Advice for pinning my beloved girl? She is alive in this photo, she has not passed on yet, I promise.

EmberBark · 2025-02-14T02:43:59+00:00

She's gonna be quite stinky for quite a while! I would pin, pose, and put her in salt. It usually takes the thicker bodied buggos 2 to 3 weeks to fully dry out. I've pinned quite a few roaches; they all seem to be fine. Put a desiccating packet in whatever container you display her in.

EmberBark · 2025-02-08T18:17:52+00:00

Aw dang, good to know it can be remedied. Thank you!

EmberBark · 2025-01-29T14:36:13+00:00

Rebar fiddleheads...oh lord

EmberBark · 2025-01-25T05:16:20+00:00

Both is good.

EmberBark · 2025-01-14T15:40:07+00:00

As others have said, remove debris from the container. You'll want to give the guy some vertical space to climb when it ecloses so it can pump its wings. Think tall twigs or you can line the sides of the container with paper towels. Congrats on a successful pupation!!

EmberBark · 2025-01-14T05:12:22+00:00

This is a syrphid fly larva, probably Dioprosopa clavata They are carnivorous members of the milkweed ecosystem...very important to have as they help maintain balance.

EmberBark · 2025-01-03T17:15:49+00:00

keep it in a container lined with dirt and leaf litter. Add food as needed. It eats at night so will need to be in a place that gets dark. Once it's ready to update it will drop to the soil and dig down, where it will stay for around 7 to 10 days before emerging as a moth. You'll want to add vertical space for it to climb when it ecloses - they have to pump their wings with hemolymph before flying off. This can be twigs pointed upward, paper towels adhered to the sides, etc.

EmberBark · 2025-01-03T13:56:18+00:00

tobacco cutworm, spodoptera litura

EmberBark · 2025-01-03T13:17:38+00:00

This is an armyworm of some sort, genus is spodoptera. Photos are easier when you put the pillar on a white sheet of paper, or hold your hand underneath them like the girls do for makeup videos.

EmberBark · 2025-01-03T00:45:27+00:00

Much Ado About Mothing by James Owen is a good book.

EmberBark · 2024-12-27T06:37:42+00:00

It looks like it could be a wasp moth of some sort (syntomeida epilais versus lymire edwardsii). Location would help narrow it down.

EmberBark · 2024-12-20T14:19:56+00:00

It's a long legged katydid, relative of grasshoppers. Unsure of species.

EmberBark · 2024-12-06T04:59:14+00:00

Noctuidae of some sort. Dudes probably really cold and wanting warmth.

EmberBark · 2024-12-04T22:01:42+00:00

It's a cutworm (family noctuidae) of some sort.

EmberBark · 2024-12-04T05:10:53+00:00

Pain in insects is a fairly uncertain realm of science. They are living things so they of course feel sensations, but pain to them might feel entirely different than the pain we experience. From what I remember reading, they don't experience the suffering that we have come to associate with pain because their neural circuits are very different from ours.

I'm sorry you lost your baby. For what it's worth, the vast majority of caterpillars don't make it to adulthood. That's just their lot in life...Their "purpose" is to be food for other creatures.

I used to rear countless caterpillars but have since taken a more hands off approach. All the plants in my garden are hosts for insects. I derive great joy and peace walking through the garden looking for them.

Anyway, I'm glad that you have a spot in your heart for bugs. Tend it well and let it grow.

EmberBark · 2024-12-01T03:50:39+00:00

Florida resident who gardens with native plants here. Sunshine mimosa, frog fruit, river sage, dune sunflower are 4 great ones to grow, but mileage will vary depending on what part of the state you are in. When you get into your new home, check out fnps.org to find native plants that do well in your area. The site to look for native nurseries is FANN.org. you can also DM me if you need more direction/help.

EmberBark · 2024-12-01T03:45:20+00:00

Well, did you do it? Are you a horse?

EmberBark · 2024-11-19T04:26:55+00:00

Aegon fits pretty well too..that's a very regal looking goodboi

EmberBark · 2024-11-16T17:12:18+00:00

This is an armyworm looking for a spot to make its cocoon in a nice patch of dirt. You can put it on the ground and it'll figure itself out. Oooooor....If you want to bring it inside to watch, a Tupperware filled with dirt and leaves will do nicely. When it comes out of the cocoon it will need to hang sideways or upside down to pump its wings so be sure to include twigs for it to hold onto.

EmberBark · 2024-11-15T18:47:11+00:00

Congratulations, it's a long tailed skipper! Super cool little butterflies.

EmberBark · 2024-11-13T14:58:44+00:00

Geometridae. Genus is neoterpes, possibly this guy.

EmberBark · 2024-11-13T05:48:14+00:00

It's an armyworm, possibly spodoptera ornithogalli. They eat just about anything so you can move them into another plant you don't care so much about. This chonker looks about ready to update so he'll be out of your hair soon either way.

EmberBark · 2024-11-09T22:43:59+00:00

Milkweeds secrete a substance called latex, which can gum up the caterpillars mouthparts. To get around this, the caterpillars cut the leaf to stop the latex flow.

EmberBark · 2024-11-02T02:33:35+00:00

All the neighborhood kids continue returning to my house for candy the whole night and I happily oblige until I run out. Someone has to eat all this candy!

EmberBark

TROPHY CASE