The Moth bug has Bitten
I'm not sure that this title makes any sense, but that is what @sambiology said when giving his Moth Presentation at the Heard Museum this month. Of course it means that he got very focused and interested in moths and with the purchase of my first moth light, I can say that I now fill the same way. (note: Moth is not a bug and they do not bite).
I purchased a moth light from BioQuip.com and got the 2804s AC/DC for $100 which has the AC and DC option. You can actually get one for 50-60 if you just need one of the options. While I easily have access to electricity at home, I'm envisioning being able to take this on the road like the others do on the bioblitz's around the state. (If you act quickly, the moth lights are 10% off in June).
Currently, I am recycling PVC pipe from my grown kids soccer goals and an old fitted bed sheet for the platform and using a hanging plant pole for the UV light. I set it up in the backyard against the fence and waited for nightfall.
At first I got LBBs. (that is what I call the little black bugs and little brown bugs that I see that all look the same)... I learned this term at @gailonbrehm 's talk on LBB (little brown birds) and how to ID sparrows at a Master Naturalist Meeting last year and I liked it.
It started out slow, but as the night grew darker more things showed up.. I was surprised to see the wolf spiders at first but then thought maybe they were there to catch an easy meal. Then I saw several lady bugs that I didn't realize flew at night. Some of favorite non-moth finds that first night were the Antlion & Icneumon wasps and all types of Rove Beetles that we are still trying to figure out.
Finally the moths started showing up. While most landed on the sheet, I had remembered from @annikaml to also check near the sheet on the fence, light pole and even grass. I was surprised how many I found this way. Some cool moths I found were the Garden Totrix that @sambiology describes as a scary clown, the Genista Broom Moth because now I know what the mother of the caterpillars that eat my mountain laurel blooms looks like and paler Diacme Moth which is a beautiful yellow color. The largest I saw is still yet unidentified so I'm spending time trying to figure them out with the online guides in iNat and also the moth photo group which can be intimidating. I also saw many tiny tiny tiny moths that I did not photograph yet as I have to pace myself.
Thanks to @pfau_tarleton for this one that provides many moths in the state and surrounding areas: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=37.30409286559174&nelng=-90.85243710937493&place_id=any&swlat=27.102526266329324&swlng=-104.51942929687493&taxon_id=47157&view=species&without_taxon_id=47224,47654
and for the one @sambiology spearheaded that is a DFW guide also a lot of mine don't seem to be on it yet: http://www.inaturalist.org/guides/4700 .
I still need help with ID and if you are interested in what it might be like, here is a list from my first day event (note that there are 2 links as I managed to stay up past midnight which split the day recordings). I managed to get about 50 sightings on my first night (of course not all moths).
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/butterflies4fun?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=&search_on=&quality_grade=any&reviewed=&geoprivacy=&identifications=any&captive=&place_id=&swlat=&swlng=&nelat=&nelng=&taxon_name=&taxon_id=&day=21&month=6&year=2017&order_by=observations.id&order=desc&rank=&hrank=&lrank=&taxon_ids[]=&d1=&d2=&created_on=&site=&tdate=&list_id=&filters_open=true&view=table
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/butterflies4fun?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=&search_on=&quality_grade=any&reviewed=&geoprivacy=&identifications=any&captive=&place_id=&swlat=&swlng=&nelat=&nelng=&taxon_name=&taxon_id=&day=22&month=6&year=2017&order_by=observations.id&order=desc&rank=&hrank=&lrank=&taxon_ids[]=&d1=&d2=&created_on=&site=&tdate=&list_id=&filters_open=true&view=table
I wish there was a better way to display these links but not something I know how to do at the moment or if even allowed in this interface.
I look forward for many more outings with my light and now have the ability to be portable although have not shelled out the $'s yet for a battery other then my car. So @heardmuseum and @karinsaucedo (Connemarra) let's set something up for Moth week July 22-30.
Happy Mothing to all and to all a Good Night!
@butterflies4fun
Comentários
I'm still using the blacklight that I got as a gift when I was a pre-teen back in the 1970's when it was the thing to hang glowing blacklight posters on your wall.
My moth diversity has gone down to almost nothing compared to early spring. Dunno if that's what normally happens, or if I'm just not staying up late enough--I tend to call it quits by 10:30.
On my first night not much exciting showed up early but june bugs, black bugs, etc.. When I look at my entries, it appear that they are all 11pm - 1am. Since this is my first time, I don't know if it is normal or not.. Possibly because it gets dark so late now, that it why it takes a while. I have been told that moth all fly at different time so the later your stay up the more diversity. I'm interested in that, but staying up past 1am messes up my work or volunteer days so hard to do.. I might try getting up really early one day to see how that works.... I do remember those black light posters with all the black fuzz on them... They were so cool.
Good post @butterflies4fun ! Provocative, especially since wildflower blooming is winding down and i m in the hunt for different taxa.
Just reading this. That would be awesome! Let's plan it!
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