Moth Night 2017

Well it was perfect weather in Cairns until a few days before the Moth Night, then it changed. Cool showers from the south dampened our night. There were 40+ people in attendance and even fewer moths!

This year we set up the light sheets in the Fitzalan Garden, just across the street from the Cairns Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre. It seemed like a good spot being adjacent to the Rainforest and the Boardwalk and  a few metres from a small pond.

Rain showers were intermittent but just enough to keep the insect numbers down. Peter Shanahan lead a few hardy souls down the boardwalk while others stuck it out at the lights.

We decided to try again after the new year, perhaps, at the Catanna Wetlands or the Crystal Cascades picnic area.

Here are a few shots taken by Buck Richardson of what did turn up.

 Amerila rubripes: Arctiidae

 Glyphodes canthusalis: Crambidae

 Manulea dorsalis: Arctiidae

 Thalassodes pilaria: Geometridae

Hyalobathra crenulata: Crambidae

I'm going back to bed!

National Moth Week

National Moth Week is a celebration of insects of the night. It started in the USA a few years ago and has spread to many countries throughout the world. It is celebrated in July-the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere when insects are most active. But here in tropical Queensland, we have an array of insects the year round.

Our moth night will be on 12 July at the Cairns Botanic Gardens. The evening will commence at 6.00 pm with a light refreshment and short talk. The light sheet will be set up across Collins Ave adjacent to the rainforest on the lawns. Bring a flashlight or a bicycle headlight and a camera. In addition to the insects that should be attracted to the lights, we can search the adjacent vegetation for other creatures of the night.

In the event of rain, we will have a bit of plastic covering the sheet. (Insects often fly in the rain). So bring an umbrella. In the event of a downpour, well we can study aquatic insects.

See you there on Wednesday 12 July.