Creatures that saw the light

 Black lighting for moths has been a lot of fun over the years, although since Marie's significant decline in her health and eventual passing, I haven't done any black lighting for the past two plus years. But in looking at various file folders with numerous moths shown, I have gotten back into it. So far I have been out to Rondeau, the only place I have done any black lighting in this current year, on five occasions, at three different locations. With the shorter nights, I usually put the lights on at about 9:30 p.m. and stayed until after midnight. On a couple of occasions I stayed out until about 2 a.m., and was tempted to stay until daylight, having an occasional nap in the vehicle if necessary. However the ongoing presence of mosquitoes was just enough to prevent any naps, so packed it in no later than 2. 

Each time I was out, I took anywhere from 125-200 photos, many of which were duplicates, but could easily be deleted once I got a closer look at them on the computer. Nevertheless, to date I have probably photographed about 150 species of moths, plus a couple of dozen other creatures that came to the light.

Here are some of the more colourful, even rare, moths that I got photos of. You can get a relative size of each one, based on the size of the weave on the sheet it was photographed on.

Abbreviated Button Slug Moth

Angle-lined Prominent

Angus Datana

Baltimore Snout

Basswood Leafroller

Bent-lined Carpet

Bicolored Pyrausta

Common Spring Moth

This next one is a member of the Crocus Geometer complex, and often cannot be identified to species based on a photo.

Dark-spotted Palthis

Dimorphic Tosale Moth

Next is an Elm Sphinx. Large moths such as sphinx and silk moths are always a highlight.

At the opposite end of the size scale is this next one, a Goldenrod Gall moth.

Green Leuconycta 

Next is one of the smaller silk moth types. It is a Pink-striped Oakworm Moth, and I am fortunate if I see even one every year, so it is definitely a highlight of the black lighting season.
 

Pink-shaded Fern Moth

Muzaria Euchlaena Moth

Lettered Sphinx Moth

Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth

Hickory Tussock Moth

Spotted Apatelodes Moth

Scarlet-winged Lichen Moth

Another medium sized silk moth, is the Rosy Maple Moth, shown next. This is more commonly seen than the Pink-striped Oakworm moth above, and I often see 4-5 of these in a season.

Purple-crested Slug Moth

Another highlight is to photograph a large member of the silk moth group. This one, a Polyphemus Moth, came in very briefly at first and never stopped fluttering on the sheet. This next photo of it is the best I could get at first, and is not entirely in focus, nor is it entirely in the photo. It left after a few brief moments, and then returned about an hour later, and even landed on my hat, my shirt and arm, kept moving and I couldn't get a photo of it.

It left again, and then an hour later it came back and landed quietly on the sheet, and remained until I was done for the night. 

Yellow Slant-line

White-dotted Prominent

Tulip-tree Beauty

Three-spotted Fillip

And finally, The Badwing.

Taking so many photos and having to process them is definitely time-consuming. I still have lots more already processed, and lots I haven't even started on yet. As the third week of July is considered National Moth Week, I may post some more, or at least feature some of the non-moth creatures that stopped by for a photo shoot.

 

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Some new insect species for Rondeau, and some regulars

 I've been spending a bit more time than usual, on the search for insects visiting things like goldenrods or sunflowers, and that are not well represented at Rondeau. In the process, I have come across some species new to the park, and some that are even endangered! Certainly one of the highlights is this Zabulon Skipper, a new butterfly species for the park.

In no particular order are some of the others, both common and rare to endangered.

Common Eastern Bumble Bee

Common Aerial Yellowjacket

Banded Tussock Moth

Bald Faced Hornet

This next one isn't an insect, obviously, but it is a first for the park. It is Conifer Chicken of the Woods, which is found predominantly on coniferous trees. This was on a fallen White Pine trunk.

Decorated Mop (second record)

Next is a quite attractive fungus called Golden Oyster Mushroom. It is not native however.

Another fungus is this one called Wolf's Milk.

Eastern Yellowjacket

Next is a large caterpillar, of the Elm Sphinx moth. While Elm trees are almost non-existent in Rondeau, it is also associated with Basswood so there are lots of them.

Fall Webworm caterpillar

Hickory Tussock Moth caterpillar

Lemon Cuckoo Bumble Bee

Spiders are of interest, although I don't seek them out all that much. When I wander the trails, or just through the woods, I frequently run into their webs! This one is a Marbled Orbweaver, sometimes found tucked into a rolled up leaf at the edge of their web...

...or sometimes quite obviously out roaming around their web.

This next one is an endangered species, known as a Metric Paper Wasp

Much more common is this Northern Paper Wasp.....

...and a Silver-spotted Skipper sipping on the nectar of this American Hog-peanut.

This next one is fairly distinctive, although small. It is a type of Tachinid fly, with no common name but a long Latin name known as Xanthomelanodes arcuatus. It is the first record for Rondeau. It doesn't have any formal status, although there are very few records across southern Ontario.

Next is a Tufted Cluster Fly, another first for Rondeau.

I'll wrap up this post with a couple of bird species. First is a Hudsonian Godwit that has been hanging around the Keith McLean Conservation Lands fairly reliably over the last few days. It is well away from the closest vantage point, so only distant photos are possible.

The muddy island in the middle of the wetland is popular for shorebirds, including the godwit, but it is also a popular hunting ground for a Peregrine Falcon. It swoops and dives at high speed and makes getting a good photo challenging. These next two are the best I could get so far.

 

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