Catocala 2021

[bugboys3]

I thought it was time to start this seasons thread on Catocala.

The season started a little earlier for me than in the past. We took a family vacation 2 weeks ago to South & North Carolina. I brought along my bait trap and my light equipment.
I did manage to catch a couple of C. ilia & C. piatrix in my son's yard in South Carolina. We also spent 3 nights in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina. I did not see any Catocala
while there, but the light collecting in 2 nights was very good. I may post a list of what I caught after I get through mounting everything & identifying them all.

When we returned to Wisconsin I put my trap up in the back yard. Since them I have collected C. ilia, coccinata and a smaller one I have yet to identify. It looks similar to C. blandula or mira but is
slightly different. The trap has yielded some sphinx moths (S. abbottii, A. floridensis & D. myron) and several butterflies (A. celtis, A. clyton, N. antiopa, V. atalanta, P. comma & E. anthedon).

I am hoping for another good season. So far it has started about a week early for my area.

[bugboys3]

I have collected several species this past week in the trap and at lights I set up on Saturday. So far I have collected the following:
C. paleogama
C. micronympha
C. judith
C. ilia
C. ilia form conspicua
C. insolabilis
C. innubens
C. coccinata
C. relicta (This was a big surprise in my trap this morning. I don't recall seeing one this early in the season ever.)
C. serena

[trehopr1]

Oh’ my, you are indeed off to a good start up there in Wisconsin !

So much more wooded and rustic there…

Those are wonderful early captures of relicta, serena, and insolabilis.

I only just received a replacement 175 watt bulb for my set-up so now have
to give it a go ! I purchased an old stock bulb on EBay. New ones are useless.
I live in a suburban setting so captures are never numerous or all that varied
but, it’s just too much effort to go elsewhere and I have no portable generator.

[papiliotheona]

Saw Catocala sp. in the woods in Icehouse Canyon at Mt. Baldy, CA at the end of June, about 5300'.

[rayrard]

Catocala got started early with some flying in late June in CT. My prior earliest was around the 4th of July. We tapped 6 species in 2 tapping trips. So far the species seen have been:

C. ilia - very common tapping and light
C. epione - a couple tapping and several at light
C. ultronia - several
C. connubialis - dozens tapping but none at light
C. blandula - 2
C. coccinata - 1
C. crataegi - 1
C. micronympha - 2
C. sordida - 1 at light
C. similis - 1 at light

I reared out some muliercula from caterpillars but no wild adults yet.

[bugboys3]

Looks like you are off to a good start Rayrard. The moth quantities have really picked up this week. I had over 60 Catocala in the trap a few days ago with about 7 species represented.
to date I have noted the following:
C. ilia- (form conspicua and normanii) these are very common
C. insolabilis- probably the most common species so far this season
C. neogama- just starting
C. relicta- 1 so far
C. paleogama
C. innubens- fairly common
C. judith- dozens
C. serena- several
C. coccinata- 8 or so
C. blandula- 6
C. micronympha- several very fresh specimens
C. minuta- 2
C. unijuga- 2 just this week

I am a bit surprised I haven't seen C. ultronia yet as that one is usually plentiful and early season.

[boghaunter1]

Really unbelievable how many spp. & how early Catocala moths appear in the states! I was quite surprised to find my 1st Underwing of 2021 (a male C. unijuga) in one of my light traps (1,000w M.V.) yesterday, 14 July. Today 15th July 3 more male C. unijuga showed up in my traps.

As in the western/southern U.S. weather conditions here in central, eastern Sask. are incredibly hot & dry. Temps. the last 3+ weeks range from +30 to +37 C (86 to 99 F). While this pales in comparison to temps. in the U.S (117 F in Vegas, 120 F in Death Valley!!) these temps, are still too, too hot for us. Forest fires are breaking out all over our north (as in the states & W. Canada as well)… skies are blue with a smoke... scary situation... Farmers crops are burning up in the heat... higher yet food prices to come. Last major drought up here was in 2002.

John K.

[rayrard]

Catocala species continue to come in:

C. antinympha - 1
C. amica - light
C. palaeogama - 1 at light
C. lineella - many tapping today
C. innubens - 1 or 2 tapping

along with the usual ilia and epione

On a different note I am doing a collecting road trip to the east coast and up into the Appalachians (W. NC and VA). If anyone has any good Catocala spots in the east I could be interested. I want to find some cool southern species.

[exoticimports]

Jul 16, 2021 12:08:50 GMT -8 rayrard said:

Catocala species continue to come in:

C. antinympha - 1
C. amica - light
C. palaeogama - 1 at light
C. lineella - many tapping today
C. innubens - 1 or 2 tapping

along with the usual ilia and epione

On a different note I am doing a collecting road trip to the east coast and up into the Appalachians (W. NC and VA). If anyone has any good Catocala spots in the east I could be interested. I want to find some cool southern species.

If you see Tiger swallowtails, catch them. There are two species, appalachiensis and glaucus. If by chance you get appalachiensis they're needed for genetic studies.

Thanks!

Chuck

[rayrard]

Appy Tigers aren't done for the year already?

[coloradeo]

Had my bait trap out for the past week or so in Colorado. Got my first Catocala ultronia while I was gone for the weekend. Expecting it to pick up in the next 7 days -- that's about when I get a couple species starting up here. Looking forward to a good Catocala season!!! Eric

[rayrard]

Southern trip was quite poor for Catocala but it was rainy and I didn't tap very much because of travel times and the people I was with wanting to collect in better spots than bottomland forest in the shade! Bait also tends to suck in the humid south.

South Carolina: WeeTee Swamp
C. carissima
C. agrippina
C. lineella

South Carolina: Monck's Corner
C. myristica - 3
C. sappho - 1

C. ilia in NC

Poverty Creek VA - hotspot in 2019 was slow this time around
C. blandula
C. marmorata - only 1
C. ilia - several

The sappho and myristica were new species for me so I cannot complain, and getting marmorata again is only my second specimen

[bugboys3]

Catocala season has not slowed down here. Recent sightings include:
C. meskei
C. lineela
C. amica
C. obsura
C. parta
I am up to 20 species collected from the trap so far this summer with plenty more season left.

[jhyatt]

Rayrard, I've about quit trying for Catocalas in the TN/VA mountains this season... not finding enough to make it worth baiting. Only got a bunch of ultronias, and one single ilia (usually the most common here). I did take one single illecta, my first ever. Catocalas were very "down" in 2020 also. Butterflies, especially Papilios and Nymphalids and Colias are also scarce, although skippers and a few other things are abundant.

By Poverty Creek, VA, did you mean Poverty Hollow in Montgomery Co.?

Apropos' to appalachiensis, I've taken worn ones at Spruce Knob, WVA, in the first week or so or July in the past. But at slightly lower
elevations in TN, say 3500', they are indeed gone by then.

Cheers,
jh

[Deleted]

About Tapping……….

The term Tapping is a bit misleading. Here’s why. When out “tapping”, the idea is to actually visually examine suspect trees quietly. If no moth is seen, then one taps the tree w a net handle and tries to follow where the moth you didn’t initially see took off to…..usually another sort of nearby tree. This makes capturing it much more difficult as it has been alarmed and thus is much more alert to avoid your approach the second time.

So…..when I “tap” or sugar slop collect, my goal is to catch them upon initial approach when they’re more likely relaxed enough for me to capture it. Doing it w a net is next to impossible and also the thoracic fuzz often comes off while netting. Using a kill jar is abt 50% effective on a good day as they often smell the EA in the jar as you bring the jar slowly to it.

What follows are a few pics and a short vid of my Catocala capture device I’ve been using for years. The outer edge is cut w semi concave rounded edges to slightly conform to the roundness of the tree. This device is a large clear plastic modified jar. It has two trap doors that are inserted into appropriate slots, a lid from the plastic jar modified to have glued to its middle the kill jar lid. It’s clear so one can check the species/condition of the moth prior to either killing it or letting it go unharmed. Note that the edge between the walls of the plastic jar and the kill jar lid are sloped to a 45degree angle and smoothed so as to allow the moth to freely fall into the jar when the jar door is removed. The vid probably shows the process better than my typing it here.



The metal area is to give the jar strength and prevent wear cracks. The middle chamber is where the moth is when capturing.
1. Carefully put jar over moth on tree/slop.
2. Remove Tree trapdoor and put at tree most slot. The moth is now trapped in the larger viewing area.
3. If moth is to be kept, screw on the killing jar to the base.
4. Then tip jar vertically and remove the jar trapdoor.
5. The moth will fly around and eventually (in a minute or two) fall into the jar.
6. Return jar trapdoor to unit and wait a minute or so until moth tires/begins to expire.
7. Carefully remove kill jar from base of unit and put a reg. jar lid onto kill jar.
8. Put both trapdoors into the slot nearest to the back of the unit where the kill jar goes. This will result in the capture area being free for the next moth. I put Velcro tabs on the top of the trapdoors to keep them from falling out before, during, or after capture.

I always use my left hand to do the trapping on tree w my net at the ready in my right hand should the moth fly off at the last moment allowing me a desperate last chance swing of the net as opposed to merely watching it fly off. After I trap one, I drop the net and manipulate the trapdoors with my right hand.

More pics and a vid follow.