"What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." -Aldo Leopold
Clemens’ False Skeletonizer
Acoloithus falsarius fam. Zygaenidae
Host plant: Found on wild grape (Vitis. sp.)
Dates found: 24, Aug, 2024
Locations Found: Schoolcraft Prairie, Washington County, MO
Notes: Will also host on peppervine and Virginia creeper
Stinging Rose Caterpillar Moth
Parasa indetermina fam. Limacodidae
Host plant: Nearly any native woody plant in the area
Dates found: 17, Aug, 2024; 14, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Kaintuck Hollow, Phelps County, MO; Schoolcraft Prairie, Washington County, MO
Notes: Stings from this species are relatively minor, reminiscent of that received from wood nettle.
Still plugging away at making sure photos that I only posted to Facebook for a couple of years do get captured here on the blog. These photos were taken in January 2019 on one special and frigid day at Lock and Dam #14 along the Mississippi River near LeClaire, IA. I do mean it was a frigid day. I believe the high for this day might have reached 3 °F.
I ran into a large colony of one of my favorite moths back in July. The specific name of Brenthia pavonacella (fam. Choreutidae) means “little peacock.” These little ones were displaying everywhere on my hike through Kaintuck Hollow and being very cooperative for picture taking.
Black-waved Flannel Moth
Megalopyge crispata fam. Megalopygidae
Host plant: This individual was found seemingly to be feeding on a Desmodium species. To my knowledge, this species has not been documented using these as host plants and have only been reported feeding on woody plant species.
Date found: 14, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Kaintuck Hollow, Phelps County, MO
Notes: Caterpillars from all members of this family possess hollow poison-delivering stinging spines underneath the seemingly soft and innocuous hairlike setae. A sting from this species will be downright irritating and painful and may require a hospital visit. Wagner discusses an Amazonian relative that reaches lengths of more than 8 cm and has reportedly caused human deaths.
Shagreened Slug Moth
Apoda biguttata fam. Limacodidae
Host plant: Found on white oak (Quercus alba)
Date found: 21, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Onondaga State Park, Crawford County, MO
Notes: Named for its resemblance to the bumpy texture of shagreen rawhide.
Shagreened Slug Moth
Apoda biguttata fam. Limacodidae
Host plant: Found on red oak species (Quercus sp.)
Date found: 5, Oct, 2024
Locations Found: Daniel Boone Conservation Area, Warren County, MO
Notes: Careful examination is needed to distinguish caterpillars of Apoda biguttata, A. y-inversum, and Lithacodes fasciola.
Red-fringed Emerald
Nemoria bistriaria fam. Geometridae
Host plant: Found on white oak (Quercus alba)
Date found: 7, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Kaintuck Hollow, Phelps County, MO
Notes: Although some reports suggest other host plants are used, it is likely that this species specializes on white oak.
This post is related to the rearing work I shared previously of the Orgyia leucostigma (white-marked tussock moth). During a caterpillar hunting outing with Sarah, I found what was obviously a cocoon of a tussock moth. I can’t say for certain it belonged to O. leucostigma, but it is likely. So, I photographed it in the field and brought it home, keeping it separate from the O. leucostigma cocoons that I was rearing that were collected from my yard. As time went on and the other cocoons I was rearing began producing moths, I figured something was going to be different with the one pictured below.
Checking the container on 6-October, I found this beautiful Orgichneumon calcatorius, an Ichneumonid wasp with a Holarctic range that is a parasitoid of moths in the Orgyia and Dasychira genera. After taking a few photos, I let it go in the backyard. After emerging, females of the species mate and then overwinter as adults utilizing crevices in tree bark. In the spring and summer of the following year, they look for new caterpillars to insert their eggs.
Small Necklace Moth
Hypsoropha hormos fam. Erebidae
Host plant: Found on persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
Date found: 3, Aug, 2024
Locations Found: Cuivre River State Park, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: Described by one of the fathers of entomology, German lepidopterist, Jacob Hübner.
A Thousand Acres of Silphiums 