Very Most Common Moths

[missourimothhunter]

It's now October 2012 and I still see some moths
on my porch under the light. Most of them are
dull brown or gray. Is there a smooth-loading
website which lists the most common moths?
It seems like so many sites have to do with
canada or england or places I can't even spell.
So I just mean: moths a man would expect to
find in America, and particularly the midwest.

I wonder as it gets colder say 50 degrees, if
hundreds of tons of moths just freeze to death,
like the herbs of the fields? Dying huddled up in
crevises in tree bark. It looks like a fat moth with
lots of fur on him would be designed to pull on
through some cold patches and maybe live awhile
into the Winter. Do they all die by World Series time.

[prillbug4]

Moth Photographer's Group. I have seen moths flying in snow storm in mid-December here in Peoria, Illinois. Many genera, like Lithophanes hibernate under bark during the winter months, and I have found them on warmer days when there is snow on the ground. We also have winter flying moths between February and March, and it's simply a matter of going from light to light to find them, or if you have a light on your garage, you can check that as well during those months. Many insects have glycol in their bloodstreams which can prevent freezing.
Jeff Prill

[missourimothhunter]

Sorry to take a month to reply, but I lost the thread and only
noticed your reply by googling myself. I still see 'trash'/miller type
moths on my Porch Light even after the temp has sometimes dipped
at night to 25 degrees, here in southern MO this Nov 26, 2012.
They seem to be dark and light colored 'loopers', mid-sized to small
moths --nondescript gray or brown. Each night, when the evening temp
remains above 60 degrees, they have a good activity on my porch light.
Sad to think of the billions of moths at close of summer who die like
the flowers in the old Lowell poem (Where are the flowers, the fair
young flowers...). Likely there may be many that science doesn't know
about that tuck into bark or slightly warm places and come on through
to next Spring.

[mikelock34]

www.daltonstate.edu/galeps/Thelistpage.htm#MICROLEPIDOPTERA