After a tough year teaching in urban Los Angeles, I needed a new perspective and to immerse my self in the mysteries of the natural world, and to have a great adventure. I wanted to know how studying something so small could be so significant. I also wanted to live scientific investigation 24/7 to better understand the process, discipline, and documentation to become a better more informed science teacher.
This is a friend who kept me company while I entered our research data.
I had no idea how much there was to learn about lepidoptera, caterpillars and other life stages. On the expedition I got a glimpse of how complex and mind expanding studying caterpillars could be. Every day was filled with wonder as I had time to focus on their micro universe.
Here are some basics. First, there are around 119 known families of lepidoptera. As we all know, they have four life stages, egg, larval, pupal, and adult. This project focused primarily on the larval phase. As larvae, lepidoptera are basically feeding tubes with a mouth, foregut, midgut, hindgut, and anus. Caterpillars eat and poop a lot. (I also learned that caterpillar poop is called frass and finding frass is a clue to predators and amateur lepidopterists, like myself, that caterpillars are near.) They hang out in the larval phase for a few weeks, some a little longer. They spend one week to a few months in the pupal stage depending on the species and season. Adults do not live long. The main goal of a butterfly or moth is to reproduce and lay eggs.
Predators of caterpillars include birds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals. Insect biomass makes up a large part of terrestrial, above ground, ecosystems, and, as Dan Jansen said, caterpillars are “the hamburger of terrestrial ecosystems.” Micro and sometimes unseen predators of caterpillars are hymadoptora (wasps) and dyptora (flies). More to come about these parasitoids.
These are pictures of a geometrid I found while beating an alligator juniper. Geometridae is the second largest lepidoptera family in North America. They are the most abundant as larvae, but are hard to find as adults. Can you identify this caterpillar's adaptation and see how it helps it to survive? I don't think I would have spotted this one if it hadn't dropped on my beat sheet.
Can you see another species of geometridae in this picture? Not only do they camouflage with color and shape but with their behavior and posture. Geometrids remain "cryptic" during the day and mainly feed at night. Geometrids like this one will hold this position, disguised as a leaf petiole, for a very long time. The geometrid grips the stem with its front legs and anchors its end, seemingly unattached, with a thin thread of silk from its abdomen. This guy has amazing adaptations for survival!
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