Mothing for National Moth Week

On Wednesday I put out my black light in the backyard for a few hours to attract moths for National Moth Week. I am still in the process of identifying them, which is still a slow process even with the new Peterson guide. In the meantime, here are a few of the macromoths. The one above is one of two Yellow-striped Armyworms (Spodoptera ornithogalli) that came to the light. Instead of landing on the sheet, this one perched on a lattice fence nearby.

This is a Large Wainscot (Rhizedra lutosa), a member of the family Noctuidae. Large Wainscots were introduced to North America (first recorded in 1988) and feed on Phragmites australis.

This is another noctuid called The White-Speck or Armyworm (Mythimna unipuncta).

I believe this is a Linda Wainscot (Leucania linda), which is closely related to the previous species.

This is a Green Cloverworm Moth (Hypena scabra), an extremely common moth here.

This is a Black Fungus Moth (Metalectra tantillus).

This Celery Looper (Anagrapha falcifera) was reluctant to settle down on the sheet and kept fluttering and disturbing the other moths.

Finally, here is a Common Pug (Eupithecia miserulata). The Eupithecia moths all look very similar so that it can be hard to tell one from another, but the genus's shape is very distinctive.