Moth season is in swing - and a new banner image!
Starting in April I began watching for moths on just about every night when it wasn't raining and I wasn't too tired. I either set up my black light, check my front porch light, or set up my brand new mercury vapor light in the back yard. We've also had five group moth nights in Norman so far this year, taking precautions by wearing masks and keeping the group small. I try to schedule these moth nights on warm and calm evenings. If winds are above 10 mph moths really just won't sit still on a sheet. We've had some tremendous success with species counts of 122 and 129 species on the last two nights! One night, in particular, seemed to be perfect. It had been raining for several days prior, which I think meant that a lot of pupa that may have been ready to eclose (hatch) waited until the rain stopped. When we reached the first dry and warm night there were more moths eclosing than would normally eclose on a given night. It's just a theory, but it makes sense to me.
The project is now approaching 1400 species, which is wonderful. With your help we're answering the question: How many species of moths are there in Oklahoma?
I have updated the banner image with a photo of a Common Lytrosis (Lytrosis unitaria) taken by Rick Parker. This is a beautiful large moth that looks like wood grain. Leah found one of these near Wellston, Oklahoma on Friday night. Then we spotted one at our most recent moth night near Lake Thunderbird on Saturday, and then Rick saw another one at his house on Sunday. Three consecutive days of Lytrosis sightings! It is fun to see observations roll in of certain species in different parts of the state about the same time.
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