Ailanthus Webworm Moth

Here's another moth I met at the Duke Farms mothing event: the Ailanthus Webworm Moth. Despite the nighttime event where this fella showed up, you can frequently see them in broad daylight too. In fact, that's when I usually see them.

There are (at least) 2 interesting things about these moths. First, they don't look much like moths. With their wings held close to their bodies, they could easily pass for some sort of beetle. You might think they look more like moths when they fly, but I'm told they look more like wasps when in flight.

The 2nd interesting thing about them is the Ailanthus Webworm Moth wasn't originally from around here; they were originally from southern Florida to Costa Rica where they would (as caterpillars) eat Paradise Trees (or a related tree that will remain nameless). Because this was where their food was, this is where these moths would hang out.

In 1784 though something happened that would eventually (though not immediately) allow them to greatly expand their range. That was the year that Ailanthus Trees (aka Trees of Heaven) were introduced to our region, specifically Philadelphia. This tree is in the same family as the host plants for the Ailanthus Webworm Moth.

As Ailanthus Trees exploded in numbers (becoming one of our earliest very invasive plants), their range spread south. Once they got to southern Florida, the Ailanthus Webworm Moth took notice and realized that these new-found trees were good for them to eat too. And unlike their other food sources, this food source could tolerate northern temperatures. The Ailanthus Webworm Moth began to colonize wherever there were Ailanthus Trees.

There is some question about the fate of the Ailanthus Webworm Moth, at least in our area. That's because there is another invasive species that threatens the Ailanthus Trees: the dreaded Spotted Lanternfly. The Spotted Lanternfly is a threat to many of our trees and shrubs, but they're especially fond of Ailanthus Trees. If the SLF kills off the Ailanthus Trees, it seems likely that the Ailanthus Webworm Moths will be without their primary food source. Perhaps they'll disappear from our area. Or perhaps there's something else up here that they'll be able to eat instead. (There are reports that they'll eat sumac too.)

So that's my tangled tale for the day. An out-of-range moth might be threatened by the loss of one invasive species of tree due to the appearance of an invasive species of bug.

August 20, 2021 at Duke Farms
Photo 157559100, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Northern Watersnake

Image
This April I went to Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge with the hope (among other hopes) of seeing the Northern Watersnakes during mating season. There were 2 problems with this: I think it was slightly late in the season for this. The boardwalk trail where I had seen them in the past was partially closed due to repairs. So although I didn't see any of the 2+ intertwined snakes that I'd seen in the past, but there were still Northern Watersnakes warming themselves in the sun: April 13, 2023 at Great Swamp Photo 272117862, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) And here's another one coming out of the water. April 13, 2023 at Great Swamp Photo 272119139, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Read more

Female Brown-headed Cowbird

Image
Like quite a few birds, this bird is easier to identify when spotted with her significant other ; she's a Brown-headed Cowbird . Due to their tendency to be monogamous plus plain old birds-of-a-feather behavior, I usually see them with prominently brown-headed males around, greatly improving my confidence in IDing them. My understanding is that Brown-headed Cowbirds are the only obligate brood parasites in my area. Obligate brood parasites have essentially lost all their parenting skills, and thus if they were ever unable to fool other birds into raising their young, they would (almost certainly) go extinct [1]. There are, however, other brood parasites in New Jersey. These are called facultative brood parasites, and these birds will usually raise their own offspring, but will also engage in brood parasitism. (Exactly when birds perform facultative brood parasitism seems variable; one source said it occurred when resources were scarce while another said it occurred when resource
Read more

Rooftop Turkey Vultures

Image
I met these Turkey Vultures by just walking out of my apartment. (I theoretically could have gotten a picture without going outside, but that extra layer of glass can degrade picture quality a little.) Although they don't show up on these rooftops daily, they're not an uncommon visitor to my apartment complex. Similar to this spot of the woods , I wouldn't expect this to be a great place to find carcasses. I'm thinking they're here mostly because: They don't have to worry much about predators up there. They get a pretty good view of the area in case something should happen to succumb. (This apartment was near the top of a hill, providing a better view than most of the other apartments.) Since this picture was from February, it's probably a slightly warmer spot, especially near those furnace vent pipes. Although these are Turkey Vultures, it's also not unusual to see Black Vultures up there too. February 28, 2023 at Finderne Photo 264703396, (c) jpviole
Read more