National Moth Week Events NMW at Umstead State Park, NC

NMW at Umstead State Park, NC

Brian Bockhahn sends this great post about his event at Umstead State Park, NC:

Ash Borer, Podosesia syringae

Ash Borer, Podosesia syringae

“More than 100 people attended National Moth Week events at Umstead State Park July 23-25, 2013.  There were two nights of watching moths, a sweep netting safari and a moth seminar for adult educators.  Some of the top moth experts in NC helped to educate people along with NC State Parks staff and volunteers.

Big Brown Bat, Eptesicus fuscus

Big Brown Bat, Eptesicus fuscus

One of the highlights of each night was doing a moth introduction while a colony of Big Brown Bats departed from their day time roost directly overhead!  Then armed with head lamps and flashlights participants searched for moths as they wandered around an array of light attractants and white sheets including spotlights, UV lights, mercury vapor lights, halogen lights and even a bug zapper with it’s electrifying grid disabled!

Cosmopterix pulchrimella

Cosmopterix pulchrimella

Big Brown Bat, Eptesicus fuscus

Suzuki’s promolactis, Promolactis suzukiella

Currently the moth list stands at 116 species for the three day period, with many new species for the parks database and many familiar species like Luna Moth, Imperial Moth and the Rosy Maple Moth.  Many other insects were observed including a wide variety of hoppers, spiders, spider wasps, wasps and all manner of assassin bugs!”

Two-striped Leafhopper

Two-striped Leafhopper, Acanalonia bivittata

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Rosy maple moths, Dryocampa rubicunda

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