Incite Ecology

08/31/2023

I was in the city of Frederick on Monday night and spotted this cutie on the car - it's a Snowy Tree Cricket! At this time of year, they are often heard around dusk and into darkness. I love the songs of insects! Want to learn more? - there's a great book with CD that you can find at used bookstores called " The Songs of Insects" by Wil Hershberger and Lang Elliott.

08/13/2023

A little bug fun - I wonder what they are communicating? And, yes, these insects are little - about a half inch in length each.
On the left is a Walnut Caloptilia moth and on the right is a tiny beetle (sorry, don't know my beetles very well!)
Observing caloptilia moths is something I enjoy. They appear on the sheets, twirl their long straight antennae in circles, and disappear.

08/05/2023

"It's the Most Wonderful TIme of the Year"
Not Christmas - Moth Week!
Moth Week is the last week of July and encourages folks to get to know and study the amazing diversity of night-time lepidoptera.
I started with attending Mothapalooza in Ohio. Yes, 120 or so bug nuts all in one place!
After a quick stop at home for a guided butterfly walk, I was back out to Canaan Valley for two nights of mothing. Then I headed to Girl Scout Camp where I also set up my lights for a night.
Watching the bugs come into my lights at night is pretty magical during this time. One night in Canaan I had over 1000 moths! Moth week is well timed for the peak season for moths here.
Pictured from Canaan Valley:
Silver-spotted Fern Moth
Rosy Maple Moth (I think everyone's favorite!)
Black Zigzag (Panthea) Moth
Cecropia Moth, the largest moth in the region.
Want to see more? I post my observations on iNaturalist as user kbarylski.

06/08/2023

I've been busy and look forward to a summer with lots of leps (butterflies and moths)!

One of my annual projects is the Butterfly count at Catoctin Creek Park, a few miles south of Middletown, MD. It's a fun and educational event for all ages! We've had children as young as 2-years old relish in being able to catch a butterfly in a net and, later (after we count them), letting the butterfly go.

** 13th Annual Butterfly Count **
Sunday, July 23; 10 am to noon
Catoctin Creek Park
2929 Sumantown Rd, Middletown MD
Family friendly; nets welcome.
Butterflies will be caught and released.

Note: Parents/guardians must supervise their children at this event.

04/13/2023

I hope you are having a wonderful spring!
I took these pictures on the 1st on the C&O Canal in Washington County Maryland. I absolutely love spring wildflowers! After a dreary winter, they are just what I need.
Id's with each picture

03/04/2023

I'm finally posting a few of my pictures from my January trip to Honduras with Fauna Ventures. This tour was focused on butterflies and did not disappoint. I saw at least 250 species in 9 days. I have a lot of picture processing to do, so my count is still just an estimate.

05/07/2022

I went out to Garrett County yesterday, to enjoy some spring-like weather before the rain hit. I had a wonderful find - Red Squirrels. Apparently they aren't rare, but I've never seen one.
First, I noticed piles of chewed pine cones (first picture). I knew what these were from an informational kiosk in Pennsylvania. I spotted the little friend creating the pile. I really enjoyed watching him or her chowing down on the pinecones, like eating corn on the cob!

04/12/2022

Bluebells or Blue Bonnets?
'Tis the season for wildflowers!
In the Mid-Atlantic, we have Virginia Bluebells, which are nearly in full bloom here in Frederick County.
In Texas, they have Blue Bonnets which bloom in the "hill country" around Austin in February and March.
Both are gorgeous, especially in large numbers. But, really, they have little in common, other than both being blue!

03/30/2022

I just got back from a trip south to visit family and friends and enjoy early spring nature.
One thing I really enjoyed searching out was carnivorous plants. Yes, while I love pretty flowers, there are nothing quite like carnivorous plants! I am fascinated by the many ways these plants attract and capture their food (small insects).
I hope you enjoy these!

01/23/2022

Sorry it's been a while since I've posted. Since the holidays, I've been busy getting my nature logs updated for 2021 and getting observations up on iNaturalist. If you love nature, I highly recommend you explore iNaturalist or load the app so you can add your observations. I've got a couple thousand up and thousands more to go.

Observations by kbarylski

12/20/2021

I've been working hard on completing my moth survey report for Canaan Valley NWR. I made a total of 5 trips from June through September and set up my sheets and uv lights for 7 nights. That makes for a lot of pictures to sort and moths to identify.
I requested a scientific use permit to do these surveys because there was so little information about the moths in the area.
As I work the pictures and information, I'm identifying some species that haven't even been recorded in the entire state of West Virginia!
This is a Chestnut-marked Pondweed Moth, the only one I saw in these trips.

12/03/2021

Bird watchers talk about "life" birds - the ones they see or recognize for the first time.
We butterfly lovers do the same thing.
But the more birds/butterflies you find, the harder it is to find new species.
I returned home last week from my 3rd trip to South Texas. The number of butterfly species in South Texas typically peaks in November and December. This is the first trip there when I've had good weather for butterflies. However, between last February's deep freeze and fall drought, the butterfly number were fairly low.
I managed to see about 12 life species in my week stay including:
Banded Patch
Falcate Skipper
Soldier
Tropical Leafwing

South Texas has the most butterfly species of any region in the US and is home to the National Butterfly Center, so I may well return there next fall!