moth magic - an introduction to moths
DESCRIPTION
Moth Magic - An Introduction to Moths a brief into to the magic world of moths, looking at survival strategies of adults and larvae; ecosystem function; moth conservation and how to record mothsTRANSCRIPT
Moth MagicAn Introduction to
Mothsby
Dr. Roger C. KENDRICKC & R Wildlife, Hong Kong
founder:Asian Lepidoptera
Conservation Symposium
Introduction to Moths
• Diversity• Survival Strategies• Ecological Services• Role in Wildlife Conservation• Recording moths
Moth Diversity
• over 160,000 scientifically described species
• 150,000 to 200,000 thought to be awaiting description or discovery! (mostly in the tropics)
• many ecological niches and almost all terrestrial habitats occupied
• many species / higher taxa specially adapted to particular ecological niche, thus good indicators of habitat change, environmental impact or “quality”
Survival Strategies – Adult Moths
Mimicryplants & lichens: leaves, twigs, tree trunks, (colour and shape/posture) animals: mammal faces; snakes; unpalatable insects – spiders, wasps, bees, poisonous moths & butterflies; bird droppings
Survival Strategies – Adult MothsSound
detection of ultrasound to avoid bats; emitting sound to advertise unpalatability (Arctiinae) or pacify bees (Acherontia)
Colouruse of simple bold
bright patterns to advertise unpalatability
flash colours to surprise
Survival Strategies – Moth Larvae
Mimicryplants & lichens: leaves, twigs, tree trunks, (colour and shape/posture) animals: snakes; bird droppings
Survival Strategies – Moth Larvae
Concealmentcrypsis; leaf rolling; leaf mining; webs; stem borers; root feeders; nocturnal feeders
Colouruse of simple bold
bright patterns to advertise unpalatability
Ecological ServicesPollinationFood resourcesNutrient RecyclingPest control
Role of Moths in Wildlife Conservation
high biodiversity, high relative abundance and relative ease of identification make moths:1.a good group for monitoring effects
of ecological processes and factors that affect these processes
2.indicate habitats and landscapes likely to be of high conservation value
Role of Moths in Wildlife Conservation
good for “hands on” demonstration of ecological strategies and connecting with nature
Recording Moths
• Lights• Traps• Nets• Baits• Larvae
• Photography• Weather• Keeping
Records• Publishing
LightsMercury vapour (MV)Actinic (ultraviolet/UV)Light Emitting Diode (LED)Tungsten (Incandescent)Halogen
“Traps”Sheet – needs to be manned at all times. Good in the tropics Not good for abundance samples. Box – “Heath” and “Skinner” traps. Catch retention reasonable, but a long way from perfect.Bucket – “Robinson” trap most efficient design, but still well short of 100% catch retention. Large traps not very portable, smaller versions for use with actinic tubes more portable.
Other important methods• Rearing – essential to understand the
ecological role of each species. Takes time, manpower and lots of TLC. Will result in finding many species not recorded at light traps.
• Baiting – species specific pheromone traps, “sugar” or “mineral” or even other baits. Intensive effort, usually for only a limited number of species. Don’t always get the target audience!
• Netting – useful for diurnal and crepuscular species, also finding larvae (sweeping).
Photography
digital cameramacro functionclose focuscontrol of flashbest views to shoot for i.d.photo storage
WeatherLight trapping: avoid high wind & heavy rain; light rain / mist and warm conditions seem best; in HK night time min between 17°C and 28°C optimal; in UK between 8°C and ? (not warm enough) – in Singapore not much variation (so what happens if there’s a rise in temperature?)larval searching: avoid heavy rain (everything washed away!)sugar/bait/pheromone: calm weather bestSlide 16
Keeping Records• what was
recorded; • where
seen/collected;• when recorded;• who made the
observation;• who made the
id;• sight record,
voucher specimen (where kept), or photo;
• kept in notebook or on computer database;• submit data to
appropriate organisation(e.g. national or local nature society, biological records centre, global data centre - GBIF).
Publishing individual records of note or a species life history;summary of a single recording eventsite or area listschanges in species seen or phenology (long term data), distribution . . .
Why are moths magic ?
because . . . . Survival strategy:
colours; shapes; behaviour
Biodiversity: high species richness
Involvement: community and individual
Value: conservation, ecosystem and cultural
Acknowledgments:
AttendeesThank you
(Hong Kong)
Asian Lepidoptera Conservation SymposiaALCS3 - Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India, 2010;ALCS4 - Nankai University, Tianjin, China, 2012.
Moth Magic - Questions ?