Hi All,
I will be out of the country from October 19-26, as I will be shipping stock from New Jersey and visiting my parents and my sisters and their families, as well as some friends.
I'm back on Prince Edward Island (October 28) after a good visit. Dad won the three handed pinochle tournament this year, but not until after a thorough trouncing of him and Mom by myself and my niece, Jessica in partners four-handed.
I had a nice visit with Bonnie Caruthers in New Hampshire on the way down to New Jersey, saw three sisters and their families in New Jersey, including some new foster children Manny and Jasmine, who, along with Christina and Takwanda, enjoyed my magic tricks and stories.
On the way back, I overnighted with another sister and her family in southern Massachusetts and got to hold my youngest nephew Lucas and watch early family videos of Joshua and Olivia as well as some Black River tubing/rafting of my two youngest children and nephew Brian from nine years ago. Time flies. It was fun watching the kids have fun, and it was great to see them enjoying their own videos.
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Christmas is coming. Some of you might want to consider as gifts cocoons and/or chrysalids or membership in WLSS or Caterpillars Too! Special rates from now til Christmas for a gift membership in WLSS is $25.00 U.S.. Special rate for Caterpillars Too! is $15.00 U.S.
There are still good numbers of cocoons of most species, but regalis and angulifera are already sold out, and I only have a very small supply of columbia left. Always enquire first about availability, please, before sending payment as new orders come in almost every day and some other species may soon be depleted.
Promethea stocks are now low.
There are still butterfly pupae available from my father.
Does anybody have any extra lunas?
Overwintering cocoons of Callosamia securifera are expected to be ready for shipping in early December. This species is seldom offered anywhere.
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Duane McDowell writes,
"Hello, All!
"Last year, I printed up a few of my nature photographs as notecards and gave them out as holiday gifts. The response was overwhelming - lots of folks said "You should sell these!". I've taken the plunge. I've selected 12 of my favorites, about half from Venezuela and half from Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. I had them professionally printed by a local printer here on beautiful glossy cardstock, and have packed them in nice white card boxes with clear lids. I've put them up for sale on my website
http://mcdpics.com/naturecards.
"These would make a nice holiday gift for just about anyone who appreciates nature, photography or correspondence. For those of you who send a lot of correspondence or who might want to re-sell them, I've put together a schedule of quantity discounts.
"Delivery: If you are local (Twin Cities, MN), give me a call and we can decide the best way to get the cards to you. For non-local delivery, you can order them on my website http://mcdpics.com/naturecards and I'll ship them to you via US Mail right away.
"Secure credit card orders: order on the website.
"I've also put a few prints on the website http://duane.mcdpics.com/prints.html
"I'm adding more all the time, so be sure to check back frequently. If there's something specific you're looking for, please let me know!
"Your comments or questions are welcome. I look forward to hearing from you!"
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Yeray Monasterio of Spain recently made a request for access to a WLSS membership directory with primary goal of contacting members to find livestock sources of species from outside North America. I am reluctant to publish a membership directory for several reasons, but if you know of reliable sources of livestock from outside North America and are willing to share those contacts, I will create a list of contacts, posting names and email addresses only with permission from those so listed. These names would be posted in the Eggs Available section.
I will not include names and email addresses of those providing North American species. I do periodically send out notice of specialty items to those I think might be interested.
Livestock import regulations are much less stringent in most of Europe as compared to North America.
When I make contacts in Africa, Asia, South America, etc, I frequently ask if those individuals are interested in supplying eggs/livestock. The new contact in Kibwezi Forest in southern Kenya (see note below) has sent me some nice images and seems interested in rearing and in providing livestock.
If you wish to be a recipient of any such list, I request that you supply electronic images of the larvae, cocoons, pupae, adult moths that you are able to rear.
Many thanks to those who are already generously sharing images.
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Jean-Louis Albert sends recto and verso images of Carnegia mirabilis, taken in Franceville, Gabon.
He also sends with wingspans Epiphora albida, taken October 10, Micragone neonubifera, October 16, Imbrasia epimethea, October 16, and Dactyloceras lucina.
I have uploaded the images with data to respective files.
It is great to have this additional data (flight date and wingspan) for the African species. If any of you have African species in your collections and can provide similar data, it would be much appreciated.
More recent images (October 28) include Goodia falcata, Imbrasia truncata and Pseudobunaea illustris or alinda.
Thierry Bouyer has also confirmed Nudaurelia jamesoni.
An Orthogonioptilum vestigiatum female was taken on November 7.
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Sebastian Brandner has sent images of a female Dactyloceras lucina with identification by Thierry Bouyer. Sebastian has also sent some images of an Aurivillius species (need help on this one) and some female Orthogonioptilum species for which I will probably also need some help, but I have not seen them spread yet.
Thierry has confirmed the Aurivillius as triramis and I will shortly post images to that file.
Sebastian has also sent images of Ludia orinoptena and Orthogonioptilum vestigiatum females, recto and verso, identifications by Thierry Bouyer.
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I have made a new contact in Kibwezi Forest in southern Kenya. I am hoping that electronic images will soon be coming from that area, hopefully also with data. I will try to encourage rearing of Saturniidae and collection of specimens as there is a startup project:
"Dear Sir,
"We are a small group of butterfly farmers living on the edge of Kibwezi forest in Kenya. We are looking for institutes or indivituals who can buy pupae, beetles and butterflies so that we may make our plan of getting the natives have a positive issue of the forest rather than the cutting down of trees for charcoal and wood. If you are willing to correspond with us, you may please write to us specifying you particular interest. Thank you."
A number of electronic images have arrived, and I will be asking Thierry Bouyer for confirmations and help with ids. Among the images are Gonimbrasia hoehnelii (new for WLSS) and a very unusual Actias. There are also Pseudaphelia, Tagoropsis, Bunaea, Epiphora, Argema mimosae, etc.
Thierry has already confirmed Nudaurelia capdevillei and perhaps there is Gonimbrasia cocaulti as well as either Lobobunaea ansorgei or Lobobunaea jeanneli.
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Rainer Plontke has sent me a series of images of spread Neoris stoliczkana from Kirgistan, as well as what I believe is a spread Neoris huttoni from Turkey.
Rainer has also sent an image of a hybrid male "isadu" from Graellsia isabellae x Actias dubernardi.
Rainer obtained hybrid eggs (2006) from R. Zaun on behalf of the initial French Group who first produced this hybrid in May, 2005.
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Non-member Eugene Hamilton sent me very nice images of a surprise find in King Range, Humboldt County, California, USA, 7/26/2006. I have posted his images of a mature Saturnia (Calosaturnia) mendocino larva to the Larval Photos section and also to the Saturnia (Calosaturnia) mendocino file.
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Uwe Kauz has sent nice images of Pseudodirphia regia second and third instars which he is feeding on Fagus silvatica.
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Leroy Simon has sent two cds of Saturniidae images from U.S. and Ecuador. I hope to go through all of Leroy's new images (very beautiful) and have them posted soon.
Leroy has also sent a beautiful set of images of butterflies from Ecuador.
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Alan Marson has sent a beautiful images of fourth and fifth instar Actias dubernardi.
Alan has also sent a third instar Actias felicis image.
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Carlos Mielke has sent images (posted) of two newly described Kentroleuca species (Mielke and Furtado, 2006).
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Bernhard Wenczel has just sent me a nice image of a spread Molippa pilarae and I have just posted the Dirphiopsis epiolinalarva and Rothschildia lebeau inca female that he sent me quite some time ago.
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I have obtained the necessary information on Ceratocampinae thanks to Charles DeRoller and will now resume development of states, provinces and regions checklists for Central and South American countries.
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Sphingidae Express
Very nice image of an intermediate color form of Erinnyis ello larva, courtesy of Gil Quintanilla, southern Texas, has been posted. Identification has been confirmed by Jim Tuttle. Gil also sent a nice image of a fifth instar Xylophanes tersa larva.
There are still (November 1) many larvae being spotted in Texas. Mike Quinn sends an image of Eumorpha vitis and Jill Posey has sent an image of a dark Amorpha juglandis.
Tony and Pat James have sent a number of images for St. Lucia in the Caribbean Sea area. I have created a St. Lucia file.
Erinnyis ello, Pachylia ficus, Manduca quinquemaculata (dark form) and Agrius cingulata have also just arrived as well as a surprise Pseudosphinx tetrio from southern Texas.
Dirk Bayer has been providing me with regular updates from Alabama and I will update that page end of November.
I have recieved and posted an unusual brown Hyles gallii larva from Alberta. Identification has been confirmed by Jim Tuttle.
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Catocala Capers
Gabriel Larrabee has sent very nice images of many larvae: amatrix, chelidonia, unijuga, verrilliana and violenta.
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Arctiidae Art
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Caterpillars Too!
I hope to complete Illinois page for Dupage County today, November 1. Yahoo!
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