Black Witch Moth - Laura Gillis

Black Witch Moth
Page 31 in my "Beetles, Bugs and Insects" Journal
Ink & watercolor in a Moleskine Watercolor Journal

I don’t really know why this is called the Black Witch because it’s not black at all.... it’s dark brown with some black details. It’s also got iridescent blue and pink there too. The lighter line that goes across the wings marks the female of the species. 

If you Google the Black Witch you will find all kinds of crazy stuff... In the Caribbean and Mexico it is believed that if the Black Witch flies into your house someone is going to get sick and die. (So glad I don't live there!) Another story is if the Black Witch sits above your door, you will have a winning lotto ticket. (Won't hold my breath on that happening!)

This is a huge moth with a wing span of 5.25 inches. It is mostly tropical but wanders far north, sometimes reaching Canada. (This one made it to North Central Texas.) 

Large numbers of the Black Witch have been known to travel in the eyes of hurricanes. Then, when the hurricane hits the shore, the moths fall out. To have survived this, the moths would have had to been flying continuously for several days! Amazing.

Leafroller Moth - Pam Johnson Brickell

I had to search back in my journals to see if I could shed some light on Kate's question of what type of insect will roll/fold leaves in here previous post here?

In the low country of South Carolina, I came across a Marsh Fern whose top leaves were rolled into a ball like shape.  I remember asking a naturalist friend of mine what insect would do this.  His reply... "A Leafroller Moth" - I remember thinking how funny. With all the huge scientific and hard to pronounce Latin names out there... how quaint to call a moth by what it does!  Ha Ha!

My insect book, Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, says leafrollers are in the family Tortricidae and that there are over 1,100 species in North America!

So, perhaps this is what you found, Kate?

Ornate Tiger Moth - Laura Gillis

I was feeling pretty confident about my tiger moth identification back in February but now I am not so sure. In February I wondered how they got the name Tiger Moth because I didn’t think it looked anything like a tiger but this time I can see where they were coming from. This one is an Ornate Tiger Moth.

I haven’t re-identified my first ‘Tiger Moth’ yet but I am working on it. I am re-posting the first moth here just in case someone has an idea of what it might be....

Ink & watercolor in the Moleskine Watercolor journal

Moths - Laura Gillis

Just a couple this morning....

A Tiger Moth. I'm not sure how this looks like a tiger but that was it's name.

And then the very bark-like Obscure Underwing.

Ink & watercolor in the Moleskine Bug Journal

Snow Bugs - Laura Gillis

While stuck in the house waiting for the ice and snow to thaw I got a few bugs done. This weather is making me anxious for spring and the first buzzings of insect life. I know, I will be regretting that statement when the mosquitoes start up but I am just really ready to get out for a while.

First is the Green June Beetle -- a pretty little stout-bodied beetle.

Next, I have two unidentified beetles. The first one I am fairly sure is in the Click Beetle group but the second one I haven’t found yet. He has pinchers up front and an extremely tough shell. (He was a challenge to get the pin through the thorax.) I don’t think he is an Iron Clad Beetle though.

This little Straight-Lanced Meadow Katydid is just tiny and cute... Only three quarters of an inch long from her nose to the tip of her lance. Earlier I had sketched and posted an older adult that was an inch longer but this one was just so cute I had to include her also.

And then there is the big honkin’ Sphinx Moth. 

I worked on this guy for several days and I never did get it to where it does justice to the real thing. I haven’t identified this one with the magenta spots yet but when I get to some hi-speed internet I plan to do some research on these. This was a beautiful moth -- the heavy body is 2.5 inches long and the resting wings are almost three inches wide. When I see these feeding on flowers I almost always think I have a hummingbird at first!

I hope you and yours are all safe and warm and riding out these winter storms!

All are ink & watercolor in the Moleskine Watercolor Journal

Pink Spotted Hawk Moth, Linda C. Miller

Pink Spotted Hawk Moth, Linda C. Miller
Originally uploaded by Linda C. Miller

In September, one of my fellow Virginia Master Naturalists had my husband and I over for dinner. Just before we were seated on the patio, I noticed something "big" flying in front of their Moon flower. It was this amazing moth and its very, very long proboscis was having its dinner too!

Hawk and sphinx moths are known to get its nectar from flowers with very long calyxes and the Moon flower has just that. In honor of this moment and should this be the pollinator of the gardenia in my garden, I painted this amazing creature made from a series of field guide references.
 Pink Spotted Hawk Moth
Agrius cingulata
Watercolor on 300lb Hot Press paper
Size: 5.5 inches wide by 4 inches highCopyright Linda C. Miller, 2010

Have a great day in nature, Linda


Linda C. Miller
Artist, Naturalist and Instructor
Williamsburg, Virginia

Sphinx moth - Elizabeth Smith

It was quite cold here right before Christmas (about 45 degrees Farenheit) at night. At first I thought this Sphinx moth was just lethargic from the cold; the next day I realized it was dead. I returned to collect it so that I could sketch a quick study, and was surprised to find parts missing within the space of an hour. Many little ants, beetles, and who knows what else were busy with dinner. They did leave me with a bit to draw, though.

You can click on the image above to view it on my Flickr photostream.

~ Elizabeth Smith, Naples, Florida, USA

A moth - Barbara Bacci

This morning I found this beautiful moth trapped behind the glass of my window. I could not resist its charm, so I put it in a box and sketched it. Of course, I let it go as soon as I was done. After a little searching, I discovered it's a Lasiocampa quercus, or Oak Eggar. It feeds on a variety of bushes, but not on oaks, and its name derives from the acorn shape of its cocoon. It'a a large moth, with a wingspan of 45-75 mm. This individual is a female, the male being a darker red-brown colour. Males fly during the day, but females only fly at night, so it must have been attracted to the light and then got trapped in the room.


Barbara Bacci, Italy

Are you a night owl or an early bird?

Chamaecrista fasciculata AKA Cassia chamaecrista - partridge pea - sleeping plant.
The leaves look a lot like mimosa pudica whose leaves fold shut when you touch them. However these don't do that although they do fold up at night. I love active plants!
Captain Lewis of Lewis and Clark collected this on the famous expedition on July 18, 1804, as he notes at "N latitude 29".

Webworm Moth

I never knew a webworm turned into this pretty little thing! He reminds me of a Tiffany lamp or some kind of stained glass work of art. This is an Ailanthus Webworm Moth -- the book said they build their webs in Ailanthus trees... I don't know what kind of tree that is, but I have seen webworms in our pecan trees before (but not yet this year). I had to sketch the top and bottom view on this one 'cause I thought both sides were pretty.

Ink & watercolor in the Moleskine Bug Journal.