A tale of two Habrosynes...

Habrosyne gloriosa, the Glorious Habrosyne.


Habrosyne scripta, the Lettered Habrosyne.

Can you spot the five differences between the two photos above? Answers on a postcard please!

I'm afraid I don't have time to go through all this now but will do so upon my return from the northlands. Something for you all to ponder as you eat yer toast and marmite in the morning...

Southern Quickie...

We are off up to the family cottage for a couple of weeks dodging the rain showers. So, I thought I'd better slip these images onto the old blog before I departed. Mike and I did another rapid moth clean-up session down at our favorite spot and, as usual, came home with some interesting records.

The weather was not the greatest. It was nice and muggy and cloudy as we were setting up the traps and lights but as dusk came around it cleared and cooled noticeably. However, we still recorded way over 200 species which seems to be the benchmark down here. Perhaps the coolest moth of the night was the one above Catocala judith, or Judith's Underwing. I've long wanted to see this one. I like the "black" underwings and since this one is quite small too it always had some appeal for me. And so there it was, in the "Britney"trap. The Britney trap is a very special trap. It is made from a salvaged overhead light fitting - the sort you might find at a railway station and has a special Britney tube acting as the main funnel - you have to see it to appreciate it. It weighs an absolute ton (bit like the real thing - sorry Britney) and is a real pig to lug around. But we like her and she tries real hard to pull out all the stops to get "the big one" on each outing. Last time it was Richia acclivis, this time judith. BTW Judith's Underwing is very local in extreme southern Ontario, flies in July and August and the larvae feed on hickories and walnuts.


Before setting up we scoured the lines of flowers hoping for a gripping butterfly. There were none, but we did see a nice selection of pyralid moths around the flowers. Intriguing was a very small Pyrausta that I saw and then couldn't find again. I was convinced it was something interesting and was certainly new for me. After some searching we found at least four of these little sprites. I jarred one and photographed it the next morning, by which time it was sadly looking worse for wear. However, good enough to identify as Pyrausta rubricalis. I don't know the status of this moth in the province as of yet.


Another interesting moth that appeared on one of the sheets was the tiny pyralid above. This one is Acentria ephemerella, the Water Veneer. I've seen this one in UK but had no idea it occurred here in Ontario. I can find no reference to it in the literature I have at hand. Is pretty distinctive in its drabness! It is very small, a pale dove gray colour with a tiny white discal spot on each wing. They rarely survive the night so I was surprised this one did!


Another nice catch was the dagger moth above - Acronicta oblinita, the Smeared Dagger Moth - but please don't be put off by the name! Is a nice-looking dagger that I don't catch very often and was a new species for the site. The adults are on the wing in spring and late summer in two broods whilst the larvae feed on a wide variety of trees, shrubs and plants.


Another moth that was new for us was this small noctuid called Meganola phylla. We caught a couple of them but I wasn't entirely sure of the identification so consulted some expert help. Luckily the call was good. We also caught the look-alike sister species M. minuscula, which is much more common and widespread, at least in Ontario.

Ear to the ground...

Another night with not a lot going on. Still, a few year ticks for the garden trap. The above tortrix is Eucosma derelecta. It is quite common in late July and August and I think is pretty much an annual visitor to the garden


The genus Caloptilia is a very distinctive one. The moths are pencil-shaped and very small, some amazingly so! They have a very characteristic resting pose with the long front legs taking all the weight of these tiny sprites. They can be tough to identify but I'm pretty sure this one is Caloptilia blandella. The larvae are leaf miners, but I'm not sure at this time on what.


I like this moth. It is Amphipoea americana, the American Ear Moth. Another common species that is on the wing in late July and August. It comes to light and also to goop slathered on tree trunks. It is quite variable with some individuals sporting gleaming white reniform spots. All are this nice shade of orange overlaid with the darker "net rigging" effect - very tasteful I'd say, though this one is slightly worn. The larvae feed on grasses and sedges.

More moth gifts...

It has been decided that Brampton is the center of the clearwing universe. Here are two examples why...


I was well gripped a few weeks ago when fellow mothman Mike found a Virginia Creeper Clearwing in his back yard. I have tons of virginia creeper in my own back yard so why can't I host this incredible moth? Anyhow, it seemed to be a one-off, but then he caught another one! Lucky for me it was the morning that we were to go mothing in the deep south (that I'll get to next post) so he brought it along so I could get some photos. I was well pleased, not only because it's a superb-looking creature but because many of these clearwings are so very hard to find without the aid of pheromone lures.


A couple of days later Mike phoned again to say he had captured yet another species of clearwing in his yard - I think that makes about five species now. This time it was this fantastic Peachtree Borer Moth. This time I travelled to the end of the subway line to collect the moth from him. Way to go Mike! What will be next.

Almost new...

The weekend before last we were all over in the lakeside town of Southampton. It was very much a case of sun, sand, beer and one very good moth! It was mostly family time so I was more than content to indulge in rounds of mini golf, hanging out on the beach, swimming and going out watching run-of-the-mill local bands. But of course the moth trap travels with us wherever we go!

On this occasion I caught two examples of the moth above. The first was a bit worn, whilst the second one, depicted above, was quite fresh. I knew straight away it was a species I'd not seen before so it was with some anticipation that I leafed through what little reference material I had at hand. Not in there! Oh well, I would have to check the MPG website upon return home. It was easy to find and turned out to be the noctuid Striacosta albicosta, or the Western Bean Cutworm Moth. Great, I had some hope that it may be a new provincial record so I sent the photos off to the experts. Well, I was ever so close and would have had a new moth for Canada had someone else not beaten me to it last year on Manitoulin Island. Oh the ups and downs of the modern moth world - one minute yer up, the next yer down! Having said that I was still very pleased...

Dullsville, Toronto...

Last night was incredibly dull for moths! It wasn't too cold but I find that moth activity is highly restricted after heavy late evening downpours. One moth that did show up for the party though was this nice Oligia modica, the Black-banded Brocade. Is not uncommon or anything but I don't think it has appeared on this blog before. I like this moth. It has some character to it that is hard to define. At rest the wings are held in a concave manner, a bit like a semi-collapsed tent! The thorax and head are all lumpy and the pattern on the forewing rather cryptic. All in all it's an OK moth. I don't catch many of them here in the garden, in fact they seem to be low density wherever I go. The adults fly mostly in late July through August whilst the larval host appears to be unknown.

Return to Dickey...

Just back from visiting friends at Dickey Lake in Hastings county. Mixed weather meant mixed fortunes with the moths. First night being too cool and clear after heavy rain all day and the next night, though being much warmer was plagued with prolonged rain. Ya just can't win! However, my persistence paid off in the end. As I checked to trap on the second morning I noticed a smart-looking looper moth resting on the ground by the trap. Quickly jarred it turned out to be the lovely Syngrapha octoscripta shown above. A true beauty. I've always been of the opinion that a new looper is worth ten of any other types, though there are a few notable exceptions...

This species is not uncommon throughout southern and central Ontario but had always eluded me for some reason, was nice to catch up with it at long last so I could get a nice series of photos. The larvae feed on blueberry.

I did catch quite a few moths on the second night but the haul consisted mostly of micros with very few noctuids. It was nice to catch two other flashy loopers in the form of Diachrysia balluca and Syngrapha rectangula.

Otherwise we enjoyed the spectacular hospitality of our gracious hosts Cynthia and Alan, ate some great food, drank copious amounts of various liquids and generally had a great time watching the antics of the kids! Looking forward to returning next year...

The greenish one...

I've had a good run of new moths for the back yard of late, mostly micros but this lovely looper was a most welcome addition. It is Syngrapha viridisigma and I've only caught one before, only one day apart from this one four years ago in Southampton. Obviously this is a very local and scarce species in Ontario. The larvae feed mostly on pines.

It is rather plain and ashy-gray in general but has delicate darker lines and a glowing metallic lime-green stigma on the forewing.

I have been quite active of late on the moth front, but also very busy - hence the lack of posts. Will try to show you some of the recent highlights over the next few days...