2026 Caterpillar Season – White Flannel Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

White Flannel Moth
Norape cretata (Grote, 1864) P-no. 57a0044, fam. Megalopygidae
Host plant(s): Found on redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Date(s) found: July, 2026
Locations found: Franklin County, MO
Notes: A caterpillar you want to keep away from exposed skin as stings from these guys have been reported to come with considerable consequences. At least this one has the decency to advertise the fact with some pretty aposematic coloration! Many thanks to Eva, who found a few of these and brought them for me to photograph. I have only found one of these caterpillars in my own hunting and that was nearly 15 years ago!

Steve’s Moths

insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

This past week I joined my friend Steve at his rural property in Ste. Genevieve County for some blacklighting and nocturnal caterpillar hunting. The cat hunting was amazing—probably the single best cat session I have ever had, with about 60 individuals identified of 30 unique species. That number does not include the dozens of early instars that I was unable to identify with certainty. Steve’s property has a lot going for it when it comes to attracting Lepidoptera. In addition to his mostly hickory and oak wood lot, he also has old hay fields that he is letting go more natural, with a number of native woody successions like honey locust and dogwoods springing up. Additionally, he has planted a nice diversity of native woodies on his property. This amounts to a lot of woody “edges” consisting of young and well establishing trees and bushes that lepidopteran females are on the lookout for. I’ll be sharing some of the caterpillars in the near future. Once in awhile we would take a break from hunting to check the sheet that I installed with a mercury vapor and UV bulbs. The diversity of adult moths attracted was quite nice as well. Here are the photos of some that I bothered to photograph.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Clover Looper

2026 Caterpillar Season, Caterpillars of Tyson Research Center, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Clover Looper
Caenurgina crassiuscula (Haworth, 1809) P-no. 930923, fam. Erebidae
Host plant(s): Unidentified herbaceous legume
Date(s) found: 24 May, 2026
Locations found: Tyson Research Center, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: The clover looper larvae is indistinguishable from Caenurgina crassiuscula (forage looper), and even adults can only be distinguished by close inspection of genitalia.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Skiff Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Skiff Moth
Prolimacodes badia (Hübner, 1822) P-no. 57a0065, fam. Limacodidae
Host plant(s): Found on ironwood (Ostrya virginiana)
Date(s) found: 2 August, 2026
Locations found: Don Robinson State Park, Jefferson County, MO
Notes: Skiff moths can be found in a variety of colors and patterns—from nearly pure green to containing lots of warm brown colorations that assist them in camouflage by mimicking necrotic spots on leaves. I thought the one pictured here was pretty enough to take some photos.

Larvae of the Limacodidae usually keep their heads protected within their thoracic segments. Here is a nice opportunity to see the head capsule of Prolimacodes badia along with those impressive dark mandibles.
It’s not everyday you can see the true legs of a slug moth caterpillar, but they do have them as you can see if you look closely at this photo. They provide little in regards to locomotion, but I assume they find some purpose for them.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Pandora Sphinx

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Pandora Sphinx
Eumorpha pandorus (Hübner, 1821) P-no. 890182, fam. Sphingidae
Host plant(s): Found on Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)
Date(s) found: 13 July, 2026
Locations found: Ste. Genevieve County, MO
Notes: I shared a red phase of this species last year. A couple weeks ago, my friend, Steve, shared with me the caterpillar pictured here, which is the brown, or “chocolate,” phase of the same species. So, I drove the hour to make sure I did not miss the opportunity to photograph another color of this impressive larvae.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Byssus Skipper

2026 Caterpillar Season, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Byssus Skipper
Problema byssus (Edwards, 1880) P-no. 77a0186, fam. Hesperiidae
Host plant(s): Found on eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides)
Date(s) found: 18 July, 2026
Locations found: Powder Valley Conservation Area, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: My first grass skipper cat! Byssus skipper caterpillars spend their time in cylindrical shelters typically made from one grass stem. Look for these in higher quality prairie habitats where their host plants are abundant. Due to loss and degradation of grassland habitat, the byssus skipper and most of the grass skippers are at risk. Although the byssus skipper has a wide range, it is not considered common in any state.

Black Terns of Quivira NWR – June 2026

birds, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife, wildlife photography

On a work trip to Kansas back in mid-June of this year, I found a few extra hours to visit the nearby birding wonderland of Quivira National Wildlife Refuge. The legendary spring shorebird migration was largely over by the time of my visit; however, I was pleased to visit during a summer when droughts were not nearly as bad as I experienced in previous summer visits to this location. I was able to actually find some birds during this trip, including: more shorebirds than I expected, fledgling Black-necked Stilt and American Avocet, Snowy Plovers attempting their second nests of the season, and the subject of today’s post—the Black Tern.

Add the Black Tern to the 50 or so species that make up my top ten favorite birds. Although this species shows up in eastern Missouri during migration, they are sporadic and unpredictable. So, whenever I find the opportunity to photograph these guys, I make sure to make the most of whatever opportunity I have. Black Terns nest at Quivira NWR, and some of the birds pictured here likely were on nests or already raising young.

The direction of the wind and angle of the sun where not to my advantage during the period these guys were close enough to get photos. I tried my best and I think these were worth the effort.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Bicolored Honey Locust Moth

2026 Caterpillar Season, Caterpillars of Tyson Research Center, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, wildlife, wildlife photography

Bicolored Honey Locust Moth
Syssphinx bicolor (Harris, 1841) P-no. 890024, fam. Saturniidae
Host plant(s): Found on honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos)
Date(s) found: 3 July, 2026
Locations found: Tyson Research Center, St. Louis County, MO
Notes: The caterpillar of Syssphinx bicolor can be confused with that of S. bisecta (bisected honey locust moth) that also occurs in Missouri. However, S. bisecta typically does not exhibit the magenta coloration in the thoracic horns and lacks red coloration in the subspiracular lateral stripe. These two species are among the few Lepidoptera species known to host on Kentucky coffee tree (Gymnocladus dioicus).

Penultimate instar larvae of Syssphinx bicolor
Ultimate instar larvae of Syssphinx bicolor
Syssphinx bicolor adult reared from larvae pictured above.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Harvey’s Prominent

wildlife, macro, wildlife photography, WGNSS Field Trips, insects, Lepidoptera, 2026 Caterpillar Season

Harvey’s Prominent
Litodonta hydromeli (Harvey, 1876) P-no. 930060, fam. Notodontidae
Host plant(s): Found on gum bumelia (Sideroxylon lanuginosum)
Date(s) found: 20 June, 2026
Locations found: Victoria Glade Conservation Area
Notes: I know I’ve shared this species on a number of occasions, like here, here, and here, but I can’t get enough of these fascinating little ones. Based on the antler-like prothoracic scoli and integument coloration and pattern, I believe these two, found during a WGNSS trip, are a third and second instar.

2026 Caterpillar Season – Snowberry Clearwing

2026 Caterpillar Season, Caterpillars of Tyson Research Center, insects, Lepidoptera, macro, WGNSS Field Trips, wildlife, wildlife photography

Snowberry Clearwing
Hemaris diffinis (Boisduval, 1836) P-no. 890204.5, fam. Sphingidae
Host plant: Found on both bush honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) and Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)
Dates found: 9 May, 2026; 27 June, 2026
Locations found: Tyson Research Center, St. Louis County, MO; Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area, Carter County, MO
Notes: This species seems to be able to host on any honeysuckle species found in Missouri, both native and exotic. There are not a lot of reasons for the modern ecologist to celebrate, but it genuinely brings me cheer when finding these caterpillars feeding on invasive bush honeysuckle and Japanese honeysuckle.