[ncsc-moths] Re: New Moths For NC ?
- From: kjchilds <kjchilds@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "ncsc-moths@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <ncsc-moths@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2011 19:06:11 -0700 (PDT)
MPG is working on range maps and they plan on combining sightings info from
BAMONA, BugGuide, BOLD and some other sources that I cant think of right now.
It's up to people like us to get our sightings entered on those sites so
they'll be included in these maps.
Ken Childs
Henderson, TN
Chester County
http://tinyurl.com/Kens-Moths-2011
http://tinyurl.com/Night-Creatures
http://www.finishflagfarms.com
________________________________
From: Jackie Nelson <ephemeropterae@xxxxxxxxx>
To: ncsc-moths@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Wednesday, September 28, 2011 8:54 PM
Subject: [ncsc-moths] Re: New Moths For NC ?
Parker, excellent post. Regarding a repository for all the mothing information
collected by pros and hobbyists, it's scattered across many databases,
including Bug Guide, MPG, County, etc.
I'm in the process of entering confirmed moths into NRID - NCs State Parks'
biological inventory database. http://149.168.1.196/Checklist/find.php
The moth checklist is incomplete, and you can only count moths found on park
property.
Is there a Lepidopterist Society or somesuch? A singular authority on moths
(range, rarity, etc) would be nice.
Jackie
NW N.Carolina/S. Appalachians
On Wed, Sep 28, 2011 at 7:49 PM, parker backstrom <dpbackstrom@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Hi, Paul.
>
>As Merrill can
attest to, and I, to a lesser extent, mothing with Bo is a blast. The guy
has forgotten more than I’ll ever learn, I’m sure!
>
>I was quite
surprised to read that Norape ovina and Leptostales rubromarginaria are thought
to have not been recorded in NC until now. I have had at least four
encounters with N. ovina (including three this summer). I don’t
recall how many encounters I’ve had with L. rubromarginaria as it’s
been a couple/three years since I’ve last seen it.
>
>I think this
illustrates very well how challenging it is to gain an understanding of the
moths of a given state, especially one as diverse as North Carolina.
There are a growing number of increasingly skilled moth observers scattered
across the state, but finding a given moth in a given location on a given date
sheds no real light onto the bigger picture having to do with that taxon.
I have had several discussions with both Bo Sullivan and Steve Hall about what
constitutes a “rare” moth in this state, which moths to report,
which to collect, and I can’t say I’m much clearer on the subject
today than I was before. Sure, there is a select list of taxa that
I’m “keeping my eye out for,” but what about all the other
“rare” moths that never came up in the discussions? The
“rare” designation, of course, is a relative one to a great
extent. Certainly some taxa are known or thought to be rare in a location
based upon a body of work put in by a given individual in that location.
There are regional considerations also. What’s rare in Watauga
County might not be rare in Chatham County, for example. More to the
point for this discussion, what any of us might not consider/know is rare (for
lack of any contextual understanding) might indeed be rare (see N. ovina as
case in point). Never when I saw this taxon did it occur to me that it
might be rare in NC. Why did I make this assumption? Why would I
NOT have? That’s my point.
>
>In short, knowing
what is worth reporting and what is not is a real challenge. Given the
paucity of context or understanding it seems almost certain that one or more
taxa seen or photographed by one or more of us at some point was notably rare,
perhaps never have been recorded in the state previously. But honestly,
how are we really to know? Having a reasonably accurate set of range
maps—which would take years, or more accurately decades, to
develop—would certainly be a helpful starting place but even that would
still provide only so much information.
>
>There is no fount or
repository of comprehensive knowledge of which I’m aware, though
I’d be interested in people sharing the info source upon which they most
depend or find most useful. Short of independently-gained knowledge over
time, I’m not sure there is a clear cut answer to truly understanding
moth diversity in our state(s) and region(s). Moths are the most complex
natural history “thing” with which I’ve ever become involved,
by leaps and bounds. Comparatively speaking, birding and butterflying is
a breeze. It is entirely possible to master the avifauna of a state or
region (identification, variation, range, behavior, diet, reproduction, timing
… ), for example, and in a relatively short period of time, but one could
live several lifetimes and still not develop a full grasp of the moth picture
even for a single state! But that’s what makes it all so much fun,
isn’t it?
>
>Lep on!
>Parker
>
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