pbedell's Journal
Early this morning I got up around 1230 to photograph insects at my porch lights. This ichneumon wasp Acrotaphus wiltii has the honor of being my species #3000 on iNat. This includes species from everywhere. My yard list project is around 1300.
I stayed at this nice old farmhouse known as Bramble Hill, owned by the VSO, for two nights, and ran my light sheet. Weather was hot with no precipitation, so good for the insect light but not so much for me! Several of the moths and other insects were new species on my way to 3,000 on iNat.
It was wonderful to wake up in the early morning and hear Chestnut-sided Warbler and Indigo Bunting. Phoebes had their messy nest by the porch door and House Wrens nested in the gourd pottery.
This early Spring has been fairly mild, but very rainy and cloudy, so I don't have any early records to show for it. Today was finally sunny, but cool and rather windy. Powhite Park didn't disappoint as I saw a few insects and got photos of the cooperative ones. The Trout Lilies are starting to flower and Mayapples just pushing up.
I was pleasantly surprised to observe a couple of these Holcocephala calva in the front garden this morning while I was working outside. I saw two perched on the top of a tall spent lily near our front door. I now have two species of this genus present in the yard, as the H. abdominalis/fusca are still present in the garden patch near the driveway.
First night of moth week was so hot and sultry that it was difficult to be outside at the lightsheet, even at 10:00 pm. But I persevered for a while and got a few species, including a new one, the Gymnandrosoma, though it was a bit worn. The European Hornets are making things difficult, so I catch them in a jar as they are so disruptive.
On July 5th I noticed some of the tiny Robber Fly Holcocephala in a small area of our front garden. Today, July 14, I just counted nine in the same area. They especially like to perch on the tips of the Iris and ignore the dead stems of the spent lilies (that I haven't cleaned out).
Enjoying early days of retirement from the symphony. Took a 2 hour walk at Pocahontas State Park looking for asilids and anything else and enjoying the reasonable temperatures before it turns hot. Asilidae seem to be in short supply this year, have hardly seen any and I saw only two Neoitamus today. But I enjoyed seeing the Tachopteryx, some cerambycids, and the nice snipe fly. The moth photo is miserable, but a new species for me! I heard a number of breeding birds including Louisiana Waterthrush, Ovenbird, Acadian Flycatcher, Summer Tanager and Pine Warbler.
It was a beautiful, warm, sunny early spring day. Had some free time and went to Pocahontas SP to look for any early insects. I was rewarded with a couple of early records; Ischnura posita at the floating dock at Beaver Lake, and Ladona deplanata. I also saw my first Tiger Swallowtail though I couldn't get a photo.
It was a nice warm night and I set up my light sheet in the back yard. Checked between innings of the World Series (Cubs won the game). A good number of species came for the end of October. The Mea bipunctella was a new one!
Another warm evening at the light sheet. No flower moth this time, but I had up to six Dot-lined White Moths show up at nearly the same time about 9:45 pm. The Herpetogramma and Agrotis were both new ones for me. My iNat yard project keeps growing.
