Photo of an Automeris Io moth. © Bev Wigney
A nice photo essay about moths appeared in the Washington Post earlier this week. Along with the beautiful photos by Carla Rhodes, it touched on the often under-appreciated importance of moths to ecosystems of the planet. This one passage echoes a point I try to make when talking about the integral part that moths play in the scheme of all things – plant and animal.
“…..unfortunately, moths have remained out of the spotlight (so to speak) as one of the vital animal groups vanishing quickly. It is estimated that 90 percent of moth species have caterpillars that feed on only one kind of plant. Because of their strict diet, they are at great risk, relying on their plants to survive. Human-induced environmental change is an overarching cause, and the potential consequences are serious. The disappearance of moths is predicted to have a significant cascading effect that will lead to major losses of plants and animals that rely on them.”
I was pleased to see that the article ends with a call for all of us to pay more attention to moths, and even to participate in observing and photographing them, and to submit those photos to iNaturalist to help create a better understanding of species ranges and populations. There were also some nice comments about moths following the article. Anyhow, good read!
Beautiful photo, Bev. I rarely photograph moths because I’m no night owl! But perhaps I’ll try borrowing some of the techniques you’ve described in the past… hoping that iNaturalist’s AI can identify them because even with a good moth field guide, I’m usually stumped.
Thanks, Carol! iNaturalist has become pretty amazing at IDing moths from photos — even photos that aren’t super clear. It has taken a lot of the work out of IDing and typing in species names for my photos. I just have to check the more difficult IDs and even then, I’ve found it is almost aways correct in its suggestions, so do take some photos if you are up later in the evenings!!
That is such a beautiful photo. I haven’t been seeing very many moths here, but I don’t venture out much at night. I had forgotten that moths could be so beautiful.
Thanks, Robin. The Io moths are among my favourites — small but beautiful! I am always amazed by the complexity of the patterns on the wings of so many species. When I was a kid, I remember standing on the porch at our cottage, examining the many moths that would gather on the screen door, attracted by the lights indoors. Now, I realize how much things have changed as they used to cluster there by the hundreds. I never see such gatherings these days in spite of maintaining what I think is a very biodiverse property. I hope some day their numbers will return to what they once were.