need Ted Floyd's cell # now!

[David Gulbenkian]

I’ve bee emailing Ted Floyd about a rare moth he says he’s dying to see.
Told him it had left, but now am trying to contact him to tell him it’s still here!!
Have emailed him and left a message on his home phone, but don’t have his cell.

He claims this moth is his #1 object to see in nature, so I’m sure he’ll be grateful!

David Gulbenkian

[David Gulbenkian]

If someone of you is reluctant to give out a phone #, please do this:  call him yourself and tell him

to check his email right away or call me at 303-235-0456

Thx  David

[Rachel Kolokoff Hopper]

Well don’t keep us all in suspense! What is the moth?

Sent from my iPhone

www.rkhphotography.net

Rachel Kolokoff Hopper

Ft. Collins

On Jul 6, 2020, at 4:50 PM, David Gulbenkian <dgulb...@gmail.com> wrote:



--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+u...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/ce7f73e2-b98e-4516-84ef-1dd19d16f011o%40googlegroups.com.

[Ted Floyd]

Hey, folks. I know this isn't bird-related, but I sure do appreciate folks' consideration in the matter. The species in question is the black witch, Ascalapha odorata, and I long to see one in Colorado more than anything else. Especially a female. And David Gulbenkian just now showed me a photo of an impeccable, impossibly ginormous female at his residence near Denver. Alas, Kei has the car right now . . .

This convo happened a little earlier:

"Mom, I hate Dad."
"Um? Why?"
"There's a black witch in Denver, and he won't take me to see it."

"Um?"
"I'll never forgive him." 

So, yeah, things are getting a bit hairy hereabouts.

Okay, birds. I should mention birds. Yesterday's "Lafayette Birds!" outing at Greenlee Preserve, Boulder County, was wonderful. We had a lot of people, so I'm grateful to forcibly conscripted co-leaders Mikaela Caldera, Hannah Floyd ("Mom, I hate Dad"), and Martin Ogle for breaking off with the sub-groups, necessary for preventing the spread of COVID-19. I think most birders got to see the two black-chinned hummingbird males duking it out near Hecla Pond; that was a highlight. But the real show-stopper was a snow-white Swainson hawk nestling poking out from its treetop abode near Waneka Lake. We actually had 45 species of birds, not shabby for a hot summer afternoon.

No black witches yesterday, but it seems like, after a few summers of not getting the hang of it, the four-spotted moths, Tyta luctuosa, have finally figured out why they got a free ticket to Colorado. Those day-flying moths, handsome and distinctive, were absolutely infesting the bindweed which, in turn, infests all of Lafayette and probably most of Colorado. Not that they seem to be having any effect whatsoever on the bindweed, but, then again, when's the last time biological control ever accomplished what it was actually supposed to?

Ted Floyd

Lafayette, Boulder County

On Monday, July 6, 2020 at 4:50:17 PM UTC-6, David Gulbenkian wrote:

[Woodcreeper29]

All

A friend of mine just sent me a photo of one that was on his porch in Loveland

Steve Larson 

Northglenn 

Sent from my iPhone

--

You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+u...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/f1c28f4d-3b46-4173-9102-6c49fb711199o%40googlegroups.com.

[Carolyn S]

Hello, I just needed to jump in here on the huge moth report - Ascalapha odorata.  I believe this is what I saw in downtown Denver about a decade ago (I know it's been awhile!).. going into the office building early morning at 17th and California, on the 17th side through the rotating door - a little bird with its wings totally spread out was for some reason clinging to the inside of one of the rotating doors a few inches above the ground.  Strange.. was it hurt or worse? When I got inside I immediately turned around and went back outside through the doors to get a closer look.. 

Wait this was NOT a bird, No, No it was actually a HUGE moth, HUGE -> the LARGEST I have ever seen!! It was just resting, not hurt or anything.  I went back inside and went up to the security guard to chat about it - he just nodded and laughed - Yes, he had definitely seen it and most everyone coming through that morning too.. I wondered if I should call the Denver Zoo or Butterfly Pavilion or someone - CPW to see if official folks should come out and capture to relocate it and based on the size it could even make the evening news! But later I learned that moths can indeed get that big..  I hope that leaving it be was the right move.. There are many urban animal and bug folks that adapt and seem thrive just fine and have their own chosen homes, shelters, and routines in the cement jungle..? So based on the size I believe it was this moth species.. who knew that moths could get actually as big as birds and live in the middle of cities??

On Monday, July 6, 2020 at 4:50:17 PM UTC-6, David Gulbenkian wrote:

[DAVID A LEATHERMAN]

Just a few comments.  Black Witch moths are not all that rare in Colorado but certainly noteworthy when one sees one.  As a practicing entomologist/birder who spends a ton of time on the eastern plains, I have only found maybe 5 over the last 46 years.  I found one once in a Marietta, Ohio parking lot when I was in college in the late 60's and I saw one on a night baseball game field in Fort Collins in the 1980s.  When I ran out between innings to collect it, a woman in the stands screamed, "Don't touch it, it's a bat!!!!!!!!!!!".  "Thanks, maam, for your concern", I thought to myself.  I have seen dozens in insect collections from 4-H kids residing in eastern CO counties.  I know of landowners in the Lamar area who see at least one every summer (about this time in July), and have seen as many as 6 at one time on their properties.  There is a famous account of one on the snow atop Mount Evans on the 4th of July in the classic The Moth Book by WJ Holland.  We now think the likely origin of individual Black Witches reaching Colorado is south TX.  Larval food plants for caterpillars of this moth do not grow in CO.  Wind patterns were right to bring a large number of this spectacular moth, many of them surprisingly pristine, our way a couple weeks ago.  This received attention from the plant folks on their listserv which parallels COBIRDS.

If anyone sees a bird eating one, I'd love to hear about it. 

Dave Leatherman

Fort Collins

---

From: cob...@googlegroups.com <cob...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Carolyn S <cale...@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 11:06 AM
To: Colorado Birds <cob...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [cobirds] Ascalapha odorata too in downtown Denver

 

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+u...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/b263cf80-5666-4162-bebf-216e7efb6900o%40googlegroups.com.

[James CONNELL]

Moth Hunters,

 Haven't seen one this year but last year this Black Witch moth hung out on my stoop for a day. I understand they fly at night.

Date was July 12th.

Jim

[David Gulbenkian]

In view of all the Black Witch interest, I believe we deserve a better pic.  My Witch photo:

On Monday, July 6, 2020 at 4:50:17 PM UTC-6, David Gulbenkian wrote:

[Gigi Zarzuela]

JUST yesterday morning, I found one of these on my kitchen floor (Cap Hill, Denver). Unfortunately, my cats got to it before it could be released. I had never seen a moth that big in the States and wasn't sure what it was!