July 24, 2022 - National Moth Week

The last week of July is designated as National Moth Week https://nationalmothweek.org/ ). So, I am sharing some of the moth photos I took so far this year at our lake home in northern Minnesota. All of these moths are new ones for me. Even though I have been photographing moths for several years, I have not seen or photographed these six species before.

This is a Dark-banded Owlet moth. It has a wingspan of ¾ to 1 inch. The preferred food for its caterpillar is dead and decaying leaves.

MothOwletDarkbandedPhalaenophanapyramusalisDunningLakeItascaCounty20220716

A Common Idea moth has a wingspan of ¾ to 1¼ inches. Some of the moths that we get in Minnesota are also found in other parts of the world. For instance, this species is found in Europe but is called Waved Tabby.

MothIdeaCommonIdiaaemulaDunningLakeItascaCounty20220716

This Citrine Sallow moth was identified for me by the folks at BugGuide.org. It’s quite small, about ½ inch long, but I wasn’t able to find any other information about it.

MothSallowCitrinePyreferracitrombraDunningLakeItascaCounty20220505.

A White-streaked Looper is an elegant looking moth. It is only ½ inch long. This species can be found in Canada and the northern states from North Dakota to Maine.

MothLooperWhitestreakedePlusiavenustaDunningLakeItascaCounty20220716

The Dark Metanema moth has a wingspan of 1 to 1¼ inches.

MothMetanemaDarketerminataDunningLakeItascaCounty20220610

This is a Spruce Needleworm moth. It has a wingspan of 7/8 inch. As you might expect from its name, the caterpillar feeds mostly on Spruce trees but can also be found on fir and pine trees.

MothSpruceNeedlewormHypsopygiathymetusalisDunningLakeItascaCounty20220716.