Is this a Four Spotted Fungus Moth?
October 10, 2009
Hello Bugman!
This little fella spread himself out all comfy and cozy on my dresser!
Is this a Four Spotted Fungus Moth?
And if it isn’t – do you know what it is?
Thanks in advance for your assistance, Kristina
Raleigh, North Carolina – Kristina’s Dresser
Geometrid Moth
Hi Kristina,
This is not a Four Spotted Fungus Moth. It is some species of Geometrid Moth, but we are uncertain of the exact species. It might be a Barberry Looper, Coryphista meadii.
¶
Posted 11 October 2009
§
‡
°
Pearl Crescent
September 18, 2009
Hello, Dan & Lisa,
I have a few photos, and I know you can’t publish them which is okey-dokey,
One I do know for sure has been identified by the Minnesota representative for the Butterflies and Moths of North America web site as a Lesser Maple Spanworm Moth. If you go to that site, look on the map and you’ll see a little blue dot in Minnesota. That’s my moth!
The next one is a pearl crescent, I think, but I’m not sure.
And last, but not least is what I call, Big Daddy Bee, a Bombus auricomus. I love those gentle giants!
These were all in my front yard garden in Minnetonka Minnesota.
Anyway, I don’t recall seeing these on your site so I thought you might enjoy my photos.
Take care
Laura
Minnetonka Minnesota
Lesser Maple Spanworm Moth
Hi Laura,
We will be posting all of your images, but we are going to do them as distinct posts and we will edit your letter accordingly for subsequent postings since having three different species from different categories in the same letter negatively impacts our archiving. As we don’t have any previous postings of Lesser Maple Spanworm Moths, Speranza pustularia, we are quite happy with that submission.
¶
Posted 19 September 2009
§
‡
°
Moth
September 8, 2009
Just would like to know what kind of moth this is. Live in south Alabama. Took the picture in late August.
Linda
South Alabama
Tulip Tree Beauty
Hi Linda,
Despite the lack of clarity in your image, we are nearly certain your moth is a large Geometer known as a Tulip Tree Beauty, Epimecis hortaria. We quickly identified it on BugGuide. BugGuide indicates: “Large geometer. Scalloped outer margin on hindwing. Variable pattern. Typical pattern is whitish background with black zigzag lines. Two other forms: “dendraria” has broad median and subterminal lines, and melanic “carbonaria” is blackish with white edging on parts of lines.“
¶
Posted 08 September 2009
§
‡
°
Black bug with white wing tips and red body
August 5, 2009
I shot this today, August 5, 2009, at about 6:35pm.
This bug caught my eye, because I’ve never seen anything like it.
I’m located in Tampa, Florida in the 33615 zip code.
The bug was sitting on my wall facing the east.
the wall is made of cinder blocks and it was sitting on one of the creases, so hopefully you can judge the size of it from that.
It is black and has white tips on it’s wings. The front part of it’s body is red and the rest is black to the tail.
It is a beautiful bug.
I’d love to know what type of bug this is, my daughter discovered while playing in the front yard.
Carlos B
Tampa, Fl (33615)
White Tipped Black
Hi Carlos,
This Geometrid Moth, Melanchroia chephise, goes by the very descriptive common name of White Tipped Black. According to BugGuide, the caterpillar is called a Snowbush Spanworm.
¶
Posted 05 August 2009
§
‡
°
what’s this NZ moth please?
Sun, May 24, 2009 at 1:03 AM
Hi, can you tell us what NZ moth this is? Found it in Tauranga in the evening. Very bright green with long tail. about 25-30mm long.
saskia
Tauranga NZ
Tatosoma tipulata? from Zealand Moth
Dear Saskia,
We haven’t had much luck identifying your unusual moth, but perhaps one of our readers can supply an answer.
Update: Mon, May 25, 2009 at 10:31 AM
Daniel:
Hopefully someone who is familiar with New Zealand moths can confirm this identification, but I believe this curious looking moth is Tatosoma tipulata (Geometridae: Larentiinae), or at least a species in that genus. The few online pictures are of dried specimens and the colors look more brown than green, but there are descriptions that suggest “greenish” coloration on the forewings. The long abdomen is the most curious and distinguishing feature. Dr. Robert Hoare provides a rather poetic and humorous description in The Weta 28: 56-59 (2004) .weta28_56_59 He notes that the Latin name literally translated means “Long body like cranefly”. Regards.
Karl
Dear Karl,
Thanks once again for assisting us in the identification of unusual exotica from far flung global coordinates. This ID sure seems correct to us. Perhaps you will have an opinion on the Brazilian insect with the feathery antennae we are about to post.
Daniel
¶
Posted 24 May 2009
§
‡
°
Thought you’d like these pix of winter moth larvae (Operophtera brumata)
Sun, May 17, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Here in eastern Massachusetts we are having a horrible infestation of winter moths for the 3rd or 4th year. Each year they get worse, and the damage to the trees around here is greater and greater. I know that you think that there’s no such thing as a bad bug, but I’m having a hard time finding good in these guys. My car is covered in their feces and the driveway has a thick slippery coating of caterpillar poop.
Anyway, we had a rain last night and quite a few got knocked out of the trees and took refuge under our cars. Not sure why they all huddled together, perhaps for warmth. It was not a pretty site when I backed the car out of the driveway…
G. Glater
Natick, MA
Winter Moth Caterpillars
Dear G.,
We needed to do a bit of research on the Winter Moth. BugGuide hasn’t much information on the species, and indicates of the genus: “small geometers with banded brown forewings and plain whitish hindwings. Range southern Canada and northern United States (extends further south in the Appalachians and Rockies) “ BugGuide has no images of the caterpillars. The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources Introduced Insects Page indicates: “Adult moths emerge in late November and can be active into January under the right weather conditions.” The University of Massachusetts Green Info page has a pdf on the winter_moth that indicates the species was introduced from Europe. In its own natural habitat, the Winter Moth Caterpillars probably have natural predators that feed upon them. It is also possible that in Europe, there are periodic outbreaks that result in a necessary food source for other animals. Thanks for sending your awesome images of this outbreak of an introduced invasive exotic species.
Winter Moth Caterpillars
a weird Australian moth
Fri, May 1, 2009 at 9:13 PM
Hi guys,
This is one of our more unusual moths, Pingasa cinerea (GEOMETRINAE , GEOMETRIDAE) in that it rests with its forewings uncoupled and pointed forward. At least it makes the ID fairly simple. Taken on the fixed glass pane of my back door, a welcome distraction from the house work.
aussietrev
Capricornia region, Queensland
Geometrid Moth
Hi Trevor,
We can always count on you to send us fascinating images from Australia. In searching for a link with information on Pingasa, cinerea, we were pleased to see your photos posted on an Australian Lepidoptera website that mentions: “Its claim to fame is its extraordinary resting posture, with forewings dislocated to point forward.”
Geometrid Moth
rss
