Mothapalooza is an annual conference sponsored by the Ohio Division of Wildlife. As its name suggests, the focus on the conference is on moths. Just like people who go bird-watching are said to go "birding," people who are on the lookout for moths are said to go "mothing." The conference is geared both toward the mothing enthusiast and the beginner. Activities included daytime field trips, in-house talks, and night-time moth viewings. Some of the daytime field-trips delved into other topics besides Read more ➜ Mothapalooza 2016: Learning about moths
Mothapalooza is an annual conference sponsored by the Ohio Division of Wildlife. As its name suggests, the focus on the conference is on moths. Just like people who go bird-watching are said to go "birding," people who are on the lookout for moths are said to go "mothing." The conference is geared both toward the mothing enthusiast and the beginner. Activities included daytime field trips, in-house talks, and night-time moth viewings. Some of the daytime field-trips delved into other topics besides Read more ➜ 
This little creature is my favorite moth. It's common name is actually the hummingbird clearwing moth (Hemaris thysbe). When I first saw one, I actually thought that I was seeing a hummingbird flitting about from flowers. But then I noticed the antenna.
In the above photo, you can see right through the moth's wings, hence the name "clearwing." However when it first emerged from its cocoon, the wings were a solid, dark red similar in color to the border of the wings seen above. The 
While hiking at Tar Hollow this past weekend, we spotted a Luna moth perched on a burnt tree trunk. After studying its photo I realized that we now had photos of both the male and female Luna moth, so I thought I would share with you how to tell the difference between the two genders, plus provide a little background information on this moth. However when I showed the photo to some other people, they were soon telling me that the moth looked like it was about two feet wide. So before going on, try 
When people go out looking for birds, they are birding, while those who are looking for moths are mothing. More amusingly, those who engage in mothing are called mothers; however, the word is often hyphenated as moth-ers to highlight its different meaning and pronunciation.
When we were invited to attend a private mothing event at the Wahkeena Nature Preserve, we decided to give it a try. We really weren't sure how to go about it or what to expect, but Robyn and Tom of the preserve, as well as 
A short while ago I did a post on the Mourning Cloak butterfly. One of the odd things about this butterfly is that it looks like it only has four feet, but it actually has six feet like most insects. It's just that the front two are tiny, little things that the butterfly holds near its body. Someone thought the fuzzy, front feet looked like brushes, so that's how an entire family of butterfly species became known as the Brushfoot family. Today I'm going to look at two other species that are members 
A few days ago, I was able to photograph my first butterfly of the year, a Mourning Cloak Butterfly. The reason the outer edges of its wings are frayed already is because it has been hanging out in Ohio all winter… well, not exactly hanging out. When it's very cold, this butterfly sneaks into a crack in a tree or some other little nook and hibernates there until it gets warmer. And it doesn't necessarily wait till spring. Whenever we are having unseasonably warm, winter weather, there is some chance 
Butterflies with elegant projections extending from their hind wings are known as "swallowtails"; the swallowtails can be seen clearly below. However as a butterfly ages, the outer edges of its wings start to wear away. The thin, little swallowtails are usually the first to go. So you may find yourself looking at a swallowtail species without seeing any swallowtails at all. The "tiger" part of this butterfly's name comes from the four black stripes that start at the outer, front edge of its wings
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