Sign in

Caterpillars Count!

@caterpillarscount.bsky.social
724 followers 285 following 191 posts

Citizen science project on the abundance and phenology of 🐛🐞🦗🐝🦋🕷. Seeking new participating sites! Learn how to participate on our website! caterpillarscount.unc.edu

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Will Langdon @wlangdon12.bsky.social · 15h
Cool to see this paper out recently - results from 19 years of standardised moth monitoring in Iceland: link.springer.com/article/10.1.... Lots of interannual variability, but no trends over the monitored period #Moths
2236
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
In WWII movie Windtalkers the film cuts from a wide shot of a lush Hawaiian ridge to a close shot of soldiers moving thru a landscape shot in AZ or UT
060
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Get To Know Nature @gettoknownature.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
The Very Chonky Caterpillar (Sphinx Moth caterpillar I think) #invertebrates 🌿 #BugSky
A very fat green caterpillar with oval beige spots on its sides. It walk on a thin bare branch against a backdrop of leaves.
522121
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
And now they come down to reveal themselves
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
When looking down causes one to look up ⬆️ 👀 Anisota oakworm sign 🐛🐛🐛
110
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
John Walters @johnwalterswildife.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Pine Hawk Sphinx pinastri caterpillars on Scots Pine. When they reach their final instar the green and white camouflage amongst the pine needles isn't so effective so they gain a brown central line to blend in. Thanks Barry Henwood #teammoth
05510
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Kristin Wyatt @kristinwyatt.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Look out for that yellowjacket..... wait that's not a yellowjacket, it's actually a Riley's Clearwing Moth! They are amazing mimics that host on the Horse-nettle plant. It's National Moth Week July 18 - July 26. #MothWeek #NationalMothWeek #moths #nature #photography
A black and yellow striped moth with lovely red markings on its clear wings.
1020521
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Digital Naturalism Laboratories @dinalab.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
The museum had to end a bit early for the Moths, so we took the party, and the Mothboxes to Central Park!
Team dinalab on front steps of amnhWeird dude showing his glowing robot in the park
072
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Cri 🕊🐝🐜📝🎭⚽😷 @crawlieswithcri.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Periodical reminder that Many-plume Moths exist. And they always seem to end up on the inside of my bathroom window. And they pack a LOT of "amazeballs" into a teeny package - 1cm wingspan (just under 1/2") Montana six-plume moth (Alucita montana) #inverts #becurious 1/2
macro photo of a small moth with 24 spines covered in bristle-like scales forming their wings. they have a rusty brown, brown and white chevron pattern on the plumes.
1232364
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Maddie @maddiejayy.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Went to a midnight mothing event for #MothWeek over the event. My first experience with a live Luna Moth was one deciding to immediately land on me! 🤩
Myself holding a tulip-tree silk moth on my hand.Myself with a green Luna moth on my shoulder.Myself smiling with a Luna moth on my hand.A photo of a Luna moth on a hand with a second Luna moth on a white sheet in the background.
5586
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Esme Ashe-Jepson @esme-ashe.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Last night we hosted Moth Night; we showcased different moth trapping methods, looked at moths beneath the microscope, and played some moth themed games! We highlighted their diversity, ecological importance, and conservation. 🌙 Thank you to everyone who took part!
Two panel image: left people standing around a skinner moth trap. Right a person standing in front of a tower moth trap.
082
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Cyntada @cyntada.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Let me share with you this absolute unit that came to see us today. A Black Witch moth, sometimes called a bat moth. Someone in the house saw it land on the window and thought it was exactly that! With a 7" wingspan and this pretty cryptic pattern, this one got my attention! So happy to see it.
A Black Witch moth, also known as a Bat Moth. With a 7” wingspan, it’s one of the largest moths in North America. Legend says if it lands above your door, you’ll win the lottery.This one is on a window screen with wings spread wide. It is brown in color and very well patterned to look like tree bark. There is a pretty white stripe through the brown, which tells us this is a female.
510628
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
What are you doing for National Moth Week? Here are some moths from our @dinalab.bsky.social Mothbox programmed to take photos every 10 minutes at the NC Botanical Garden. Find a moth event near you! nationalmothweek.org
063
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Evelyndroid's Aperture Science and Bugge-Finding 🏳️‍⚧️🕷️ @apsciencebylyn.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
I have claimed this spurge-nettle for all of Crabdom 🦀
Lovely solid yellow crab spider facing you, long 1st & 2nd leg pairs spread wide in characteristic crab spider threat display, perched on a white 5-petal flower
215825
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Digital Naturalism Laboratories @dinalab.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
First Moths from our first Mothbox deployment at Mothapalooza 2026!
Auto identified moths in classify
061
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Royal Entomological Society @royentsoc.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
#InsectWeek is back and bigger than ever 🪰 Whether you're fascinated by butterflies, curious about beetles or simply want to spend more time connecting with nature, there's something for everyone! Join us in celebrating the little things that run the world 🔽 buff.ly/gCVYfHw #StandTallForTheSmall
buff.ly
Insect Week 2026 Expands Across Five City Hubs to Inspire a New Generation of Nature Champions
The Royal Entomological Society announces ambitious nationwide programme for Insect Week 2026 On the leadup to a big week in the insect science community, the Royal Entomological Society has unveiled…
0189
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Active small necklace moth caterpillar (Hypsoropha hormos) on sweetgum 🐛🐛🍃🍃
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
One week later on the same branch: Luna moth caterpillar all growed up!
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Copperhead biting off more than it can chew (but perhaps not more than it can swallow) RIP pickerel frog!
100
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Moths in a human suit (they/them) @lycomorpha.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
And now a message from the Moth Promotional Board: Want to see cute moths like this? Grow 'weeds'. That's right. Do less gardening, be less tidy, make less effort! & get ecologically super-important, pollinating, beautiful, fluffy flying kittens!!
A beautiful pink and olive green elephant hawkmoth shaped like a tiny adorable jet plane. It's sitting on a grey cardboard egg tray from my moth trap. A+ good moth friend.A wildflower patch in my garden, filled with sorrels, bedstraws, burnets, long grasses, and various other small plants that moths like to eat. A tiny furious grass veneer moth, a wedge shaped micromoth with lightly striped wings, round blue eyes, and worry black antennas that look like angry eyebrows. It's livid because it's being photobombed by a fuzzy brown heart and club moth in the background. They're both delightful moths though.
215547
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Early instar luna moth caterpillar at Prairie Ridge Ecostation in Raleigh. Cool as adults, but cool as larvae too!
130
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
It’s butternut woollyworm sawfly larvae all the way up! #PrairieRidgeEcostation #insect #phenology #CitizenScience
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
and point to some intriguing patterns we're just starting to dig into! 5/n mailchi.mp/4c08122f40a7...
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
We also talk about the importance of volunteer-collected herbivory scores 4/n
100
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Oops, newsletter link here: mailchi.mp/4c08122f40a7... 3/n
mailchi.mp
Caterpillars Count! June 2026 Newsletter
100
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
and how the representation of those families varies across the map 2/n
100
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Check out our June newsletter where we discuss the most common beetle families found on branch surveys...1/n
120
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Cute little (3 mm) slug caterpillar today on a buckeye leaf. Gotta look closely to appreciate all the tiny ornate spines!
020
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Soldier beetles were the next most common family!
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Beauts, all. Here's a preview of next week's Caterpillars Count! newsletter summarizing beetles found on standardized surveys throughout mostly eastern NA🐞
110
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Yes, we are definitely planning on setting up a chat with you later in summer or fall for feedback sesh and brainstorming!
110
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
MM2.0 is in Year 1 with 7 sites from Florida to Vermont monitoring moths, caterpillars via branch surveys, and frass. Next year planning to expand to ~20 sites!
110
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
It's your design, modified by Mariana Abarca, Pablo Bolton, and engineering team at Smith College!
210
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Some terrific moths coming to our automated Mothbox at the NC Botanical Garden last week including the large yellow Io Moth at the bottom! #MothMonitoring2.0
194
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Found one at Eno River State Park 2 weeks ago, but never realized how shitty their house was! 💩
010
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Amazing the sheer feeling of insect abundance from a few loud cicadas!
010
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Amidst all the tiny 🐛🐛 inside leaf rolls and leaf ties, two nice big ones stood out today at #PrairieRidgeEcostation Hypsoropha hormos, small necklace moth and Parallelia bistriaris, maple looper #CitizenScience #phenology #insectmonitoring
010
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Charley Eiseman @ceiseman.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
I just put together a wish list of North American Phyllocnistis leaf mines. I'm hoping for larvae from each of them for DNA barcoding, and eventually I'll need reared adult specimens to describe the ones that are new species (which is probably most of them): www.inaturalist.org/projects/lea...
1134
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Eastern dobsonfly remains at Eno River State Park. Someone got a good meal here!
020
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
What is tucked under this leafhopper nymph’s wingbud? Is that a mite or tick? Seems like this guy’s hop will be pulling to the right for a while…
000
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Tom Astle @tjalamont.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
I love looking for bugs on rainy days. Here are four of the many species of small creatures I found this morning, all taking refuge in flowers during the wet weather. 🌿🐙📷 #Bugsky
A macro photo of a black and orange lady beetle/ladybug clinging to a thin green leaves on a rainy day. One raindrop touching the beetle's side is as big as the beetle. The ladybug looks to be a transverse lady beetle, Coccinella transversoguttata.A macro photo of a fuzzy but rain-soaked bee tucked face-first into yellow flower petals, with out of focus green in the background. The bee is a male longhorn bee, so-called for the very long antennae.A macro photo of a rain-dappled beetle clinging to the orange center of a yellow flower, riding out a rainstorm. The beetle, called a checkered beetle (Trichodes sp.), is metallic aqua-blue with bright yellow blotches, and is spattered with several raindrops.A macro photo, vertical orientation, of a long, slender, straw-colored spider (a slender crab spider, Tibellus sp.) hanging head-down on the underside of a petal on a yellow flower. There is a raindrop clinging to the top of the petal's downward-facing tip, and another droplet, almost microscopically small, clinging to the upside-down spider's abdomen.
211217
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Two damselflies in the same patch of dappled sun, ebony jewel wing and variable dancer (purple subspecies!) @ncbg.bsky.social #NCBotanicalGarden
021
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Two different carrion beetle species on a squirrel (?) carcass, American and Margined. Everything has its role!
010
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
She is made of but cardboard, so her time on this mortal coil will be brief, but I hope she entertains and educates many during her stay. Wish her luck, everyone. 🫡
471981450
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Arthropod Abbey (Abigail Hayes) @arthropodabbey.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Aaah!!!! 🥳 I have always wanted to find a warty leaf beetle in person!!!! Checking another off my bugket list! #bugsky
A brown warty leaf beetle on a fuzzy leafA brown warty leaf beetle on a green leaf
3244
Reposted by Caterpillars Count!
Aussie Moths @wa-moths.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
The power of citizen science in helping to document our local #invert biodiversity. Every observation adds to our knowledge! 🦋🐞🪲🐛🦟🐜🕷️🦂 #ausinverts #wildoz #inaturalist #bugsky #citizenscience #communityscience www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05...
abc.net.au
Bushwalker takes photo of rare bug in the wild
There were no known photographs taken in the wild of the Myrmeleon houstoni until a regional Victorian woman snapped a photo of one while on a bushwalk.
1256
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Thanks to all the CC volunteers and participants who have contributed such valuable data over the years. If you are interested in learning more about foliage arthropods in your area, start a monitoring site! caterpillarscount.unc.edu/faq
000
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Result#5 Because CC data are collected across N. America, we can examine geographic patterns. The diff between native and non-native plants is greatest at lower latitudes (e.g. southeastern US) compared to higher latitudes (e.g Maine, Toronto).
110
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Result#4 There is tremendous variation in the ability to support caterpillars by plant species, both within plant family and within native/non-native status. The top 7 plants are from 6 diff families, and there are some Quercus species that are quite poor!
120
Caterpillars Count! @caterpillarscount.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Result#3 The diff between native and non-native is pretty universal for caterpillars, but plant family specific for other arthropod groups. E.g, most groups have at least one plant family where occurrence is higher on non-native members (2-letter abbrevs of plant family names)
100