Author: Ceibatree

2025 Caterpillar Season – Virginia Creeper Sphinx

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Virginia Creeper/Hog Sphinx
Darapsa myron fam. Sphingidae (Hodges#7885)
Host plant: Six individuals were found on this date and location: grape (Vitis sp.)-5, Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)-1
Date found: 16, Aug, 2025
Location found: Council Bluff Lake, Iron County, MO
Notes: This one showing the autumn/pre-pupal warm/brown coloration. All other individuals found were green. This was found during the WGNSS joint Entomology and Nature Photography Groups’ outing to Council Bluff Lake.

2025 Caterpillar Season – Small Necklace Moth

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Small Necklace Moth
Hypsoropha hormos fam. Erebidae (Hodges#8528)
Host plant: eastern persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
Date found: 02 & 09, Aug, 2025
Location found: Trail of Tears State Park, Cape Girardeau County & BK Leach Conservation Area, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: Both common and specific names (hormos – Greek for ‘a chain’) refer to the necklace-like pattern of dots across the postmedial line of the adult moth.

Hypsoropha hormos found at Trail of Tears State Park on 2-Aug-25
Hypsoropha hormos found at BK Leach C.A. on 9-Aug-25

2025 Caterpillar Season – Radcliffe’s Dagger

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Splendid Radcliffe’s Dagger
Acronicta superans radcliffei fam. Noctuidae (Hodges#9226)
Host plant: black cherry (Prunus serotina)
Date found: ~09, Aug, 2025
Location found: Cuivre River State Park, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: Edit 2/Jan/2026. Science is learning and correcting our mistakes when possible. There have been no confirmed collections of A. superans in MO per Heitzman’s catalogue. The larva of A. superans looks quite similar to the penultimate instar of A. radcliffei, which I now believe this larvae should be labeled as. The primary differences are that A. superans will have black snowflaking on the head, whereas A. radcliffei will have this patterning in red. Another potential option is A. hasta, but I think less likely. All three are cherry/rose specialists. That said, it would not be out of the question for A. superans to be found in Missouri. If any who may have found this post has reason to disagree with my determination, I’d appreciate hearing from you.

2025 Caterpillar Season – Saddleback

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Saddleback
Acharia stimulea fam. Limacodidae (Hodges#4700)
Host plant: Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Date found: ~02, Aug, 2025
Location found: Trail of Tears State park, Cape Girardeau County, MO
Notes: Three caterpillars were found at this date and location. One was found on pawpaw (Asimina triloba) and two on sassafras (Sassafras albidum).

2025 Caterpillar Season – Harris’s Three-spot

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Harris’s Three-spot
Harrisimemna trisignata fam. Noctuidae (Hodges#9286)
Host plant: buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)
Date found: ~16, Aug, 2025
Location found: Franklin County, MO
Click here to see the adult moth
Notes: Part spider and part bird dropping, this caterpillar is absolutely astounding. Note the empty head capsules that the caterpillar retains with each successive molt. It has been shown that these caterpillars use these to thrash at potential parasitoid wasps and flies that approach while attempting to deposit eggs on their would-be hosts.

Special thanks to Eva Wiedeman who found this individual in her neighborhood and brought it to our WGNSS fieldtrip at Council Bluff Lake. Photographing this caterpillar was a prime objective for me this season. Now I just need to find one on my own and hopefully a larger 4th instar!

2025 Caterpillar Season – Walnut Caterpillar

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, mammals, wildlife, wildlife photography

Walnut Caterpillar
Datana integerrima fam. Notodontidae (Hodges#7907)
Host plant: Found on white oak (Quercus alba)
Date found: 09, Aug, 2025
Location found: BK Leach Conservation Area, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: This species hosts on hickories, pecans and walnut. On this date and location I found 16 similarly sized individuals all feasting on the same small hickory tree.

Datana integerrima (walnut caterpillar)

2025 Caterpillar Season – Greater Oak Dagger Moth

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Greater Oak Dagger Moth
Acronicta lobeliae fam. Noctuidae (Hodges#9238)
Host plant: Found on white oak (Quercus alba)
Date found: 09, Aug, 2025
Location found: Cuivre River State Park, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: Our second largest dagger moth species, the erroneously named A. lobeliae is a specialist feeder on oaks.

2025 Caterpillar Season – Lost Owlet

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Lost Owlet
Ledaea perditalis fam. Erebidae (Hodges#8491)
Host plant: Found on buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)
Date found: 09, Aug, 2025
Location found: BK Leach Conservation Area, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: I found quite a few of these caterpillars while looking through buttonbush hoping to find Harrisimemna trisignata. I struck out on finding my target species, but was happy to find this one that I had not known about before. Of the three dozen or so individuals I came across, only a few of the largest, which I assume to be the ultimate instar, showed this bright fuchsia middorsal longitudinal band. All others were smaller and were plain green in color with no obvious lines or bands. I have noticed a propensity for buttonbush to show anthocyanin coloration in aging leaves as well as in galls produced by gall mites (Aceria cephalanthi). I suppose this coloration in the caterpillar could be something of a cryptic coloration to help blend into the leaves of a late-season buttonbush?

2025 Caterpillar Season – Giant Leopard Moth

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Giant Leopard Moth
Hypercompe scribonia fam. Erebidae (Hodges#8146)
Host plant: Found on herbaceous plant species (sp not recorded)
Date found: 05, Jul, 2025
Location found: Logger’s Lake Recreation Area, Shannon County, MO
Notes: Early instar. Later instars look much different.

2025 Caterpillar Season – Tawny Emperor

2025 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Tawny Emperor
Asterocampa clyton fam. Nymphalidae (Hodges#4562.1)
Host plant: Found on hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)
Date found: 09, Aug, 2025
Location found: BK Leach Conservation Area, Lincoln County, MO
Notes: Hackberry emperor (A. celtis) do not communally feed or house together in late instars as pictured here.