May 10, 2020 - Florida - Insects

Here is a set of insect photos I took while we were in Florida during January and February of this year.

In the past year or two, there has been some concern about declining numbers of Monarch Butterflies. However, this winter, I noticed many more Monarchs than I remember seeing during our previous visits to Florida. Hopefully, they are making a comeback. This photo was taken near the home we rented on St. George Island.

ButterflyMonarchSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200204

While I was birding at Sand Beach Tower near Eastpoint, Florida, I saw this Queen Butterfly flying around and gathering nectar from the few wildflowers that were blooming. Queens are fairly large butterflies with a wingspan of 2 5/8 to 3 7/8 inches (67 to 98 mm). Their caterpillars look a lot like Monarch Butterfly caterpillars and both of them eat Milkweed leaves.

ButterflyQueenSandBeachTowerApalachicolaWMAEastpoint20200128

During February in northern Florida, many nights are too cold for moths to be flying around. During the evenings when the temperature did stay in the 50s, I turned on the porch light to see if I could attract any moths. When this pretty green moth appeared, I first thought it was a Wavy-lined Emerald, a species we also get in Minnesota. After examining the photo more closely, I noticed that the white lines on its wings were very jagged. Now I think it is a Southern Emerald, a species that is found across the southern states. It’s a small moth with a wingspan of 0.6 inches (15 mm).

MothEmeraldSouthernSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200204

This Withered Mocis moth was identified for me by someone at BugGuide.net. It would surely be well camouflaged if it landed on a tree trunk or in the leaf litter. It has a wingspan of just under 2 inches.

MothMocisWitheredmarcidaSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200218

Here’s another moth identified by someone at BugGuide.net. It apparently doesn’t have a common name; it’s described only by its Latin name of Episemasia solitaria. I couldn’t find any reference to its size, but I did discover that its caterpillar eats American Holly leaves.

MothEpisemasiasolitariaSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200218

This Black-tipped Ptichodis moth is reported to be common in the south. It has a wingspan of 1 to 1½ inches (28 to 36 mm).

MothPtichodisBlacktippedvinculumSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200219

A scarab beetle was also attracted to the light. Its name is Anomala undulata. About the only thing I could find out about it is its length; 0.3 to 0.42 inches (7.5 to 10.5 mm).

AnomalaundulataSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200218

Another interesting insect that appeared was this Southern Two-striped Walkingstick. This species can be quite variable in length; from 1½ to 3¼ inches (38 to 83 mm) long. It can be found year-round in the south from Texas to South Carolina. It is the most common “stick” insect in Florida. I read that it can squirt an irritating defensive spray, so I was glad I only took a photo and didn’t try to get any closer to it.

WalkingstickSouthernTwostripedAnisomorphabuprestoidesSalVidaThePlantationGeorgeIsland20200211