இப்போது கடந்த நான்கு வார நான் ஒரு வாத்து சேஸ் மீது இருந்திருக்கும், ஒரு அந்துப்பூச்சி க்கான, விரைவாக Heliolonche. இது பிங்க் கலந்த முன் இறக்கையில் மற்றும் அதிர்ச்சி தரும் ஆரஞ்சு, சிவப்பு hindwings ஒரு அழகான சிறிய Noctuidae தான். இது மிகவும் அடிக்கடி சந்தித்தது இல்லை மற்றும் வடக்கு கலிபோர்னியா, மலைத்தொடர்களில் உண்ணும் சேர்ந்து காணப்படும் மட்டுமே Malacothrix floccifera – ஒரு CA ஆண்டு முழுவதும் தோன்றும் மலர். நான் skunked கிடைத்திருக்கும் ஒவ்வொரு பயணத்தின், இன்று வரை – நான் இரண்டு சேகரிக்கப்பட்ட! நீங்கள் நினைவு இருக்கலாம் என, என் முதல் வெளியே ஒரு மாதம் முன்பு இருந்தது, எந்த அந்துப்பூச்சி, ஆனால் மாதிரிகள் ஒரு அழகான தொடர் மற்றும் Adela பற்றிய புகைப்படங்கள் அந்துப்பூச்சிகள். கடந்த சில பயணங்கள் கூட Adela ஒன்று போல இருப்பவர்கள் அருகில் வந்து. உங்கள் இலக்கு கண்டுபிடித்து இல்லை போது அதனால் என்ன செய்ய? ஒரு சூரியன் எழுதுதல் பெற சில crummy புகைப்படங்கள் எடுத்து.
(கீழே தொடர்ந்து)
Not quite a moth.
No moth, எந்த அந்துப்பூச்சி, எந்த அந்துப்பூச்சி…
ONE MOTH!
இந்த எச். celeris is exhibiting typical flower moth behavior, sitting on the flower head plain as day. They actually stay like this all night on the flower (even if it closes up around them as some flowers do – which leads to them colloquially being known as “taco moths”… because the moth’s butt sticks up past the petals and looks like it’s in a taco). And this is exactly why I left my apartment at 6 am this morning to arrive by 8. If it is still cold out they don’t even twitch when you approach. மேலும், if they aren’t flying, it’s easy to survey an area for moths and know that you haven’t missed any. ஆனால், as soon as the sun warms them up, they become zippy bastards and vanish before you can even reach for the lens cap. This being the first moth I saw today I really didn’t make the effort to take a great image. Subjects have a nasty habit of flying away right after you get the good shot (நன்றாக, usually right before the good shot)… and I couldn’t risk losing the only specimen of the day.
Where’s the “like” button? Great pics and good commentary.
“No moth, எந்த அந்துப்பூச்சி, no moth…”
Ha. I lol’d.
It is a pretty little thing…
A colorful, day-flying moth that sits prominently in the center of flowers – chemical defenses?
இது ஒரு நல்ல கேள்வி, and it has crossed my mind before. There a lot of these small day flying flower moths that are clearly not cryptic yet I haven’t ever read about any chemical defenses or mimicry. I also don’t think of Malacothrix as a particularly noxious plant… will investigate.
சரி, now I have to post the latest mystery moth pics I took a few days ago. (4/30) Pretty please if you have a moment, check it out and render your sage opinion. !
Ted’s question has nagged me this week. I’ve never heard of anyone studying this, ஆனால்… Has anyone seen these flower moths under UV? See a related flower species under UV here: http://www.naturfotograf.com/UV_SENE_AQU.html. இருக்கலாம், while sitting on the bulls-eye, these moths become “invisible” to predators who see UV, such a birds. The added bonus for the moths is this might increase their chances of finding a mate which is attracted to the UV bulls-eye.
You have to be right about that Katie, I’ve been thinking about this too. I can’t recall any literature in reference to adult insect UV crypsis. There is some work in regards to caterpillars… but I’ll have to do some more digging. Birds are probably not the primary predator on these moths since their acute vision makes them incredibly difficult to approach in the daytime. ஆனால், most lizards see in UV and these flowers are just about at head level for most small reptiles (and there were a ton on site).
Sometimes, the light bulb just turns on.
So there is a monograph to this subfamily – and in there Hardwick (author) points out the counterintuitive crypsis of this moth! Instead of a good idea he postulates
அப்படி, he just assumes they are oddities because the flowers changed without them and they survived “possibly because of a decrease in predation pressure”.
Seems to me that UV crypsis is much more likely. மேலும்… I don’t believe that’s been shown in adult Lepidoptera. Add it to the list!
; ) Just make sure you credit me for this idea when you become the ruler of the universe, er… recognized expert on lepidopteran UV crypsis. I’m glad you looked it up. Please let me know if you find out any more info.