Missed on a few target species this fall but you can never have enough Sedge Wren.
More Sedge Wren
Tag: Bill Duncan
2024 Caterpillar Season – Black-blotched Prominent
Black-blotched Prominent
Oedemasia leptinoides fam. Notodontidae
Host plant: Found on hickory (Carya sp.).
Dates found: 14, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Kaintuck Hollow, Phelps County, MO
Notes: Recently moved from genus Schizura.
Black-blotched Prominent
Oedemasia leptinoides fam. Notodontidae
Host plant: unknown
Dates found: 24, Aug, 2024
Locations Found: Schoolcraft Prairie, Washington County, MO
Notes: Found crossing trail. Potentially pre-pupal.
2024 Caterpillar Season – Spiny Oakworm Moth
Spiny Oakworm Moth
Anisota stigma fam. Saturniidae
Host plant: Found on post oak (Quercus stellata).
Dates found: 24, Aug, 2024
Locations Found: Schoolcraft Prairie, Washington County, MO
Notes: For a Saturn moth, this species is diminutive and overlooked but still quite stunning!
Savannah Sparrow
Savannah Sparrows have been easy to find this year.
2024 Caterpillar Season – Hitched Arches
Hitched Arches
Melanchra adjuncta fam. Noctuidae
Host plant: Found on unrecorded herbaceous plant.
Dates found: 21, Sep, 2024
Locations Found: Meramec State Park, Franklin County, MO
Notes: Both larvae and adult forms are stunning. Sarah impressively found this cat walking along trail. Its positioning and camouflage, making it look like crinkled senescing vegetation, was so effective it took me quite a while to find it even with Sarah pointing directly at it.
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
It’s been close to 15 years since I’ve had the opportunity to photograph one of my favorite bird species, the Buff-breasted Sandpiper. This one was photographed on August 31st at Confluence State Park. Thanks a bunch to Diane Bricmont who first pointed this out to us!
2024 Caterpillar Season – Clemens’ False Skeletonizer
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
2024 Caterpillar Season – Stinging Rose Caterpillar Moth
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.
Bald Eagles of Lock and Dam #14
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.
More Peacock Brenthia Moths
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.
A Thousand Acres of Silphiums 