Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

What Came To Light

Moths spotted during the Macaulay Honors College BioBlitz in Green-Wood cemetery Saturday night:
Black-bordered Lemon Moth (Marimatha nigrofimbria).
Explicit Arches (Lacinipolia explicata).
The Gem, or Gem Moth (Orthonama obstipata).
Idia genus.
Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda).
White-speck (Mythimna unipuncta).
Same individual, showing the effects of different light regimes on the subject.
Greater Black-letter Dart? Opinions differ on iNaturalist.
Suzuki’s Promalactis (Promalactis suzukiella). A species native to Japan, Korea, and Taiwan that seems to have shown up here fairly recently. Small and showy, also a fast crawler.
Lunate Zale (Zale lunata). This was the biggest moth of the night (wingspan 40-55mm) while I was there, and it flopped and flapped all over, including landing on people trying to get a picture of it.
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Speaking of bringing to light, here’s an excellent article on the independent anti-fascist movement working to de-platform Trump’s Nazi’s allies on the internet.

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