📜 EwA Week Highlights: Bugs and Blooms from Anecdata

[Mike McGlathery]

EwA Highlights July 22, 2025 Hello everyone,  Thanks for reading the July 22nd EwA highlights, and my apologies you're getting this on a Tuesday. Next week we will be back on our normal Monday schedule! 📸 Let’s check in on a couple of EwA’s projects on Anecdata, starting with my personal favorite, EwA Buggy. Buggy has a great feature that more experienced users can employ to conduct a survey of the arthropods present on a certain plant. This makes for much richer data: thanks to Kristian’s survey here, we don’t just know that this adorable monarch (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar was found on a milkweed plant. We also know that the plant was flowering, and that it had oleander aphids (Aphis nerii) on it. This helps us toget a better view of the broader ecological picture. EwA Buggy Record (© @kristiandemary · Massachusetts, US · July 20, 2025)  Next, let’s visit EwA Pheno Lite. As you may know, Pheno Lite lets our naturalists track the seasonal changes of all sorts of important local plant species. The seasonal change present in this observation from Jennifer has me very excited. The goldenrods (genus Solidago) are starting to bloom! The buzz of activity that surrounds a patch of blooming goldenrod is my favorite late-summer sight, and we have lots of that to look forward to in the months to come. EwA Pheno Lite Record (© jennifer_3 · Somerville, MA · July 22, 2025)  EwA’s most-observed species on iNaturalist this week was again the brown belted bumblebee (Bombus griseocollis). I’m sure those guys are excited to see the goldenrod blooms starting to unfurl too. Something else I’m excited for: the Cambridge Moth Ball, happening this Wednesday (tomorrow)! It’s a great night to join EwA and other local groups as we learn about and observe local moths. The Moth Ball will take place from 7-10 PM this Wednesday at Fresh Pond’s Kingsley Park. Pictured at left is a large lace-border (Scopula limboundata). EwA iNaturalist Record (© Bill MacIndewar · Stoneham, MA · July 14, 2025)  📊 Thanks to everyone for your great biodiversity records this week, totaling 1,349 observations of 627 distinct species. If you’re curious about the records from this week that have been validated by the iNat community so far, you can find them » here. 🏆 Running tally: To date, we have recorded 245,990 observations of 12,851 distinct species! Check out our EwA umbrella project, see the details per site/observer, and more » here. 📅 EwA Upcoming Public Events Ewa Field Events » Check the EwA Summer [ Event details and registration » ] Don’t miss some great opportunities to follow the rhythm of the season in our local habitats and in the local wildlife! Space is limited for all our field events. Wildlife ethics is important to us and we seek to avoid putting the pressure on natural habitats which large gatherings unavoidably do. We are asking our audience to register-and-commit (or cancel when you know you can’t come) to avoid no-shows. EwA Fieldwork (and Resources) It’s a great time to join our monitoring programs. Check EwA’s Volunteer Program Calendar 📅  to know when things happen. And if a session is of interest to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to get the rendezvous location. 📅 EwA Sites Map | 🌱 Site Protocols and Guides · Field Rosters · Field Notes » All here! | ℹ️ More about EwA’s Citizen Science Program » Here ❓ Do you have any questions? Don’t be shy. Just email me or reply to this thread.  That’s all for this week—hope you have a good one! -Mike