National Moth Week! July 20-28, 2024

It's National Moth Week! Join the iNaturalist project here:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/national-moth-week-2024
Attend an event or just do your own thing!

From 2023 journal post:
To moth-light: at dusk I turn on regular porchlights and/or a 395nm UV light (aka a blacklight or "purple party light") on the side of a building and leave it on until I go to bed around 11pm. I check every 30min-1hour to see what has showed up and take photos! Lots of moths (and non-moths) to be seen!

For moth photography:
The blacklight adds a purplish cast to photos and is not very bright, so I recommend using a flashlight to add extra light if you are taking photos with your phone.
I usually take photos of moths with my Olympus Tough TG6 Macro camera with the ringlight feature set to "on" and the white balance set to AWB-additionally, I turn on the flashlight on my phone and shine it on the moths to add extra light. Regular camera flash is usually too bright. The important thing is to find a moth that stays still and then experimenting with different techniques until you find the one you like!

Pro tip: even if you turn off your porchlight/blacklight off at midnight to let the moths and other creatures disperse, be sure to check the same wall in the morning, as you may find "leftovers" hiding underneath objects and in the crevices, corners, and edges near your light!

Posted on 23 July, 2024 02:53 by chyroptera