WGNSS Field Trips – A Thousand Acres of Silphiums

2026 Caterpillar Season – False Boneset Flower Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

False Boneset Flower Moth
Schinia grandimedia (Hardwick, 1996), fam. Noctuidae, P-no. 932095
Host plants: Hosts solely on false boneset (Brickellia eupatorioides).
Date found(s): September 12, 2026
Location(s) found: Don Robinson State Park, Jefferson County, MO
Notes: The false boneset flower moth was described in 1996, most likely due to the similarity of the adult moth to a close relative, the three-lined flower moth (Schinia trifascia). Thankfully, the caterpillars are easily distinguished between the two. Like many of the Schinia, the caterpillars of S. grandimedia feed only on flowers and developing seeds of its host and will almost always be found by looking for them on these tissues.

This species is more common in the great plains and has only a few records from Missouri. This one was found at Don Robinson State Park during a WGNSS caterpillar hunting trip.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Goatweed Leafwing

wildlife, macro, wildlife photography, WGNSS Field Trips, insects, Lepidoptera, 2026 Caterpillar Season

I shared photos of caterpillars of the goatweed leafwing last year. Last month, the WGNSS Nature Photography Group went to Don Robinson State Park in Jefferson County, MO for our annual late season caterpillar hunt and found quite a few of these guys on thier croton host plants. I was pleased to get a nice photo of a couple of active late instar larvae pictured here.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Brown-hooded Owlet

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Brown-hooded Owlet
Cucullia convexipennis (Grote & Robinson, 1868), fam. Noctuidae, P-no. 931513
Host plants: Specialist hosting on goldenrod (Solidago spp.) and other Asteraceae family members.
Date found(s): September 12, 2026
Location(s) found: Don Robinson State Park, Jefferson County, MO
Notes: Due to the apparent lack of high concentrations of toxins in their hostplants that are sequestered by many lepidopterans for defense, the aposematic coloration exhibited by the brown-hooded owlet is potentially a case of Batesian mimicry. Although the specific model species has not been identified, caterpillars and other insects use yellow, black, red, and white color combinations to advertise their toxicity.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Fawn Sphinx

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Fawn Sphinx
Sphinx kalmiae (J.E.Smith, 1797), fam. Sphingidae, P-no. 890118
Host plants: Specializes in woody members of the olive family (Oleaceae), such as ash (Fraxinus spp.), and fringe-tree (Chionanthus virginicus).
Date found(s): August 16, 2026
Location(s) found: Loggers Lake Recreation Area, Shannon County, MO
Notes: The species epithet, kalmiae, is a misnomer that, unfortunately, has created a misunderstanding about the natural history of this species that continues to this day. Because of the name kalmiae, early entomologists assumed the moth’s main host was mountin-laurel (Kalmia), which are not even true laurels. In reality, field data has shown that the caterpillars heavily favor plants in the olive family (Oleaceae). The kalmiae name was given to honor Pehr (Peter) Kalm, an 18th-century Swedish botanist and apostle of Carl Linnaeus, and not in reference to laurels. The name Fawn Sphinx has been suggested and is now becoming more widely accepted.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Black-etched Prominent

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Black-etched Prominent
Americerura scitiscripta (Walker, 1865), fam. Notodontidae, P-no. 930030
Host plants: Feeds on members of the Salicaceae Family, including poplars (Populus spp.) and willows (Salix spp.).
Date found(s): 26 August, 2026
Location(s) found: Logger’s Lake, Shannon County, MO
Notes: The WGNSS group came upon the individual pictured here in Shannon County in August of 2026. When it realized we discovered it, we were in for a short but thrilling experience. The caterpillar arched its long anal prolegs over its back, extruded the yellow and red portions thereby doubling their length, and then thrashed them about wildly in an obvious attempt to threaten and dissuade us. Unfortunately, this act lasted merely seconds, and it could not be coaxed into a repeat performance after we had set it up for photographs. If this method of dissuasion does not do the trick, the caterpillar can spray acid from a gland in its thorax.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Green Leuconycta

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Green Leuconycta
Leuconycta diphteroides (Guenée, 1852), fam. Noctuidae, P-no. 932026
Host plant (s): Hosts on a variety of Asteraceae family members including fleabane (Erigeron spp) and goldenrod (Solidago spp).
Date found(s): 28 June, 2026
Location(s) found: Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area, Carter County, MO
Notes: Due to its host plant preferences, look for this moth in meadows, fields and prairies. If you plant native composite wildflowers, you may even have luck in finding them in your own backyard. The adult moth is a stunner and is often a popular subject when arriving at blacklights. It has received a common nickname in mothing circles—the “mint chocolate chip moth.”

2026 Caterpillar Season – Black-waved Flannel Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Black-waved Flannel Moth
Megalopyge crispata (Packard, 1864) P-no. 57a0038
Host plant: Not recorded
Date found(s): 16 August, 2026
Location(s) found: Loggers Lake, Shannon County, MO
Notes: In early to mid-August we found an abundance of these mid-instar black-waved flannel moth larva, literally dozens in this timespan. I got used to pretty much ignoring them, but recording them and the variety of hosta plants these generalists use. During a WGNSS trip, it was discovered that one of these was a bit more interesting than the others. In its downy white fluff, it held some sort of eggs. We pulled out the high magnification lenses to make sure we had a good chance at identifying these back home. Eggs of some parasitoid first came to mind, but these did not match anything obvious with those groups. After a Google session, we found these are most likely eggs of an assassin bug (fam. Reduviidae). It is unknown how or why the eggs found their way onto the caterpillar as assassin bugs typically oviposit on the surfaces of plants. Either the assassin bug chose a weird location to oviposit or perhaps the caterpillar collected these when moving about.

Mid-instar *Megalopyge crispata* larvae with Reduviidae eggs

2026 Caterpillar Season – Elm Sphinx

2026 Caterpillar Season, Caterpillars of Tyson Research Center, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Elm Sphinx (Four-horned Sphinx)
Ceratomia amyntor (Geyer, 1835) P-no. 890102
Host plant: Found on American elm (Ulmus americana)
Date found(s): July–August, 2026
Location(s) found: Carter County, MO, Ste. Genevieve County, MO; St. Louis County, MO
Notes: An excellent example of camouflage. The four thoracic horns aptly mimic the teeth on the margins of the leaves on which they feed. These larva spend most of their time hiding upside-down on the undersides of elm leaves. The pale, oblique lines leading from the stomata to the mid-dorsal line let them blend in with elm leaves that feature prominent pinnate venation on their undersides (see photo).

2026 Caterpillar Season – Witch Hazel Dagger Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Witch Hazel Dagger Moth
Acronicta hamamelis (Guenée, 1852) P-no. 931434.5
Host plant: Found on Ozark witch hazel (Hamamelis vernalis)
Date found: 15–16 August, 2026
Location found: Logger’s Lake Recreation Area, Shannon County, MO
Notes: The WGNSS Entomology and Nature Photography groups had a great joint overnight trip to Logger’s Lake this past weekend. Obviously, among the several entomofauna groups we focused on, caterpillars were high on our list. The species pictured here was one of our most exciting finds. During my studies of field guides and online sources to determine new caterpillar species to look for, the witch hazel dagger moth caught my attention. Southeastern Missouri has plenty of its obligate host plant afterall. However, after looking on iNaturalist a couple of years ago, I discovered there were no documentations of this species in our state. Checking with the Heitzman catalogue, I found that there was only one recorded observation in Missouri—from 1889! I still kept this species in mind; there were a few documentations in Arkansas and eastern Kentucky and Tennessee, and as I mentioned, the host is abundant in Missouri.

During our caterpillar hikes this past weekend, we were delighted to find seven Acronicta hamamelis larvae at various stages. I collected a couple to take home and hopefully rear to adults. The more advanced individual spent the next day feeding on my ozark witch hazel and then changed to its warm pre-pupal coloration. It has since made a cocoon and I hope to see an adult eventually.

*Acronicta hamamelis* larva in pre-pupal coloration

2026 Caterpillar Season – Luna Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Luna Moth
Actias luna (Linnaeus, 1758) P-no. 890072
Host plant: Found on pawpaw (Asimina triloba)
Date found: 28 June, 2026
Location found: Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area, Carter County, MO
Notes: While the adult luna moth does not feed at all, the larvae are highly polyphagous. The recorded hosts are plants in 18 families, utilizing mostly woody species.