Portage Moths...

I've been up at the family cottage for the past couple of weeks. Is at Portage lake which is about 20 Km south of Parry Sound. Is a lovely place with nice woodland and some interesting lake shore edge habitat. It is not marshy though and the lake bed is rather clean sand. I do occasionally catch some acid bog specialists from nearby fens but mostly I catch a nice selection of woodland species.

The last two weeks of August is kind of an odd time for moths here. Too late for many of the single brooded summer species and a little too early for most of the interesting fall species like pinions and sallows. However, there are some nice species that are characteristic of this period. The lovely moth above is very much an August speciality.It is Eosphoropteryx thyatyroides, more easily known as the Pink-patched Looper Moth. I caught two, doubling my life total! The first was total trash and horribly worn - a real disappointment. However, the second, above, was quite fresh and much more pleasing. It is a shiny, metallic fellow and was very difficult to photograph so the colors stood out. Deep shade was no good. Bright sunlight worse still. I had to position the moth so it was kinda half and half and use my shutter hand to reflect some of the light onto it. It sort of worked but I was left scratching my head and feeling that there must be a better way. Gorgeous moth though. Meadow Rue is the larval foodplant.


One of my few lifers was this nice looper moth called Syngrapha altera. I was well pleased since, as you all know by now, I rate the loopers highly. This one is a bit of an identification challenge since it is quite similar to S. octoscripta. It is a bit smaller and has a somewhat different silver stigma on the forewing. It fits all the photos of the S. altera I've looked at.


My other new noctuid was the moth above - Eremobina jocasta. I've caught its cousin E. claudens here on a couple of occasions, but earlier in the season. I can't tell you much about this moth except to say that it must be pretty local within the province.


This is a large species that I only seem to catch here. It is Eurois occulta, known in UK as the Great Brocade - a very appropriate name for this impressive noctuid. I caught a few this time, but most were a bit worn and tatty. I did catch a really fresh one on the last night but I'd had enough and didn't photograph it - shameful!!


I was most disappointed to catch just one borer moth in the genus Papaipema. These are prized creatures not to be taken lightly - all are beautifully patterned in their own ways, though many are similar to one-another and pose certain identification problems. This one is Papaipema leucostigma, the Columbine Borer Moth. This is generally the commonest borer here, and the earliest one on the wing.


A great prize is this moth - Oligia bridghami, Bridgham's Brocade. I rarely catch it, and when I do they are invariably worn and grim-looking like the one above. Too bad because when fresh it is a sight to behold. I haven't caught a fresh one for over ten years now! I conclude that this is a local and scarce species in Ontario.


The darts in the genus Euxoa are very much a feature of fall moth catching. There are many of them. Some are dull and boring yet others are striking and very attractive. Very much in the latter category is the moth above Euxoa declarata. I've only caught it here and always in late August. Can't tell ya much about it right now though...


I though this was quite late. Obviously a second brood individual, I had not caught one in late August before. It is Charadra deridens, or The Laugher. An odd name for a beautiful chunky moth. It is quite common in well developed woodlands. The larvae feed on a variety of trees including beech, birches, elms, maples and oaks.


Finally, another late individual, this time the flashy prominent Nadata gibbosa, the White-dotted Prominent. A lovely moth that is common in late spring through the summer. Surely this is a second brood individual? It is common in woodlands of southern Ontario and the larvae feed on a wide variety of trees.

Hope you enjoy this fine selection - wish I could find the time to post more. Guess you'll all have to wait for the book...