (from Encyclopedia Britannica)
"Any of numerous, predominantly nocturnal insects related to crickets and grasshoppers, noted for their loud mating calls. Katydids have large hind legs and are distinguished by their extremely long, threadlike antennae and the thick, upwardly curved ovipositor (egg-laying structure) of the females.
Often large and green," ...(except when they're not!)... "many katydids have long wings, but some common species are nearly wingless. Katydids are most abundant in the tropics—the Amazon rainforest is home to about 2,000 species—but katydids are also found in cooler and drier regions throughout the world; the United States is home to over 100 species."

Dr. David Horn of The Ohio State University Department of Entomology led a session about butterflies and moths for the Killdeer Plains workshop. It was followed by afternoon field trips for butterflies and a nighttime hike to see moths.
The pink katydid was discovered by Jan Kennedy, a participant, on Saturday, July 18, at Killdeer Plains.
More about its discovery at Jim McCormac's site here.
And the great moth display here!