Back From Maine

July 13, 2020. Otisfield, Maine.

It was night, it was warm, and I wondered if anything would be visiting the common milkweed planted in the flower garden?  Turns out I was right- it was covered with these moths.

Isn't nature amazing?  I'm going to get back to exploring and sharing.

-Tom

More Moths- And a New Avatar

I'm really starting to get into this moth thing, but first things first. I have a brand new avatar. Megan snapped this shot of me and Weston last evening, as we just peeked our heads into the living room. The soft and diffuse light pouring in from the window really lit us nicely. I've always thought Weston had a dark complexion- but his baby skin, preciously protected from the sun, is so much lighter than my own, sun baked complexion.

So here we go. Two days ago, I showed shots of the non-moth insects that frequent our lamp post. Now, let's go on to the moths.



Number one- This one has very long wings that are held out, so it is very wide, rather than long and narrow. Could it fold its wings and look very different? I'm not sure. I believe this is the first time I photographed this species.



Number two. An interesting white job. Again, I'm not sure if moths have a choice whether to rest with their wings open or closed. This one's white wings seem to be folded up and downwards, almost like a long cape.



And here is a really strange one, it is more antenna than moth. Look at those long, filamentous feelers. I photographed this species (or perhaps genus) last year when I did my first creatures of the night photo adventure. Isn't cool how there are two reflections of it on the glass of the lamppost?



Here's the weird one. Not much to it, and very strange, long, twig-like legs and antennae. This one creeps me out perhaps more than the others, and I'm not exactly sure why. Another view:




Here's a tiny moth clinging to our painted white brick wall of our first story. See those tiny bubbles in the paint? That and the small green bug should give a sense of scale.



And finally, we have this rather handsome looking moth. Alabaster white with a tinge of salty caramel striping.

I encourage you to get out tonight and photograph moths. Digital photography, especially the great macro modes available on every point and shoot cameras, can really make moths interesting. Although they have the same basic body plan and parts, I'm amazed just how different each species really is. So much biodiversity in just our front and backyards, it is almost hard to believe I was missing out on these creatures for so long.

Tom

Gypsy Moths at Highbanks Metro Park

Spring in late June???

A unsolicited, rather interesting comment appeared on my blog several weeks ago, completely unrelated to the post subject on Carex.

"Just thought you might know about Highbanks Metro Park. I was walking there today and noticed that a few acres near the top paths across from the nature center seem to have lost all of their leaves. Have you seen this and do you know what is going on there? All the trees are bald in that section of the trail."

My reply: "Maybe Gypsy Moths?"

Well, surely, an outbreak of the non-native gypsy moths, have defoliated at least ten, if not closer to forty, acres of oak dominated forest southwest of the nature center.
On Saturday, June 27, Megan, Weston and I went to hike at Highbanks, and I wasn't quite ready for what we experienced. Megan perhaps described it best, as "a fairy land". We were walking through dark, shaded forest, slowly coming upon the defoliated tree area. We were greeted with not only bright sun and mostly naked trees, but also thousands of fluttering male gypsy moths. They weren't shy either, and had no problem landing on me as I photographed them.

A male gypsy moth

Female gypsy moths, flightless, with eggs

The ultimately gross pupae cases of the moths. Notice the silk- they were originally imported to Massachusetts for their silk producing abilities, escaped, and the rest is history.

A few ash trees were spared- the maples and oaks were not.

The park now has excellent signage that tells the whole story. Regular runners and hikers at the park seem unfazed by the creepiness that is a gypsy moth infestation. Next year, the park will be using GypCheck to limit damage. GypCheck is actually made from dead gypsy moths, and is currently the most environmentally friendly control method available.

Tom

The Biodiveristy of Moths

So you think moths are boring, huh? Well, so did I- that was until I really started looking at them. Why my change? Once Jim Bissell from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History mentioned that someone had documented over 200 species of moths from a tiny property on Kelleys Island. Second, my need to quench my thirst for biodiversity after moving to suburbia about a year ago. And third, Seabrooke Leckie's the North American Backyard Moth Inventory.

When we were in Maine, when everyone was headed to bed, and I told my mother-in-law to not turn off the outside lights because I wanted to photograph moths, I think I puzzled her more than a little bit. She was off to bed, and if I wanted to photograph the moths of the north woods, I could go about my business. And what diversity there was. I was fairly exhausted when I took these shots, and the next time we're in Maine, I'll take more time to compose each shot- the point here? To get everyone out to look at moths. Theirs colors, shapes, and patterns are exquisite, and they're ridiculously easy to photograph. Just "leave the light on for them" just like Tom Bodet used to say in the Motel 6 commercials.

Harry, No! Don't look at the Light!

"I can't help, it is so beautiful" (ZAP) -From the movie "A Bug's Life"

After Megan and I moved to the middle of the suburbs, away from our house near the Olentangy River and acres of Olentangy park land, I believe that I went through biotic withdrawal. The challenge at our new house has been to discover new habitats and the animals and dwell in them. I have learned that our lamp post is a magnet for an array of night flying insects.









Aren't these creatures interesting? We all know that nocturnal moths and insects flock to lights at night, but why? After some cursory research, I've concluded that nobody really knows. The most popular theory is that moths navigate using the moon, and therefore are instinctually attracted to light. Others don't buy this theory. I'm just glad that they do, as they provide an interesting naturalizing experience without leaving my sidewalk.

Oh yeah, clicking on each image will reveal a larger, 600 pixel wide image.

For more animal shots, check out the Camera Critters Meme.

Tom