Pollinators are those animals that give the invaluable service of helping plants reproduce and create seed or fruit that humans and others eat. There are many pollinators including bats, bees, beetles, birds and butterflies. The flower type, shape, color, odor, nectar, and structure vary and attract different pollinators according to the pollinators likes and needs. […]
moths
Identifying Common Butterflies – Photo Gallery
Identifying common butterflies is easier with photographs or drawings. I put together this photo gallery of butterflies. I took just about every photo either in my garden or around the Philadelphia area. As I take more butterfly photos, I will add to the gallery. Some of the butterflies have photos of larva and adult life stages. […]
Moths of Philadelphia: A Checklist
The moths of Philadelphia are an exclusive bunch, numbering only fifty-two species. The 52 species on this list are confirmed to fly around in theCity of Philadelphia (Philadelphia County). I am fascinated by moths, but I often don’t venture out moth-hunting. I can go in my garden at night, but for the last week […]
Clearwing Hummingbird Moth and Its Life Cycle
Stocky and fuzzy with a tail like a lobster, the Clearwing Hummingbird Moth sipped nectar from the purple flowers of the New York Ironweed.
Polyphemus Moth (Antheraea polyphemus) – luminous beauty
These photos of a Polyphemus Moth, fat and eating steadily, reminds us our the natural world moves with its’ own rhythm. Getting ready for fall, the caterpillar eats until must pupate one last time. This larva seems to be in its last instar or growth stage before wrapping itself into a cocoon. It will […]
Eastern Tent Caterpillar
While my naturalist training group was at Andorra Meadow in Roxborough, we took a walk through the meadows into a cool lush upland forest. The forest is located behind the Andorra Meadow area. This combination of meadow and forest side-by-side is an example of how the land of Philadelphia is naturally. The forest that we […]