pauljudsons favoriter

A fantastic discovery by @jemredwood at the UV. One of only few records for the province, and first for the Hamilton Study Area. Great find and thank you for the viewing. This was a very merry moth indeed.

Silk-fastened sand tubes on the stems of Prunus pumila in sand dunes.

Whereas similar sand tubes observed here last month by @tyler_miller appeared fresh and intact, the tubes observed today were in disrepair. Quite possibly the constructors have matured given that the flight dates for the species in the area span July 16-Aug 23 (n=5).

Scholtens (1996) noted:

Prionapteryx nebulifera Steph.-Cheboygan, Emmet: 4-25 July. This distinctive looking species flies in sandy areas including inland jack pine plains and on the lakeshore dunes. Balogh has reared this species from sand cherry (Prunus pumila), on which it forms sand tubes leading from the substrate to the leaves of the plant. Daecke (1905) described this species making sand tubes on huckleberry and sand myrtle in New Jersey. Larvae retreat into the tube when not feeding.

Scholtens, B. 1996. Moths of the Douglas Lake Region (Emmet and Cheboygan Counties), Michigan: V Counties), Michigan: V. Crambidae and Pyralidae (Lepidoptera). The Great Lakes Entomologist
29(3): 141-160.

Reared from a late instar cat found on June 28th in folded, silk-bound uppermost (connate) leaves of Lonicera sp. (subgenus Caprifolium: dioica or hirsuta - both present at this site).

Caterpillar here: https://inaturalist.ca/observations/172733987

Specimen vouchered for @jasondombroskie.

Inside pitcher of Sarracenia leucophylla. This pitcher had three moths, another had two, and several had one. I coaxed this one out for photos with a long stem. After photos I placed it back on the lip and it backed down into the pitcher again. It never attempted to fly.
These plants are along the 2-mile "Wet Prairie Trail", east (across the road) of the parking area.
Exyra semicrocea lays its eggs inside the pitcher and the caterpillar feeds on the inside. This observation shows scarring by a caterpillar: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/151878233.
I observed a caterpillar on a flower stem along the park boardwalk: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/151877895.
The last photo shows the initial view of the three moths.