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Post by coloradeo on Jan 5, 2017 13:20:57 GMT -8
Hi, I'm a Lep collector expanding ever so slowly into beetles as I pick up more and more that hit my light sheets. I caught a bunch of beetles this summer and am getting around to pinning several. I can handle a typical beetle pinning pretty well, my question is what to do with a beetle who dried with elytra that are hanging a bit outside of the outer shell. I don't want to open and spread these -- am I out of luck with getting these into a 'typical' pin config with the legs spread and the body put together? Did a quick search on the forum and don't think this is a repeated question. Thanks,
Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Jan 3, 2017 19:56:24 GMT -8
Hi all, I just pulled a couple Automeris io off the spreading board that I caught in Lee County Florida in late November this year. I was surprised by the strong brown/orange cast to the wings and also the variation in both the discal spot (top one dark and pronounced, bottom barely visible) and the pupils of the eyespots on the hindwings. I guess A. io is pretty variable as these look nothing like the yellow specimens I have from other locales? Thoughts appreciated. Thanks, Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Jan 3, 2017 19:09:28 GMT -8
Just got back from my "Christmas on the Isthmus" in Panama. Decided to head up to Mt. Totumas, which is a fantastic eco-lodge in the cloud forest of Western Panama. It has been written about on InsectNet, so I decided to give it a go since I was going to be visiting Boquete as part of my itinerary. I did not have a collecting permit for this family trip, but I did make contact with Jeffrey at Mt Totumas ahead of time and ask if he would be willing put out some lights while I was there -- which was no problem whatsoever! Jeffrey had two MV rigs setup on different sides of the lodge ready to go when I got there. Jeffrey also has a nice collection of about 16 boxes of fantastic Lepidoptera, mostly moths, just from Mt Totumas and a guided tour of his collection was a lot of fun and caused me to regret that I would not have more time to focus on the great moths of the area. I saw a couple saturniids, a few sphingids and some nice wasp moths I had not seen anything like. I'll post a couple photos here. If you get the chance to go, take my advice and check Mt Totumas. It's a beautiful spot and although I didn't invest too much in Leps this trip, I'd love to find a way to go back and collect or at least photograph more of the interesting fauna of this area. I think the saturniid is Copaxa syntheratoides (the other similar ones in WLSS were collected at the same spot). The sphingid, while apparently quite common, is a stunner and I believe is Adhemarius gannascus. Regards, Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Dec 31, 2016 5:27:37 GMT -8
Hypercompe permaculata seems like a representative Rockies arctiid unless you were going for something a bit more obscure?
Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Dec 11, 2016 18:11:34 GMT -8
Thanks for sharing. It will be interesting to learn whether the bulbs are any good! - Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Oct 7, 2016 20:47:45 GMT -8
I was inspired by this thread to make the trip to Arizona this year around the weekend of July 30th with my 13 year old son Nate. I solicited help from the experts on this site and received some absolutely fantastic advice. Even better, I met up the first night with evra and mswisher (and his Dad!) at Harshaw. Evan showed us the ropes, was an amazing "local" resource and better yet, was a real classy guy! Thanks so much Evan! Matt and his dad were incredibly nice people too. I could not have been luckier that to meet up with all these guys for my first night of Arizona mothing. Evan apologized (!) for the collecting not being the best, but I can safely say that regardless of it perhaps not being at the pinnacle of AZ collecting, my son and I could not fathom the diversity compared to the collecting I have done in Colorado and Wisconsin. If you haven't been, go if you can! We got rained out one night, but stayed out all night at Harshaw and Copper Canyon. I stayed in Patagonia which was very pleasant (for sleeping during the day . I held back on posting until I'd had enough time to sift through the hundreds of moths I caught and pinned a good variety from both sites. I am posting a photo and key of the moths I caught with my amateur identifications of the moths. I'd welcome any corrections or discussions on IDs I got wrong. I was delighted to catch 5 to 10 of both D howardi (and a female!) and S raspa, if not pristine specimens. The R cincta is a cheater as Evan gave me a couple from a nights earlier. Also, here's the key to what I think I caught. -- Eric KEY1 Catocala ilia
2 Eupackardia calleta
3 Dysschema howardi (male)
4 Eumorpha typhon
5 Euparthenos nubilis?
6 Diphthera festiva
7 Dysschema howardi (female)
8 Automeris iris hesselorum
9 Pseudohemihyalea edwardsii
10 Estigmene acrea
11 Manduca rustica
12 Eacles oslari
| 13 Sphingicampa raspa
14 Manduca sexta
15 Xylophanes falco
16 Estigmene albida?
17 Gloveria arizonensis (female)
18 unsure
19 Eumorpha achemon
20 Antherea oculea
21 Gloveria arizonensis (male)
22 Quadrina diazoma
23 Manduca florestan
24 Citheronia splendens sinaloensis
| 25 Lintneria separatus
26 Smerinthus saliceti
27 Crinodes biedermani
28 Sphingicampa montana (female)
29 Sphingicampa montana (male)
30 Lintneria istar
31 Sphingicampa hubbardi
32 Paonias myops
33 Manduca muscosa
34 Pachysphinx occidentalis
35 Erinnyis ello
36 Rothschildia cincta
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Post by coloradeo on Sept 22, 2016 5:59:46 GMT -8
It's been "warm" for September here in Colorado and about 5 days in a row with no catch -- I think I'll take the trap in for the season. I have been surprised to pick up a Catocala every couple days just in my backyard. Last year I only caught two species, but in eyeballing this year's catch, I think there are actually 4 or 5 species. I will post a few with top/bottom photos in the ID section in the next couple weeks and would love some help in IDing them. I find it very difficult to determine what are the key markings that ID Catocala. Thanks in advance.
Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Sept 1, 2016 13:12:19 GMT -8
I had 3 traps out in Northeastern Wisconsin for 3 nights... grand total of 2 Catocala. Bummer. Got home and there was one (C amatrix) on my screen door in Colorado. Half as many as I caught on my trip just sitting on my screen door. Doh! Trap out in my backyard again tonight. Seems like the weather is good. That is a bummer. I would have thought you would have done better. I am going fishing in the upper peninsula of Michigan next weekend. I am bringing my trap and some bait with me. I will let you know if I have similar luck. If they get a frost up there, there may not be much left. When do you think are the prime weeks for Catocala in Wisconsin up North? What have you found? Could be I hit a cold patch, but it feels like maybe I was too late?
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Post by coloradeo on Aug 31, 2016 19:32:58 GMT -8
I had 3 traps out in Northeastern Wisconsin for 3 nights... grand total of 2 Catocala. Bummer.
Got home and there was one (C amatrix) on my screen door in Colorado. Half as many as I caught on my trip just sitting on my screen door. Doh!
Trap out in my backyard again tonight. Seems like the weather is good.
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Post by coloradeo on Aug 23, 2016 6:35:29 GMT -8
I have been doing some bait trapping for the past couple weeks in Colorado in my suburban backyard and have been getting a Catocala or two every night -- all C. amatrix or C. hermia I think. Also about 10 million hornets, but no stings yet.
Heading out for a long weekend back to Northeastern Wisconsin, armed with bait traps and planning to sugar. Hopefully the weather and timing works out.
Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Aug 16, 2016 5:30:11 GMT -8
Amazing condition indeed for so far North, but I guess that's how it go there in the first place! The one I saw in Arizona this year barely had wings and the two I have caught in my suburban Colorado back yard have been in worse shape than that.
Has anybody ever tried to rear black witch? Maybe we don't have the food plants in the USA or it's a difficult one to get the ova? Seems like it would be amazing to have a few of those emerge at the same time!
Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Jun 9, 2016 7:48:36 GMT -8
Sweet, I'll add that to the list. Thanks Chris.
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Post by coloradeo on Jun 8, 2016 21:51:17 GMT -8
Well it looks like after a wet and slow spring, some of the moths in Colorado are coming out. I've been out a couple times with my lights, but the other night my son and I ventured out into the canyons near Boulder. It was a be a quick trip, say quit by 11:30 as it was a "school night" for me, if not for my son. We were rewarded with what I would deem a "flock" of Coloradia doris moths. I have not caught any Coloradia species before, so I was a bit stunned when about 15-20 showed up in the 2 hours we spent before we had to head in for the night. I didn't see a single other saturniid, sphingid or arctiid moth, but what a great night for the C. doris moths -- we literally had a couple nets with C. doris moths in them when another would fly up some of the time. I have not looked closely at all of them yet, but I think they are all males... I wonder if I had a female posted up in a tree next to my lights that was drawing them in? Whatever the situation, I'm glad the season has begun here. Apologies for the hasty moth picture, but I wanted to share one of these beauties and my light rig... If anyone is interested I'll toss a good mounted photo up in a couple weeks. Eric
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Post by coloradeo on Jun 8, 2016 20:57:44 GMT -8
That is an amazing haul! I'll have to drop down into New Mexico next year from Colorado. Would you be willing to share what part of the state you visited?
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Post by coloradeo on May 31, 2016 19:37:11 GMT -8
Sounds like an awesome trip! I'm planning to come down from Boulder only for the time around the field trips -- can't break away the rest of the dates, so maybe we'll just miss each other. Anyone else?
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