I nsect life Is winding
down for another
season. When I
compare it to last year it
almost seems we lived in a
different state. After the mild
winter I told anyone who
asked, that I was going to approach
the year as if I lived in Missouri. The
mild winter did set us up for a
potentially odd year — and then May
came. All 1 can say is the Insects
didn’t like it either. Last year was a
fantastic butterfly year; for 2002 they
didn’t get started until July. The
Mbnairchs were late and I did not see
near the diversity. But May did not
make the whole year. When the
southern part of the state became
invaded with the Beam Leaf Beetles
{Chrysomlidea - Ce r atom a
trifurcata), we had a high number of
Cicada Killers and both adults and
larvae of the Imperial Moth were
reported numerous time$. I think of
all of these as -more southern
critters. I heard an odd Cicada one

la TWs Issae...

Annual Meeting/Bug Bytes

Page 2

Winter Moths

Page 3

The Great Spider Bite

Page 4

Glowworms & Fireflies

Page 5

The Pest You Should
Learn to Love

Page 6

2002 In Reytew

by Phil Pellitteri

night that turned out to be
Tibicen prulnosa. We do not have
any specimens from Wisconsin in
our collection but it is found in Iowa,
Nebraska and Indiana. Michigan has
a great website that has the songs of
all the cicadas that you can use for
identification:

http://lnsects.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/

fauna/Mlchigan_Cicadas/Mlchigan/

Index.html

German Yellowjacket numbers
are way down. This made eating
outside in the fall much easier. The
spring weather slowed down the
Forest Tent Caterpillars, but the
number of “friendly flies,” the
sarcophagld parasite of tent
caterpillars, were high enough that
people were complaining big time in
the northern part of the state. This is
the insect that naturally controls the
tent caterpillars. Earwigs were there
but in smaller numbers than a
normal year. Soybean Aphid
numbers were down (good news for
the farmers). This may result in a
decrease in Aslan Lady Beetle
numbers this fall.

I had lots of questions and
samples of larvae of the Pandorus
Sphinx [Eumorpha pandorus) and
Hummingbird Clearwlng (Hemaris
thysbe) adults . It was a good year
for millipedes. I saw a lot of
Polydesmlda Millipedes. These
critters cire flatter and wider than the
normal round Common Millipedes
( Julids) and if you did not look close

at the two legs per segment
you might think they were a
centipede. There have been
26 species of millipedes
recorded in the state. The
biggest are the 4 in. long
Narceus which has red legs and
is as big around as your little finger.
Usually you see small numbers but I
even had a complaint of dozens
crawling around the Inside of a
building. Many millipedes live 2-3
years and the high numbers always
have cin organic matter source. Old
fields, pastures, and wooded areas
with decaying leaves are all
“breeding”' grounds. We usually see
lots of activity in the fall when they
go through a wandering phase, but
this year they were moving by early
July. Japanese Beetles continue to
spread and wreak havoc In peoples’
yards. We are finding as many as 50
grubs /sq. ft. in turf. The dry weather
in the southern part of the state will
slow them down in home yards, but
they will dp fine in watered lawns.

Now that the weather has
turned cooler, fungus beetles are
flying into homes and the orb web
spiders like Araneus and Argiope
Garden Spiders are out in force. It
was a good year for Jumping
Spiders. With spiders, anything that
is big or colorful must be poisonous
— right? This may be an artifact of
too much TV watching. It is a bit
early to announce the Insect of the
year for 2002. I will have to wait
until the third hard freeze, p}

Phil is the District Outreach Specialist at
the College of Agriculture & Life
Sciences, Dept, of Entomology, UW-
Madison. He is often heard answering
Insect questions on the radio.

The Wisconsin Entomological Society Newsletter is published three times a year, at irregular intervals. It is provided to encourage
and facilitate the exchange of information by the membership, and to keep the members informed of the activities of the organization.
Members are strongly encouraged to contribute items for inclusion in the newsletter. Please send all news items, notes, new or
interesting insect records, season summaries, and research requests to the editor:

Janice Stiefel, 2125 Grove Road. Bailey’s Harbor. WI 54202, (920) 839-9796, e-mail: Jstiefel@itol.com
NOTE: Please report any address changes to Les Ferge. 7119 Hubbard Ave., Middleton, m 53562. e-mail: ferge@chorus.net

Wisconsin Entomological Societu Newsletter — November 2002

BYTES...

Backyard and field
observations, plus
formation of interest.

From Kathy Presnell
Fish Creek. Wisconsin

My 8-year-old son, Ezra, and
I reared Monarchs this July and
August as part of our summer
home school project. In early
August we applied Frontline to our
dog to keep away fleas and ticks.

Shortly after this application,
emerging butterflies began to die,
even though the caterpillars had
been very healthy. It happened after
we had carefully handled them to
tag their wings for Monarch Watch,
which tracks the insects on their
journey to Mexico. The butterflies
would be fine when tagged, act
“drunk” in an hour and be dead
soon after. Needless to say, my son
was devastated and I was heart-
broken. We took the whole lot of
caterpillars, 30 or so, to our friend
Janice Stiefel’s home, where she
reared them without any further
problem. She was kind enough to
take over our tagging process, too.

I suspect that chemical
residue from Frontline was
responsible for this mortality.

particularly since I looked into the
killing agent (flpronil) on the
Internet and discovered that it is
used as a food crop pesticide in
Australia for a kind of butterfly
larvae pest. Frontline has been de-
signed to infiltrate flpronil into the
oil glands of mammals to protect
them for a month or so from
parasitic Infestation (a maximum of
120 days). Just like it says on TV,
the chemical turns your dog into an
instant Insect killing machine.
Apparently the same is true for
humans and, perhaps inad-
vertently, it works on 8-year-old
boys and 45-year-old women as
well — ^for we also were flea free.

Seriously, I am uneasy when I
think of any possible unac-
knowledged effect of the pesticide
on kids, pregnant moms and their
unborn babies (or anyone with
some kind of sensitivity). I realize
that I am not a scientist and this is
only a theory. However, I could
find no other reason in our home
for this Intense and instant
mortality. Please encourage those
who care about the fate of the
Monarch, to resist the use of
Frontline or any other chemical
pesticide around the butterflies
when rearing and tagging
them — regardless of how
“harmless** the product has been
marketed, -tife

Web sites: www.cropinfo.net.AnnualReports/l995/onion.htm and
www.bevondpesticides.org/inforservices/pesticldefactsheetsAoxic/&pronll.htm
and www.ace.orst.edu/infoMpic/factsheet^prpnll.ndf

Excerpts from an article in The Ohio Lepidopterist
regarding Gypsy Moth control.

Hocking County, OH “...Ecologist Dave Horn stated that
wide-area Gypsy Moth suppression has not been effective
in the past in the east (from experience In Massachusetts
in the 1950s and New York in the 1960s). He recognized
that there would be disruption in the forest ecosystem
from use of Bacillus thuringiensis] but that Gypsy Moth
defoliation would also have an impact, varying upon the
level of defoliation. As a landowner, Dave sympathized
with the plight of persons who might see their property
devalued if trees were 100% defoliated and millions of
large hairy caterpillars were crawling all over creation. He
advocated a “wait-and-see" approach, su^esting that
individual landowners take steps (including spraying if
necessary) to protect foliage in the event of defoliation. But

that large scale
spraying is not an
effective policy..

Will there be
area-wide defoliation due to the Gypsy Moth in Hocking
County? Probably, especially on ridge tops dominated by
oaks (the Gypsy Moth’s favorite leaf). However, an Ohio
Extension Agent said that Ohio’s forests are already losing
oaks due to decades of fire suppression. Will the trees be
killed? A few will be, if defoliation is complete and occurs
two to three years in a row. Will there be significant
impacts on tourism or the forest products industry in
Hocking Hill? There will be some negative Impact if and
when defoliation occurs, but the forest is resilient, as Is
tourism. The Gypsy Moth has been munching foliage in
New England since 1869 and the forests there are alive
and well, and so is tourism.. .’’ Used with Permission

Page 2

WES Annual
Meeting

and Photo Salon

November 16, 2002

W isconsin Entomological
Society’s Annual Meet-
ing will be held on Saturday,
November 16* at Russell Labs in
Madison (map and directions
appear on page 8). The meeting is
scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.

Insect activity of this past
summer will be discussed. With
questions encouraged. President,
Kerry Katovich will give ah update
on the status of the WES website
on which he is working. Nadine
Krlska will give a report on her
Masters Degree project on Scarab
Beetles of Wisconsin, which is
completed and ready to be
published. The meeting will
include the Annual Photo Salon.
Members having slides of
entomological subjects are
encouraged to participate in this
popular event. Each entrant may
submit up to five slides, labeled
with the subject and name of the
photographer. The slides will be
evaluated by the audience, which
will vote to select the winning
entries. A print of the first place
slide is awarded to the winner
and is also added to the display
in the Entomology Department
office. The photographer’s name
is added to the William E. Sieker
Memorial Plaque.

On the agenda is the election
of officers for 2003. Nominations
are welcome and can be made at
the meeting.

Wisconsin Entomological Societu Newsletter — November 2002

Page 3

O ne hot, sunny day late
in August, while
prowling the dunes with
my camera, I found the Llatris
flowers seething with activity.
Bumblebees and Sulphur
Butterflies worked over the
stalks: a few Monarchs, a Black Swallow-
tail, a Tiger Swallowtail, and a Frltillary
clung and probed, turning like pinwheels.
As I got closer, I observed big-eyed pale
moths fluttering amongst the petals and
stamens. The sun was blazing, and here
was a bunch of moths! They allowed me
to get within inches with the camera, but
as soon as the shutter snapped, they were
gone. They were sound-activated moths.

‘ It later turned out these were Corn
Earworm Moths, a type of Noctuld. They
reminded me of another moth revelation.
That started March 15, 2001, when the
temperatures were still in the 20s and
30s. During the night, furry gray or rusty
moths invaded the maple sap pails and
spiles. It was winter, and here was a
bunch of moths!

As the sap season went on, I
observed that these moths dropped like
the dead with temperatures below 32°F,
and became active again in warmth. I
began to And them all over in leaf litter
exposed by melting snow. I deduced that
they had been there all winter, and the

I sun’s heat on
dark, dead
Leaves had
probably
revived them.
Eventually the
moths were
identified as
Straight-
Toothed
Sallows and
Morrison’s
Sallows — ^both
Noctuids. This
got me think-

Stralght-Toothed Sallow

(Eupstita vinulenta)
Photo: Janice Stlefel. 3/12/96,
Sheboygan Co.

ing on a few things.

1. WOW — nature contains so much
exciting diversity, it's too bad we blind
ourselves to it with generalizations about
'‘how things are" Marguerite Holloway’s
quote sums it up:

“We have a lot of hubris about nature,
and when we find things we don’t
expect, it shows us that nature is more
complicated than we ever guessed, and
that there must be a lot more to Jind...”

Vinter Moths

by Jane Mingari

2. Noctuids are some amazing
moths.

3 . Hey, if these moths are sound-
activated, maybe they’re bat food
and have evolved to avoid bats.

4. Ah-hah, another insect to add
to the little list of those present
and active in winter here.

1 found out that Noctuids, also
known as Owlet Moths, are the
largest family of Lepidoptera, with
2,700 to 2,900 species in North
America alone. “Noctuld” comes
from Latin meaning “night owl.”
We know them well in the
larval form — they're the cutworms,
armyworms, and seml-loopers.
Insect guides consistently describe
them in such hostile terms as
“serious pests!” and “destructive]”
Most Noctuids are furry with
camouflage coloring of some
kind — shades of rust, brown, or
gray with squlggles and dots. They
can be fabulously well-hidden in
plain sight on the forest floor. This
color scheme suits an insect group
near the bottom of a food pyramid:
It’s one of their defenses against
sharp-eyed predators.

B ut what about that Corn
Earworm Moth, dining on
Liatris nectar in blazing
broad daylight? The moth was
whlteish and probably better
hidden by hlgh-contrast sunshine
than it would have been in
darkness, where white would catch
an eye. Daylight moth predators
are usually birds, and most birds
hunt by sight, so that seems to
make sense. But a white moth with
a hearing response — ?

It turns out that Once Upon a
Time... Noctuids were hunted by
echolocatlng bats. They still are.
Natural selection favored the
moths that could hear and avoid
the bats, 2 md Noctuids now have
ears in their thorax. But hearing
hungry bats didn’t always save the
moths. Those that developed other.

secondary resorts managed
to survive better. Some
Noctuids shifted to daylight
activity to avoid nocturnal
predation. Since it didn’t
cost them much to retain the
ability to hear, we still find it
in the white Corn Earworm Moth.
They still differentiate between bat-
like sounds, whether they need to
or not. One study, testing noctuld
responses to bat-like sounds,
found that If the noise is distant,
the moths “often turn and fly away,
whereas those close to the source
show zigzag and looping flight,
power dives, or passive falls”
(Miller & Surlykke p. 5/18 online).
When I snapped the camera
shutter that August day, I didn’t
notice which way the moth went

Com Earworm Moth

[Heltcoverpa zea]

Photo: Janice SUefel. 9/S/99. Door Co.

Moth coloratton ts variable.

when it disappeared from the
flower. 1 couldn’t find it in the air.
It makes me feel pretty dumb
thinking about it now. The moth
probably dove to the ground beside
my knees.

Winter moths intrigued me for
about the same reason — evolution
into the unexpected. My first clue
that Something strange was going
on was when I located the winter
moths in an insect guide. Instead
of something like “May thru
September.” the book listed
seasonal activity as “September
thru May” for northern states.

Yes, while other Lepidoptera
are emerging from a pupae in
Wisconsin, winter moths are laying
eggs. Their larvae have hatched
and are eating while other moths
are mating and laying eggs. They’re
pupating in summer, while other

Please see WINTER MOTHS. Page 7

Wisconsin Entomological Societu Newsletter — November 2002

Female Wolf Spider [Hogna helluo)
Photo: Jim Kalisch
University of Nebraska
Dept of Entomology

A s I approached the side
entrance of my son’s school
located in Delaware County,
Ohio in May of 2001, I could hear
the kids screaming. I rushed in and
quickly found out what all the
commotion was about. A large,
female Wolf Spider {Hogna helluo)
was on the floor.

I thanked the kids for not
stepping on her and said I would put
her outside. I told them that it was
not a good idea to pick up the
spider, rather I was going to use a
stick. I had been successful with this
method many times before and
didn’t think anything of it. I put one
end of the stick near her and she got
on. As I was stepping outside to fling
her onto the flower bed that was just
outside the door, she ran up the
length of the stick at a speed I have
never seen this species of spider
move, reared up, and sunk her fangs
into the back of my middle finger.
This all happened in a matter of
seconds.

The kids were very concerned

THE GREAT
SPIDER BITE

by Valerie Passoa

because they knew she had bitten
me. I did the best acting job
imaginable, trying not to yell out,
because the pain was excruciating. I
have a high tolerance for pain, but
this was really terrible. I stood there
and as calmly as possible said, “This
is why you should never pick up a
spider”. Ha!

When I flung the spider onto the
flower bed, she remained motionless
because of the cryptic nature of her
coloring against the mulch. I went to
the car and got a cup with a fitted lid
and scooped her into it. The spider’s
leg span was 5 cm and total body
length was 2 cm. I released her in my
yard later that day.

Two, tiny puncture marks were
visible on my finger and swelling
occurred for about two hours. If the
swelling had progressed or If I had
trouble breathing, I would have
sought medical attention. The
swelling subsided and I was fine.
Oddly enough, I have not developed
a fear of spiders. On the contrary,
after that experience, I now have an
even healthier respect for spiders
and figure what worse could happen,
unless I am ever bitten again by
Hogna helluol

Valerie resides in Powell, Ohio. She is a
member of WES, Vice-President of The
Ohio Lepidoptertsts, and a wildlife
biologist

“Can you imagine Halloween without a pumpkin, a tumbling
mountain river without salmon, or a sunrise without a chorus of bird
songs? None of these would exist without invertebrates. These diverse and
wonderful creatures— butterflies, beetles, bees, ants, dragonflies, spiders,
snails, worms, lobsters, and starfish, to name but a few — are at the heart
of a healthy environment, vital to life as we know it. They build the
stunning coral reefs of our oceans, give color to sparkling fields of
springtime wlldflowers, and serve as food for countless animals.

“Simply put, a world without Invertebrates would be
impoverished, and ecosystems would collapse. Yet despite their staggering
importance, environmental policy often overlooks these integral building
blocks of our ecological well-being...”

— The Xerces Society

An international non-profit organization dedicated to
protecting biological diversity through the conservation of invertebrates.

Visit them at &elr website: www.xerces.org
Used with Permission

Page 4

Wisconsin
Entomological
Society
Dues for 2003

Individual Membership
$5/00/yr.

Family Membership

$io.ooyyr.

Sustaining Membership
$15.00yyr.

Patron Membership
$2S,00/yr,

Please make checks payable to:
Wisconsin Entomological Society
send to Les Ferge
Wisconsin Entomological Society
7119 Hubbard Ave.
Middleton, WI 53562-3231

End-of-Summer

Poem

by Rowena Bastin Bennett

The little songs of summer
Are 2 ill gone today.

The little Insect instruments
Are all packed away:

The bumblebee’s snare drum,
The grasshopper’s guitar.

The katydid’s castanets —

I wonder where they are.

The bullfrog’s banjo.

The cricket’s violin,

The dragonfly’s cello
Have ceased their merry din.

Oh, where is the orchestra.
From harpist down to
drummer?

They’ve all disappeared
With the passing of the summer.

From Favorite Poems
by Helen Ferris
Used with permission

Wisconsin Entomological Societu Newsletter — November 2002

Page 5

Adult Male Glowworm

(JloworM and Fireflies

Text and Photos by Janice Stiefel

Adult Female Glowworm

[Phengodes spp.) Family: Phengodidae
Photo: 7/22/92, Sheboygan Co.

GLOWWORM

T his strange caterpillar-like insect
has taken ten years to identify. I
received a phone call one
morning in 1992 from Fred and Shirley
Horneck of Elkhart Lake. They had
found a caterpillar that actually ^owed
in the dark and wanted to know if I knew
what it was. Having no familiarity with a
creature like that, I had to see it. So 1
packed myself and camera Into the car
and drove over to observe for myself. At
the time, the only ID we could come up
with was the larva of a Firefly because it
glowed in the dark. The slide has been in
my files ever since.

This past spring my husband found
an Armadillo-like creature crawling on
the floor of our power shed. Not having
a clue as to its Identity, I sent the
specimen to Steve Passoa, National
Lepidoptera Specialist with the USDA in
Columbus, Ohio. When he identified the
Insect as the larva of the Firefly,
something clicked in my mind — the
“supposed" Firefly larva we had
tentatively identified ten years earlier in
Elkhart Lake. Something didn’t make
sense. If this Armadlllo-llke creature was
the larva of the Firefly, what was the
caterpillar that glowed in the dark?

Sending the slide of the caterpillar
to Steve Passoa revealed that it was
recdly the female adult of the Glowworm
Beetle [Phengodes spp.) and not a
caterpillar. The Glowworm Beetle
belongs to the Order Coleoptera
(beetles), while caterpillars belong to the
Order Lepidoptera (butterflies and
moths).

With that ten-year-old mystery
solved. I did a little digging into the life
cycle of the Glowworm. There are 25
species found In the U.S. and Canada.

Luminous caterpillar-
like females are found
in leaf litter, under
logs, and beneath
bark. The adult
male has wings;
distinctive, long,
12-segmented,
feathery
antennae; and
long, slender,
prominent
mandibles. As
you can see
from the sketch,
it doesn’t look
anything like
the female.
Even though the
books say the
males come to outside lights at
night, I have never seen this form
of the Glowworm.

The larva of this species feeds
on soft-bodied Insects and other
small organisms.

The descriptive Genus Name,
Phengodes, is from the Greek
word, phengo, meaning “to make
bright, to shine," obviously
referring to the adult female.

FIREFLY or LIGHTNINGBUG

Firefly Larva fPhoturis spp.)
Family: Lamp 3 nrldae
Photo: 4/15/02, Door Co.

JL m

ils is the Armadillo-like
creature that was a
. mystery until Steve
Passoa made a positive ID.

The night-flying adults
possess bioluminescence and are
often seen over meadows, along
streams and lawns flashing their
lights. Actually, they are not a fly,
but a soft bodied beetle. The
biolumlnescent organ is in their
abdomen, with each individual

species displaying a different
pattern. Most of their flashing
plays a role in courtship and is the
means by which the sexes
recognize each other. Luminescent
abdominal segments of the adults
are ivory or glazed in appearance
when not glowing. The adult eats
nothing, while the larva feeds on
insect larvae, snails and slugs. The
Firefly is named after a fly fabled
for rising from the fire.

One special summer night,
toward the end of Jime, thousands
of these spectacular beetles were
frolicking in our meadow,
resembling the remnants of a
fireworks display or falling stars
dropping down from the sky. It
was an awesome sight to behold
— one of those once-in-a-llfetlme
experiences. Perhaps a similar
encounter inspired this verse:

Fireflies

Little lamps of the dusk.

You fly low and gold
When the summer evening
Starts to unfold.

So that all the Insects.

Now, before you pass,

Will have light to see by.
Undressing In the grass.

But when the night has flowered.
Little lamps agleam, .

You fly over treetops
Following a dream.

Men wonder from their windows
That a firefly goes so far —

They do not know your longing
To be s shooting star.

— Carolyn Hall
Used with permission

Adult Firefly (Photurts spp.)
Photo: 6/21/02, Door Co.. WI

Wisconsin Entomological Society Newsletter — November 2002

Page 6

He Pest You Should

Learn to Loye

by Kristin Fischer

I n my days growing up in
central Wisconsin, during
my trip to the rain forests of
Belize and Guatemala, in my
summer in south-central Alaska, and
leading tours through the Ridges
Sanctuary in Door County one insect
has followed me wherever I go.
They’ll hover and hum around your
ankles on a warm summer night.
They swoop down from the lush
green canopy of the towering rain
forest. They explode from the alders
as you push your way up the
mountainside for a little afternoon
stroll. But, no matter where I am,
these little insects share a very
similar reputation: bloodsuckers

that should be killed in the largest
numbers possible and as fast as
possible. Mosquitoes really started
to interest me when I realized that
everyone hated them and I
wondered how an Insect that
everyone despises can still be alive
and thriving. They must have some
purpose in the bigger picture of
things. There are over 2000 differ-
ent species of mosquitoes that live
from the tropic to the arctic. But
honestly, what good are they?

In my search for Mosquito
nirvana I learned many interesting
things about the ‘111 bloodsuckers.
First of all, mosquitoes really are not
bloodsuckers at all — their main
food source is nectar. By eating
nectar they become pollinators and
that is a good thing ecologically and
economically for plants and food
crops. Only the female mosquitoes
drink blood and they only drink
enough to get the nourishment they
need to lay eggs: 5 millionth of a
liter. Mosquitoes are actually a very
specialized insect. As a member of
the fly family they have two wings
that enable them to fly fast and hover
like a helicopter. Their mouth parts
are fine-tuned drilling machines that
can go through any type of skin (even
reptile scales) and they tear up the
capillaries for easy drinking.
Mosquitoes secrete an anticoagulant

and even

saliva that keeps
your blood flowing
when they are
partaking in a little
meal. Most of us
are allergic to
mosquito saliva
and that’s what creates the itchy red
bump.

The small offering of blood we
give every now and then goes to
support a plethora of
creatures. Bats, other
S mammals, fish, birds,
reptiles, amphibians,
other Insects, like
dragonflies, all eat
mosquitoes. You can only
begin to imagine the
hysteria that would be
created in the food web ifl
you removed this one key
prey species! Many activities that
Involve getting eaten by mosquitoes
would no longer exist if mosquitoes
were eliminated. Bird watching,
fishing, and gardening are only a
few!

Finally, mosquitoes £ire useful
to our economy... not only for the
many ecological benefits, but look at
the support we give the mosquito
control industry. Look
i at all the jobs that would
"be lost if we no longer
needed repellent sprays,
creams, netting suits,
zapping lights, candles, and
everything else created to remove
skeeters. You can see that
mosquitoes play a huge role in our
everyday lives.

The role that mosquitoes play
is not Edways a good role.
Mosquitoes are often called the
world’s most deadly creature
because diseases carried by
mosquitoes sicken about 700 million
people every year. With the rapid
spread of the West Nile Virus across
the United States, mosquito-borne
illnesses are hitting a little closer to
home. In 27 states there have been
over 500 cases in humans and 28

Sketch by Kristin Fischer

deaths. This threat
makes killing
mosquitoes an easy
decision... but is it?
It seems like
spraying should
eliminate much of
the problem but in all actuality it
creates a bi^er one. Just like virus
resistance to antibiotics, mosquitoes
can rapidly develop resistance to
sprays created to kill them. Rachel
Carson provides great insight to this :

“The reason I say they {sprays} are
self-defeating is that insect
populations very quickly develop
resistance to chemical sprays. This
nullifies all we are trying to
accomplish by spraying. In the end
we find that we have gone to
considerable expense and trouble
for nothing. We have killed off or
endangered fish, birds, and other
wildlife, contaminated vegetables
andfruits, darhaged shrubbery and
flowers, and introduced poisonous
chemicals into soil and water
supplies, ^ter all this, we find the
mosquito has the last laugh, for
while we have been progressively
poisoning our own environment, the
mosquito has been breeding a
superior race composed of
individuals that are immune to
chemical attack."

When eliminating an
Important species like mosquitoes
you are also ignoring the fact that
they play an absolutely necessary
role in the health of our animals,
plants, entire ecosystems, and our
own ecosystem.

I ■ am not immune to
mosquitoes, and I was happy to
know there are safe, natural ways to
control them around our homes.
One way is “cleaning up the trash" or
removing mosquito habitat. Three-
quarters of the mosquito life cycle is
spent in water. Mosquitoes LOVE
still, stagnant water and anything
that holds more than a tablespoon of
water is a potential breeding ground.

Please see MOSQUITO, Page 7

Wisconsin Entomological Society Newsletter — November 2002 Page 7

MOSQUITO, from Page 3
So keep your eyes open for places
collecting water and remove them or
create drains so rainwater cannot
pool up. You can also clean out rain
gutters and bird baths often to
remove that still water. Mosquitoes
are attracted to us by the heat,
moisture, carbon dioxide, and over
300 mosquito-attracting chemicals
we emit. Repellents can block the
receptors they use to find us but as
long as we’re breathing, they know
we’re there! Although I have been a
victim of mosquitoes many times, I
know that since learning more, I can
definitely stand a little blood offering
every now and then to an Insect that
truly has a presence much bigger
than a couple of annoying, itchy, red
bumps.

Kristin was the summer naturalist at
The Ridges Sanctuary inBalley’s Harbor
this past summer. She Is currently a
studentat UW-Steuens Point mqjortngin
environmental education and
interpretation, with a minor in
environmental law.

WINTER MOTHS, from Page 3
moth larvae are eating (and being
eaten by birds). And the winter
moths are emerging as adults while
many other moth larvae are looking
for a place to pupate. During winter,
it seems the owlet moths are buried
by dead leaves and snow, but a
warm day or a thaw brings them out.

This schedule has its benefits if
you’re bat food. In Wisconsin, most
bats are summer predators. Big
brown bats, however, are almost as
likely as the winter moths to be
cruising the skies on a warm winter
evening, so the moths haven’t
completely managed to escape that
predation.

The Miller & Surlykke study
reports that winter moths can hear,
too. I didn’t experience the sound
activation of the winter moths back
in March — most of them were glued
by the wings to dry sap on the palls.
I can tell you this much; those moths
are Just about indestructible. I
callously did the Insect collection
routine — killing jar, spreading
board. The moth walked off my
spreading board three times and
then I gave up. I felt guilty. That is

one tough little moth.

So how does a winter moth (a
cold-blooded Insect) get away with
this chilly lifestyle? And just how
“chilly” are we talking?

Bernd Heinrich went further
than I did; he put some owlet moths
in water and froze it solid. As soon
as the ice was thawed, the moths
strgdghtened themselves out and flew
away. Heinrich found that the moths
only got away with this because his
freezer wasn’t colder than 32°F, and
because the duration of freeze was
not perpetuEil. If it had been, those
would have been dead moths. Unlike
many insects that are active in cold
temperatures, owlet moths do not
contain glycerol, which would keep
their blood from freezing. Instead,
they have a couple of features and
strategies that conserve their heat
and energy.

Owlet moths have densely furry
bodies, which minimizes their heat
loss. The tympanic air sacs, that are
also their ears, provide some
insulation from cold temperatures.
And they have a heat-exchanging
circulatory system. All this keeps
their thorax warm enough for fll^t
on a 32°F winter day. When the air
temperature is colder, the moths
rest beneath dead leaves. Their
metabolic rate slows down, using
very little energy, while the leaves
insulate them from the cold. ^

Jane is an assistant naturalist at Ledge
View Nature Center. Chilton, WI.

Editor’s Note: Jane Mlngari found and
translated a Spanish-language edition of
Zlm & Cottam's 1956 Insects [Golden
Guide) . It has a page devoted to Noctulds,
which is not in the Eng^sh edition. It
stated: 'Todos ellos son estrictamente
nocturnos y les atrae vlvemente la luz..."
All (noctulds) are strictly nocturnal
and are strongly attracted to lights. Not
true, both Jane and I have observed
several day-flying Noctulds.

"En su mayoria presentan colores
parduscos bastante apagados .... que son
mimetlcas de las cortezas de los arboles
sobre los que reposan." The majority are
more or less a dull gray>-brown In color,
which mimics the bark of the trees on
which they rest. Not really true. One
example; Catocala (Underwings) have
beautiful, bright coloration on their
hind wings, while many others have lovely
colors and designs on their forewlngs.

A flispatci From
tie Past...

Evergreen City Times
(Sheboygan. Wisconsin)
August 28. 1869

“The Tomato Worm: People at
this season should look out for
the large worm which infests the
tomato vine. Its sting is deadly
poison. It is of a green color, two
or three inches long, and as large
as a man’s finger. At Red Creek,
Wayne County, Indiana a ' few
days ago, a servant girl, while
gathering tomatoes, received a
puncture from one of these
worms, which created a
sensation similar to that of a bee
sting. In a short time, the poison
penetrated to every part of her
system and she was thrown into
spasms which ended in death.”

Researched by Mark H. Knipping,
Curator of Research & Collections,
Wade House, Greenbush, Wisconsin.

Tomato Homworm (black form)
(Manduca guinguemaculata)
Photo: 8/16A)2. Janice Stiefel

In modem times, this species has not
been reported as being harmful. Actually,
the horn is no different than any of the
larvae of the Sphlngldae family. No one
will ever know what really happened in
1869.

“We need these unseen Invertebrate
armies. Flies and moths are
irreplaceable pollinators.
Caterpillars are songbird fodder.
Worms, not farmers, are the great
plowmen of the earth, and if they
ceased to till and fertilize the soil,
or if insects no longer inhabited our
fields and forests, we would soon
starve. The bodies of invertebrates
create the coral reefs and give rise
to much of the life of the oceans. We
are already beginning to see what
might happen without them."

— Richard Conniff
Spineless Wonders: Strange Tales
from the Invertebrate World
Used with permission

WiscoBisSn Eiatognoloqical Society

*Jo.Tiice Stiefel, Editor

2125 Grove Rd.

Bailey*s Harbor, WI 54202

Address Correction Requested

Wisconsin Entomological Societu Newsletter — November 2002

Page 8

Directions to Russell Labs. Madison. Wisconsin

Wisconsin
j^Entomological
y Csociety Officers

President: Kerry Katovich
Dept, of Biology
UW-Whltewater
320 Upham Hall
Whitewater. WI 53190
katovlck@inail.uww.edu

Vice President: Phil Pellitteri

Dept, of Entomolo^

UW-Madison
1630 Linden Dr.

Madison. WI 53706
pellitte@entomology.wlsc.edu

Secretary-Treasurer: Les Ferge
7119 Hubbard Ave.

Middleton. WI 53562-3231
ferge @chorus . net

Newsletter Editor: Janice Stiefel

2125 Grove Rd.

Bailey’s Harbor. WI 54202
(920) 839-9796
jstlefel@ltol.com