"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
Birch Dagger Moth
Acronicta betulae fam. Noctuidae (Hodges#9208)
Host plant(s): river birch (Betula nigra)
Date(s) and location(s): 15 September, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: A specialist, hosting only on river birch.
Unicorn Caterpillar Moth
Coelodasys unicornis fam. Notodontidae (Hodges#8007)
Host plant(s): redbud, hackberry, willow
Date(s) and location(s): 30 August, 2025 – Tyson Research Center, St. Louis County, MO; 06 September 2025 – Babler State Park, St. Louis County, MO; 15-September, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: Previous to this year, I assumed this species was an oak/hickory specialist. This is obviously not the case. This species is polyphagous and I was surprised at how many I found on willows this year. Look closely at the upper right photo in this gallery for signs that this individual was parasitized.
Blinded Sphinx
Paonias excaecata fam. Sphingidae (Hodges#7824)
Host plant(s): Found on willow (Salix sp.)
Date(s) and location(s): 17 September, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County; 18-September, 2025 – Council Bluff Lake, Iron County, MO
Notes: I collected one of these to rear that has now pupated. Hopefully I will find a fantastic adult in the spring.
Viceroy
Limenitis archippus fam. Nymphalidae (Hodges#4523)
Host plant(s): Found on willow (Salix sp.)
Date(s) and location(s): 15 September, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County, MO; 16 September, 2025 – Johnson’s Shut-ins State Park, Reynolds County, MO
Notes: This species is visually similar to another bird dropping mimic, the closely related red-spotted purple (Limenitis arthemis). Although phenotypic characteristics can be used to verify, host plants should be the primary resource used. In Missouri, the viceroy will almost always be found on willow, while the red-spotted purple is most likely to be the caterpillar on black cherry.
Gray Furcula Moth
Furcula cinerea fam. Notodontidae (Hodges#7937)
Host plant(s): willow (Salix sp.)
Date(s) and location(s): 15 Sep, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: The specific name, cinerea, is from the Latin “cinereus” (ashy), referring to the gray color of the forewings of the adult.
Curve-lined Owlet
Phyprosopus callitrichoides fam. Erebidae (Hodges#8525)
Host plant(s): Found on greenbrier (Smilax sp.)
Date(s) and location(s): 15 Sep, 2025 – Creve Coeur Lake Park, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: My favorite caterpillar species and one that I have not had the pleasure to find in over nine years! In all of the high-quality habitats I visit in Missouri during the late summer, I take the time to carefully investigate any greenbrier that I happen to find, always on the lookout for this magnificent creature. Imagine my surprise to find one in St. Louis County! Looking like it could have been the creation of Dr. Seuss or Tim Burton, this cat looks and behaves as though it might be a dead leaf or portion of a tendril of its greenbrier host. When disturbed, it will sway back and forth as if being simply a piece of detritus moving with the wind.
These guys are often found in brood groups. I made every effort to find others nearby but found none. I did find two large wolf spider nests very close (within inches) to the vegetation where I found this cat. Could this be why I found none of its siblings?
Dave and I found this Bay-breasted Warbler on May 20th this year at Creve Coeur Lake in St. Louis County. Always a pleasure to find a singing Bay-breasted.
Winter Wren photographed at Creve Coeur Lake Park.
-OZB
A Thousand Acres of Silphiums 