Of course, I find the catocala entrancing. Something about the hand of the pilgrim, the searcher joined with the subject; both ephemeral gifts of the universe to itself. Lovely.

Sugaring is worth a try, but I’ve been told it’s most effective in early spring and especially later in the fall, when there aren’t many flowers blooming but the nights are cooler. I gather you’ll get stuff the rest of the year but in lower numbers. The sallows and underwings, both attracted to sugar solution, are generally fall groups.

For some really great numbers/diversity, I’d suggest investing in a cheap $5 blacklight bulb from Home Depot or the like and setting that in front of a white sheet. Cheap, easy, but oh so effective. You can set one up at dusk and just pop out to check it every once in a while, in between doing other stuff, see what’s come in in the meantime. Main thing is just to make sure it’s in an openish area where the light can be seen from a greater distance.

Another localish moth-related blog you might find interesting is The Mothman: http://themothman.blogspot.com/