Hello everyone!
Thanks for reading the March 25 EwA highlights. While it’s still quite early in the spring, we are beginning to feel the first rumblings of significant insect activity. Many insects depend on winter as an important dormant stage in their life cycles, and some are even active throughout the winter, but the number of active insects is about to increase, accelerating dramatically toward the buzzing summer.
📸 Joe captured this cool picture of a blackclock ground beetle (subgenus Pseudomaseus) on Sunday. The ground beetles (family Carabidae) are carnivores that can be found in such familiar places as under rocks and logs. Carabidae is one of the most diverse families of animals, boasting over 40,000 species worldwide.
EwA iNaturalist Record (© Joe MacIndewar · Stoneham, MA · Mar. 19, 2023)
In other beetle-related affairs, EwA’s most observed species this week was the winter firefly (Ellychnia corrusca). While they are closely related to the fireflies you might see glowing at night, these beetles don’t bioluminesce. They do live up to the other half of their name, as they can often be found overwintering in the crevices between tree bark. The adults become active in the spring, before they die and a new generation matures in time for fall. This particular firefly was observed by Kat last Saturday.
EwA iNaturalist Record (© Kathleen R Shea · Gloucester, MA · Mar. 18, 2023)
📊 Thanks to everyone for your great biodiversity records this past week, totaling 267 observations of 172 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 137,142 observations of 9,250 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 Spring [ 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)
Peak schedule: Spring is 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
