Last July, Connor found a caterpillar which we thought we might try to rear by finding whatever food it wanted it. It didn’t take too long to discover that what it really wanted to do was bury itself in dirt, so we put some dirt in one of the kids’ buckets and left it inside a rearing cage on the porch. I took pictures and posted on bugguide.net, but wasn’t able to get an identity for the caterpillar.

Over the ensuing weeks, it was tipped over at least a couple of times by accident or when the wind blew the cage over – I wasn’t sure if that might be a problem for the cocoon (or is it called something else underground?), but figured it didn’t hurt to leave it out there. I was guessing that it would overwinter and emerge in the spring, but one mid-September morning the kids came in and told me there was a moth in the rearing pen on the porch and Rowan asked if I had put one in there. I told her I hadn’t and asked what the moth looked like. They said it looked like a woodchip. This didn’t inspire me to think that they had actually seen a moth, but I went down and took a look. Sure enough, an adult had emerged. I posted a picture of the adult on bugguide.net and was able to get an identification (with a little bit of a mixup due to mislabeled plates in the Moths of Western North America book I have). It was an American Swordgrass Moth (Xylena nupera).

They are found across the continent in a latitude band that includes Northern California to Southeast Alaska (though perhaps tending a little more southerly in the interior?). Larvae apparently eat many different things, and they overwinter as adults. It seems like a mid-September emergence leaves quite a long time for the adult to hang around until laying eggs in the spring. I imagine they must need to eat until the weather gets cold and they find a sheltered spot to spend the winter months.

I’ve never seen a moth like this before, and don’t really have any idea how common they might be around here, but it certainly was fun to have the mystery of the caterpillar identity solve. We decided to let this one go after watching it for a couple days. We put it out on the covered deck. Rowan checked on it from time to time, and it wasn’t too long before it flew off.

This moth is probably Ceranemota fasciata, a member of the False Owlet Moth family. I think it was attracted to the bug napper light.

A Northern Thallophaga (Thallophaga hyperborea) was resting on the kitchen window today.

Thallophaga hyperborea observed mid-May 2010.

In May Connor found and brought me this Thallophaga hyperborea which had been crawling up a stake he had pounded in the ground. It seemed a strange place to find a moth, but upon learning its identity (via bugguide.net) and reading a little about the life history, it made more sense.

Larvae of this species dine on conifers, including our local Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) and Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis) then spend the winter as pupa in the soil before emerging as adults in the spring. It seems likely this individual was just emerging when Connor found it.

Thallophaga hyperborea observed mid-May 2010.

Thallophaga hyperborea observed mid-May 2010.

Variable Carpet (Anticlea vasiliata) observed mid-May 2010.

Variable Carpet Moths (Anticlea vasiliata) are aptly named for their diverse array of color morphs. This May I photographed two different ones, to go along with one I photographed April 2009.

Information I’ve seen about larval food plants does not includes only raspberries, which many people raise, but they are not especially common. It is possible this species moved in with the introduction of raspberries, though I suspect they have other food plants that are native – perhaps salmonberries (Rubus spectabilis) which are abundant.

The photo which leads the post represents the least marked end of the spectrum for this species, with those shown below being perhaps more typical. Note the dark lines present in the relatively unmarked individual are also present on the other individuals, though the darker bands obscure them somewhat.

Variable Carpet Moth (Anticlea vasiliata) observed on Hillcrest Drive.

Variable Carpet (Anticlea vasiliata) observed mid-May 2010.

Pearsall's Carpet Moth (Venusia pearsalli) observed 6 May 2010 on Hillcrest Drive.

Connor and Rowan noticed this moth on the outside of my home office window, so I went out and took a picture of it. It’s been photo identified as Pearsall’s Carpet Moth (Venusia pearsalli) courtesy of Bob Patterson on bugguide.net, though it may be a similar looking closely related species.

The NPWRC account for Venusia pearsalli indicates that it is abundant and widespread in the wet coniferous forests of Western North America. The only larval food plant listed which occurs in the Sitka area is alder.

Small Phoenix (Ecliptopera silaceata) photographed 24 May 2010.

Connor noticed this moth resting on the side of the house. I caught it and brought it inside to photograph. The larvae of this species are said to feed on fireweed. As this is the first time I have noticed this particular species, I do not know how common it is around here. It is one of the more striking moths I’ve photographed so far, however.

Small Phoenix (Ecliptopera silaceata) photographed 24 May 2010.

Variable Carpet Moth (Anticlea vasiliata) observed on Hillcrest Drive.

A few nights ago after a relatively warm day, I noticed a moth on the window, the first one I had seen this year. I managed to capture it in a jar and got some photos of it. With help from bugguide.net, I got a likely identification of Variable Carpet Moth (Anticlea vasiliata). This species is typcially in flight from spring to early summer. I was interested to note that it did not seem as slowed by refrigeration as other moths I’ve capture. I suppose that’s probably helpful for an early season moth that might face chilly nights.