Moth Night (guest post)
On August 15, Michael Kielb and I led our first Moth Night in Paradise, sponsored by the Friends of Whitefish Point. People gathered just before dark at Sawmill Creek Park on the north side of town where four light stations were set up to attract moths and other insects. We talked about moths and the rich species diversity that is supported by the native plants of the northern forest as the darkness settled on us.
Moths, just like butterflies, go through complete metamorphosis, egg to larva, pupa, and adult. As adults and caterpillars, moths represent a significant food source for birds, bats, and other forest dwellers. Researchers have determined that chickadees deliver 6,000 to 9,000 caterpillars to a single brood of young. Sometimes they even nest twice in a season, amounting to an unbelievable number of caterpillar meals. The tastiness of moths was confirmed by the American Toad who found one of our light stations and was sampling the smorgasbord of little critters attracted to the sheet by our UV lights.
The first insects to arrive Friday night were moth-like caddisflies with long antennae, which were abundant at our station close to the creek. Mayflies and a Pine Sawyer Beetle with incredibly long antennae also impressed the crowd. Then the moths started to arrive…
The aquatic larvae of mayflies are important fish food, and the adults emerge just as birds are feeding young in the nest. Photo by Susan Kielb.
The Northeastern Pine Sawyer Beetle is a wood boring beetle that uses dead or dying tree trunks. It is not of concern to foresters. The small white spot at top center of the forewings indicates that it is NOT the dreaded Asian Longhorned Beetle, which has not yet been found in Michigan. Photo by Mike Kielb.
The delicate Lesser Maple Spanworm Moth, white with orange spots along the leading edge of the wing, was our most numerous moth species. In contrast, we had just one Large Maple Spanworm Moth, our largest moth of the night. The prize for showiest goes to the beautiful Praeclara Underwing Moth. Its green and black forewings were dazzling enough, but those lifted to reveal bright orange-and-black banded hindwings. Its forewings are perfect camouflage on a lichen-covered tree trunk, while the bright flash of color from those hind wings could surprise a predator for the one instant the moth needs to escape.
The most dazzling moth-of-the-night award goes to this Praeclara Underwing. When it landed on the ground it revealed its stunningly bright hind wings. Photo by Susan Kielb.
Maple trees at Sawmill Creek Park host the caterpillars of both this Lesser Maple Spanworm Moth and the Large Maple Spanworm Moth, our largest moth of the night. Photo by Mike Kielb.
At least 25 human attendees of all ages were charmed and amazed by the night visitors until flashes and rumbles from the sky let us know it was time to close and take cover. We are grateful to Whitefish Township for allowing us to set up in the park, and Friends of Whitefish Point for making the arrangements and advertising the first Moth Night ever for this area.
-Susan Kielb, Moth Enthusiast
The UV light from the creek light station casts the onlookers in an eerie glow. At least 25 onlookers, both local and seasonal residents, as well as visitors from Michigan and out of state joined us to see creatures of the night that we rarely see in daylight. Photo by Mike Kielb.
Other News & Upcoming Events
We would like to thank everyone who helped so much in the last couple of weeks with Blueberry Festival weekend. We are honored to have such amazing volunteers & staff! Thanks to Jan & Curt Vogel, Jim Leitch, Susan Kielb & Holly Erickson for staffing the Friends of Whitefish Point table at Blueberry Festival. Thanks to Susan & Mike Kielb for hosting the first ever Moth Night, thanks to the Whitefish Township Library for hosting our Owls of Whitefish Point presentation, thanks to Blueberry Festival committee for the table space, and many many thanks to all of you who attended these events. Also important, many thanks to Raaen Mclean for removing the tree that fell on one of the owl nets last week during a big storm, allowing us to continue the summer owl banding!
Photos courtesy of Mike Kielb, Kerry Laycock and Nova Mackentley.
Visit the Owl Banding
Dates have just been added for visiting the fall owl banding! Folks are already signing up for spots in September and October. This is a great time of year to visit the banding since these events are quite a bit earlier in the evening than summer, and mosquitoes are not a problem. Details at: www.friendsofwp.org/visitowlbanding