John at Kind of Curious tells us how the arachnid book lung evolved from that of the horseshoe crab.

Roberta at Wild About Ants shares some great photos and educates us about the life history of honey pot ants.

There’s the question of, why did I pick ants…? Why not butterflies or whatever? And the answer is that they’re so abundant, they’re easy to find, and they’re easy to study, and they’re so interesting. They have social habits that differ from one kind of ant to the next. You know, each kind of ant has almost the equivalent of a different human culture. So each species is a wonderful object to study in itself. In fact, I honestly can’t… understand why most people don’t study ants.

- E.O. Wilson, in Nova’s “Lord of the Ants” broadcast

Susannah at Wanderin Weeta embraces the Valentine’s Day spirit with a study of Copepods in Love!

Steve at Blue Jay Barrens has been following a population of Edwards’ Hairstreak (lycaenid) butterflies for over 20 years and was lucky enough last spring to discover a cluster of pupae being tended by their ant protectors.

The Lycaenidae offer an unusual opportunity to examine how herbivore enemies influence the evolution of larval diet. The association of lycaenid butterflies with ants is generally perceived as a protective measure against larval and pupal enemies, particularly parasitoids, an extremely common aspect of lycaenid life histories….. Six of the 10 subfamilies associate with ants, and to the extent that these groups are natural, there is a notable distinction in generic diversity between vascular plant-feeding groups with and without ants. The two plant-feeding subfamilies of lycaenids associated with ants have diversified to 368 genera, while the three non-ant groups contain only 24 genera….. The Lycaenidae represent nearly 40% of all known butterfly species…yet the ecology of their extraordinary ant relationships is not generally appreciated.

- Peter Atsatt (1981) Lycaenid butterflies and ants: selection for enemy-free space. The American Naturalist 118 (5): 638-654.

Ted at Beetles in the Bush goes after some endemic species and finds that Tiger Beetles Agree—It’s Hot in Florida!

Jill at Count your chicken! We’re taking over! finds a monster land snail during her trip to Trinidad and Tobago. Fortunately, it doesn’t appear to be the invasive Giant African Snail, Achatina fulica, that was recently found in Trinidad.

…[T]he Amerindians of Tobago itself and neighbouring islands had quite different names for Tobago. Two of these have been recorded in the documentary sources. In the 1620s the Spanish writer Vázquez de Espinosa noted that « Tobago is called Urupaina in the Indian language, meaning big snail », adding that the island is « inhabited by Carib Indians, who used to ravage the island of Trinidad » (Espinosa 1942, p. 57). In the mid-seventeenth century Tobago is indeed reported to be inhabited by Amerindians ethnically belonging to the Cariban-speaking Kalina, i.e. Caribs who formerly lived also in North Trinidad and still inhabit parts of the Orinoco Valley and the Guianas (Boomert 1986, p. 14 ; Pelleprat 1965, pp. 36, 83-84). This would suggest that the name Urupaina represents a Cariban word. If so, it may be related to oruape, a generic term documented in 1789 as the Kalina word for « large snail » (Anonymous 1928, p. 221). Consequently, it can conjecturally be suggested that, like the Spanish, the Kalina Indians were struck by the characteristic contour of Tobago, seen from the ocean, which reminded them of the outlines of the large marine gastropods to be found in the Caribbean.

- Arie Boomert (2001) Names for Tobago. Journal de la Société des Américanistes 87: 339-349.

Michelle at Rambling Woods updates us on how this winter’s weather may be affecting the overwintering Monarchs.

Discover showcases the work of Massachusetts-based photographer and naturalist Samuel Jaffe, who takes stunning pics of caterpillars. The Discover gallery focuses on clever tricks of camouflage and other defensive maneuvers. You can also check out more of Samuel’s amazing photos at his Pbase site, by clicking through from the photo below.

David at The Atavism talks about finding a hungry robber fly in his parents’ yard.

Winged Highwaymen.  Without a doubt one of the most rapacious creatures is an insect that scarcely knows fear or caution, and that is ever ready to pounce upon a possible victim, no matter what the odds may be.  This most daring highwayman of the insect world is the robber-fly, or Asilus.

-Samuel Francis Aaron, from  “Winged Highwamen”, an article appearing in the “Nature and Science for Young Folks” department of St. Nicholas magazine September 1903, pp. 1034-1036.

Zen at Neurodojo wonders if crayfish can feel electricty?

And finally, be sure to check out the Circus of the Spineless site, home to this wonderful Carnival, then head over to Xenogere, and submit your posts to next month’s host, Jason!  Thanks for stopping by!

A note on copyright. Unless otherwise noted by a copyright or license attribution, it is my understanding that the artwork reproduced in this post is in the public domain.  The copyright status of the literature quotations may vary, but I share these quotations here in the spirit of scholarly inquiry and scientific understanding.  It is my goal to bring together the art, words, and photos of talented individuals from different times and places in the common enjoyment and appreciation of nature.  I have been careful to attribute each quote to its author, and I realize no financial or commercial gain from the appearance of this material on my web site.  It is my view that this constitutes fair use of the quoted material from each source.  However, if you believe that any quote in this post violates the terms of a copyright that you hold or represent, please notify me and I will remove it.

The Moth and Me is a carnival that provides a place for bloggers, moth-curious and moth-obsessed alike, to gather and share photos and stories of our adventures.  Despite the interest expressed by several bloggers with respect to the carnival, the response to Seabrooke’s photo quiz in the last edition was, well, underwhelming.  That, and the fact that she’s been involved in a move this summer has meant a slight delay in the publication  the 5th instar, er, installment, of The Moth and Me.  I wanted to help by hosting this brand new edition, complete with a plea for submissions from all of you closet moth photographers hiding out there in the new moon night of the nature blogosphere.  Check out the sweet banner you could have on your site right now!

Barefootheart at the Willow House Chronicles helped promote the last edition of this carnival (The Moth and Me #4) with a post that featured an observation of Virginia Ctenucha.  It would be great if more nature bloggers followed suit and took up the cause!

You see, if you don’t submit your posts, Seabrooke and I have to hunt you down and feature your post anyway.  And we don’t like doing that (we’d rather be mothing and we’re afraid we’ll miss some great posts).  If moths are a new interest, the first step is taking some pictures of them and getting a post up.  If Mike at 10,000 Birds could take a break from blogging about birds (and incinerating a giant fowl) to post some excellent photos of the Moths of Chicken Inferno 2009, you can surely post some pictures of moths from your porch light!

One of the great reasons to study moths is the thrill of seeing new species on a regular basis.  Natural Notes saw a striking Clymene Moth for the first time and posted a nice photo here.  The number of species of moths that most of us can find at our back porch light far exceeds the number of species of birds that come to our feeder or visit our yard, so there’s seldom a shortage of beautiful new species for those willing to look.

John at A DC Birding Blog took the time to look at (and photograph) some Assorted Recent Moths.  Tom at The Ohio Nature Blog did too, in his post titled The Biodiversity of Moths.  Tom captured one of my favorite moths, the Arched Hooktip.  If you check lights regularly in the northeast, you’re likely to see this species.

Arched Hooktip by Tom Arbour at the Ohio Nature Blog

Doug at Gossamer Tapestry featured a late-night stakeout for the rare Leadplant Flower Moth and also shared with us a visit to that mecca of all things insect, the Magic Gas Station.  Keeping with the theme of looking for leps at other people’s lights, Susannah at Wanderin’ Weeta dared to explore the unknown reaches of the map outside of a country motel in Here be moths.  Her picture of a Glorious Habrosyne succeeded in shivering our lepidopterological timbers.

Glorious Habrosyne by Wanderin' Weeta

“Field guides? Field guides?  We don’t need no stinking field guides!”  Eric of Bug Eric (he of Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America fame) explores pelage for camouflage in More moth fashions.

As we move into September, Brian at Calderdale Moths, Butterflies and Dragonflies reminds us that September 18-19, 2009 is National Moth Night in Britain.  This event encourages moth enthusiasts to observe moths across the country!  For more information, check out the official National Moth Night site.  Those Brits are way ahead of us in their work on insect conservation, and moths are no exception!  Martin’s Moths has featured lots of great moth posts lately, including this Rosy Rustic and a moth-related beer he discovered!  Jim at Norfolk Moths recently tested a unique method of transporting his trapping gear (and beer) to the field site.

Jim Wheeler's Mothing by Bike setup at the Norfolk Moths Blog

Another Brit, Rob Laughton, has recently started a gorgeous moth blog called Urban Moths.  Go check out his latest, August Moth Trapping, Part II.  If you haven’t had enough UK moths yet, check out Ben’s Essex Moths, which features photo-illustrated trapping reports.  I’m sure I’ve missed some of the great blogs on the British mothing scene, but hopefully they’ll submit posts to the next edition.

Now, for those of you who think that mothing requires late nights of sitting up bleary-eyed in front of a glorified tanning bed lamp, or roaming the  dark woods trying to figure out exactly which tree you painted the rotten banana-and-beer slurry onto at dusk, you’re only partially right.  Some moths are day-fliers!  Among the coolest of these are the hummingbird moths or clearwing sphinx moths of the genus Hemaris, featured at Robin’s Nesting Place.

Most caterpillars are moths in waiting (it takes some time and effort to eat that much), and you can find lots of them in broad daylight, when normal people are known to be awake.  In fact, rearing caterpillars in captivity is an important way to procure voucher specimens and establish hostplant relationships.  Nuthatch at Bootstrap Analysis takes us through raising silk moth and sphinx moth caterpillars in 100 hungry mouths to feed.  Martin of Nature in the Ozarks features a Cecropia Moth caterpillar and adult, while Seabrooke adds to the caterpillar frenzy with a nice image of a Banded Tussock Moth cat at The Marvelous in Nature.

Finally, I leave you with a photo of a stunning Sphinx moth caterpillar that I was lucky to encounter on my recent trip to South Carolina.  I’ll be featuring a few caterpillars, including another Sphinx species in an upcoming post right here at The Modern Naturalist.

Banded Sphinx (Eumorpha fasciatus) caterpillar on Ludwigia by Matthew Sarver

Thanks for reading The Moth and Me!

The upcoming edition: September 15, 2009
Submissions in by: September 13, 2009
Submissions to: sanderling [at] symbiotic [dot] ca or Host TBD

Interested in hosting the Moth and Me on your blog?  Sign up by contacting: sanderling [at] symbiotic [dot] ca

Happy Mothing!

The pinkish-violet blossom of spotted knapweed.

I first noticed knapweed blooming on our wildlife sanctuary property in Pennsylvania about five years ago, at the same time that I started to seriously consider the possibilities for habitat management on the site.  Knapweed control was one of my first projects on the property.  Since I knew that mowing was counter-productive (causing the plants to flower at a lower height), I decided to pull the knapweed by hand.  I’ve repeated the process for four years, and have eliminated spread of the plant while steadily reducing the seed bank at the main introduction site.  Because spotted knapweed seedlings assume a low-growing rosette form during their first year and don’t bolt and bloom until their second year or later, I’ve been able to track my success by noting a significant reduction in rosettes (a few dozen this year compared to countless hundreds during the first year of two of treatment).

Unfortunately, Spotted Knapweed is a highly favored bee plant, used heavily by native bumblebee species.  It’s always emotionally taxing for me to pull, bag and dispose of the knapweed with bumblebees crawling all over the blossoms as I work.  This brings me to one of my take-home messages in invasive species control and restoration: in degraded habitats, native species often rely heavily on invasive plants because the diversity of native plants has been reduced.  It is important to know what native insect and wildlife species rely on the invasive plant you are removing.  Then, when planning a restoration, try to plant (or enhance habitat for) native plants that provide resources at the same time of year as the invasive.  In my case, I’m working on restoring some meadows that will hopefully make up for (from a bee perspective) the eventual disappearance of my knapweed stand.

Spotted knapweed is an invasive plant, but is used extensively by native bumblebees

Since I’ve been working on this population for several years with a good deal of success, I thought I’d share a brief description of my spotted knapweed manual removal method.

Here are a few important points:

1. Get a good digging tool – I have tried various things – heavy clawhammers to grab and yank roots, various hand tiller/weeder/fork type things, etc.  I’ve recently settled on a well-balanced, heavy-duty, and inexpensive digging tool  (see the photo below) that I picked up at the friendly neighborhood home improvement warehouse.
2. Pull plants during their bloom period and before they’ve gone to seed.  Be sure to bag and dispose of the plants in a landfill, to avoid dispersing seed or root fragments.  A good rain just before (or even during) pulling makes the job much easier.
3. Be patient when pulling and learn to stop and dig more when you feel that the root is about to snap.  Pieces of root left in the ground will sprout the following year.
4. Don’t dig right at the base of the plant – you risk cutting through the root, which often twists to one side or another a few inches down.  Instead, loosen the soil about 5-6 inches from the base of the plant.

Here’s the process illustrated:

This is my tool of choice: a beveled, pointed blade on one end (used the most) and a straight blade on the other. The pointed blade sinks well into the shale soils where my infestation occurs.

Many stems usually radiate from a single root crown of older Spotted Knapweed plants. It's important to gather all the stems up to get a good grip on the plant for pulling.

Strike the ground about 5-6" from the base of the plant and loosen the soil, prying up with the tool while pulling straight up on the plant. Pulling at an angle makes it more likely that you'll break the root.

The root system should pull up cleanly if you loosen the soil enough and slowly pull upward on the plant.

The root crown can be quite broad on robust plants, or much smaller with fewer fibrous roots on stressed plants.

Please let me know if you have had success with other spotted knapweed control methods.  I have considered trying Milestone, a selective herbicide that is supposedly quite effective on both knapweed and thistles.  So far, I haven’t needed to resort to spraying though, since manual removal has been working well and at this point only takes me about a day each year to complete.  Now if only I could eliminate my crown vetch, smooth brome, and reed-canary grass this easily!