Black Witch Moth

Ascalapha odorata (Linnaeus, 1758)

A discussion of state & provincial records

(Note below discussions mostly do not yet include relevant post 2004 data.)

------------------> Combined North American Black Witch Records <-----------------

Texas Records

     Black Witch moths occur widely in Texas. My realization of that fact came about gradually.

     I started collecting Black Witch records in 2001 which was a relatively good year for the species. That year, 14 records were reported to the TX-Butterfly Listserv. Only a few were reported for 2002. However in 2003, hundreds of the moths were seen in the eye of Hurricane Claudette when it came ashore at Port O'Connor on July 15. Notably, very few individuals were reported from Texas prior to the hurricane's landing bringing into question where the moths came from. (More on this later.)

     The reports compiled in June 2001 suggest this insect is mostly encountered in the eastern half of Texas, similar to the typical Monarch migration pattern (as posted to the Journey North website from March 1 to June 25, 2004). However, 2004 showed a statewide migratory pattern. In early June 2004, records initially appeared to be coming primarily from along the Gulf Coast with scattered records inland. But by the end of June 2004, hundreds (!) of records of the species were reported from the greater Midland area from Alpine to Fort Stockton to Big Spring to Seagraves. (These reports were prompted by a request for sightings by KWES-TV, NewsWest 9.) Burr Williams (Director of the Sibley Nature Center in Midland, pers. comm., 2004) said that they usually see about one Black Witch per year, usually during the first week of July, but in 2004 he saw multiple individuals starting in mid June. In 2004, one person putting out rotten bananas in Midland attracted eight moths at one time! Add in the number of reports from New Mexico and Arizona, and it appears that the moth migrated north across a broad front from the Gulf of Mexico through most of the southwest in 2004. 

     In 2004, Ray Little, of Rockport, volunteered to regularly drive a 25 mile patrol of South Matagorda Island, Calhoun Co. during May and June to look for nesting sea turtles (all of which are state and federally listed as threatened or endangered). This barrier island is assessable only by plane or boat. Driving this route on a Polaris 4 Wheeler, Ray kept track of the number of Black Witches that, upon his passing, flew up out of the sargassum that sometimes was piled two feet high at high tide. (Example of sargassum on a shore line.) He found none of the moths during May patrols prior to May 30, the date I began receiving multiple daily reports of Black Witches from across Texas in 2004. Very similar numbers were reported from a static location (in the north facing eaves of one of the buildings) one county to the south at the Aransas Pass Light Station in Aransas Co.

New Mexico Records

     New Mexico's records show a typical June and July pattern, but oddly only one record before and after that period.

Arizona Records

     Arizona records mirror those of New Mexico, with few outside of June and July. I haven't accessed any cache of museum specimens in Arizona yet.

Louisiana Records 

(text needs updating post Tropical Storm Cindy)

     The only other report of more than five moths in a single location received in 2004 were the "dozens" reported from Grand Isle, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana on 15 June 2004. When I first received news of the Grand Isle dozens, I thought that many clustered that far north may have resulted from a moth version of the Trans-Gulf fallout that frequently famously occurs in nearby High Island. If so, then it appears from the Aransas and Calhoun Counties (just north of Corpus Christi) that conditions may have been right for a fallout over a long stretch of the middle and upper coasts. Alternately, the dozens seen in southwest Louisiana on June 15 may have resulted from a migratory push up the coast from the Corpus Christi area. Double digit moths were counted in this area as early as June 8, 2004. (If anyone knows how to access archived weather data from this region and time period, please contact me. Thanks!) If multiple individuals are reported away from the coast, they were most likely attracted to black lights or to bait.

     I find the coastal Louisiana records from Grand Isle, Holly Beach, and Buras to be most interesting. The Gulf Coast plain along southern Louisiana certainly does not have much in the way of caterpillar food plants to draw the moths to that location. Also contrast the report of dozens of Black witches at Grand Isle to the near absence of coastal Monarchs from Louisiana in the spring of 2002 or 2003. It appears that as the Gulf Coast bends to the east, the Monarch primarily keeps heading north. 

Brou, V.A., Jr. 2003. Ascalapha odorata (L.) and Thysania zenobia (Cram.) in Louisiana. Southern Lepidopterists' News 25(3):91.

Mississippi Records

This is the singular Pre TS Cindy BWM record from Mississippi that I have specific data for:

Mississippi

Jackson Co.

Ocean Springs

26 Sept 2003

fresh male, photo

 

---

See discussion of Tropical Storm Cindy

Harrison Co.	Gulfport	05 July 2005	fresh female, clipped male, photos (seen by MAQ)
Jackson Co.	Ocean Springs	6-8 July 2005	~10, photos of many (seen by MAQ)
Harrison Co.	Long Beach	07 July 2005	male observed
Harrison Co.	Gulfport	05 July 2005	2 males, 2 females, in fig tree, pix (seen by MAQ)
Harrison Co.	Biloxi	08 July 2005	"multiple males and females"
Harrison Co.	Pass Christian	10 July 2005	female, photo (seen by MAQ)

 

Kansas Records

     There are five Black Witch specimens (with labels) in the Kansas State University Museum of Entomological and Prairie Arthropod Research (KSU-MEPAR), a collection begun in 1879 and estimated to contain approximately 824,000 total specimens. Of the five Ascalapha odorata specimens, the most recently collected was from 1939! In less than 30 days in 2004, five were reported from Kansas! Howe collected Black Witch moths at bait.

*Second Manhattan record seen two hours after first specimen was collected.

Nebraska Records

     Similar to Kansas' holdings, there are four Black Witch specimens in the Division of Entomology at the University of Nebraska State Museum, a collection of 2 million pinned specimens. The first record from 2004 closely matches the historical first record for Nebraska.

Hall Co.	Grand Island	30 June 2004
Platte Co.	Columbus	01 July 1958	UN State Museum
Lancaster Co.	Lincoln	03 July ????	UN State Museum
Lancaster Co.	Lincoln	18 July 1965	UN State Museum
Lancaster Co.	Lincoln	23 July 1931	UN State Museum

Colorado Records

     Ray Stanford (Lepidopterists' Society Coordinator for Colorado, pers. comm., 2004) reports "All in all, I think we have about 20 distinct Colorado records, from both east and west slopes, and from NM to WY. Perhaps 10 of the 64 counties." I only have the specifics on a portion of the Colorado records:

*This is the earliest U.S. record that I've found.

Wyoming Records

     The data from the five Black Witch specimens (collected before 2004) in the University of Wyoming Insect Museum, a collection with holdings estimated at more than a quarter of a million specimens, are a bit different from those collected in Nebraska, Kansas, and Illinois in that they were all collected in one county  and primarily in the 1990s.

     The male collected on 05 July 1995 in Laramie had a wingspan of a mere ~ 9.5 cm or about 3.7 inches!!!

Albany Co.	Laramie (1 mi east)	28 June 1991	Male, at black light trap, UW Insect Museum
Albany Co.	Laramie	01 July 1993	Male, UW Insect Museum
Albany Co.	Laramie	05 July 1995	Male, UW Insect Museum
Sheridan Co.	Sheridan	12 July 2004	Female, worn, UW Insect Museum
Teton Co.	Jackson	14 July 2004	Male, fresh
Sublette Co.	Daniel	25 July 2004	Male, Photo (seen by me)
Albany Co.	Laramie	28 July 1993	Male, UW Insect Museum
Albany Co.	Laramie	07 Aug 1946	Male, UW Insect Museum

California Records

     These data were drawn from a variety of sources and are shown in chronological order. The pre-2004 data are from the California Moth Specimen Database. Black Witch records averaged slightly less than two per decade from the 1950s through the 1990s. Records since late June 2004 occurred about once a week. The first record of 2004 preceded by three weeks the earliest specimen record. Surprisingly, only two of the eleven records are from the same county, Sacramento. Three-fifths of all records are from July. 

     There is an undated specimen in the Los Angeles County Museum from Santa Cruz Island. 

     In 2004, The Orange County Register ran a front page story on the Black Witch which generated 37 reports not yet included here. Dates ranged from August 12 to about two months prior. The following cites generated BWM reports based on the ORC article:

Orange County: Anaheim, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Dana Point, Fountain Valley Fullerton, Irvine, Laguna Niguel, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Orange, Rancho Santa Margarita, Santa Ana, Westminster

Los Angeles County: La Mirada, Lakewood, Long Beach

San Diego County: Coronado

Del Norte County: Crescent City

Hawaii Records

     The first Black Witch moth from Hawaii was observed in 1928 (Sewezy & Bryan, 1929). James Snyder (pers. comm., 2004) reports that the Black Witch Moth is now very common in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (Big Island):  "They frequently perch on my garage door or house eves. I see both males and females almost every day."  

     Bernarr Kumashiro (Insect Taxonomist, Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture, Pers. Comm., 2004) writes:

Illinois Records

     Illinois Natural History Survey Insect Collection (INHS) currently houses over 6 million curated specimens, yet the date and number of in-state A. odorata specimens therein are surprisingly similar to the dates and number in the to those in Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming. The most recently collected Black Witch specimen in the INHS is from 1930 vs. 1939 in the KSU-MEPAR. The first 2004 record matched the historical first record for Illinois, July 11th.

Cook Co.	Chicago	10 July 2004	Male, photos, (seen by me)
Lee Co.	Lee Center	11 July 1910	(specimen in INHS Collection)
Cook Co.	River Grove	11 July 2004	Female, fresh, sight record
Cook Co.	Chicago	14 July 1907	(specimen in INHS Collection)
Stephenson Co.	Freeport	16 July 1978	slightly worn male, at commercial light
Marshall Co.	Lacon	30 July 1926	(specimen in INHS Collection)
Cook Co.	Chicago (north side)	31 July 2002	Lep. Soc. Season Summary
Union Co.	Alto Pass	10 Aug 1996	Lep. Soc. Season Summary
Stephenson Co.	Freeport	14 Aug 1976	very worn male, at commercial lights
Marshall Co.	Lacon	20 Aug 1930	(specimen in INHS Collection)
Champaign Co.	Urbana	11 Sept 1930	(specimen in INHS Collection)
Jefferson Co.	2 miles se of Belle Rive	23 Oct 2004	fresh female under garage eave, photos

     *The INHS holds another five specimens collected outside of Illinois.

Wisconsin Records

     The follow records primarily provided by Leslie A. Ferge, Coordinator of the Midwest: Zone for the Lepidopterists' Society's Season Summary. Most records are from August which fits with the state's northern latitude.

June	1
July	1
Aug.	3
Sept.	1

Michigan Records

     All the BWM records from 1960 and earlier listed below are from the Albert J. Cook Arthropod Research Collection (ARC) at Michigan State University, a collection established in 1867, which now holds more than 2 million pinned specimens, though only about 185,000 lepidoptera specimens. Only two of the post-1960 records are from MSU's ARC.

Ohio Records

     The following records are primarily from The Ohio Lepidopterists, with support from the Division of Wildlife of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The May 19th record is exceptionally early. Most records are from July and August.

May	1
June	0
July	4
Aug.	4
Sept.	1
Oct.	1

Canada Records

     Approximately 35 Black Witch records from Canada, dating back to about 1900, have been passed on to me. (Not all of which are yet posted on the record compilation page.) Early and late Canadian records are July 14th (Spruce Brook, NF) and October 18th (Scarborough, ON) respectively. Don Lafontaine provided label data of 14 specimens in the The Canadian National Collection (CNC) of Insects, Arachnids and Nematodes, a collection of some 16 million specimens! Alan Wormington, Editor Point Pelee Natural History News, reported nine occurrences at Point Pelee National Park, Ontario, between 1993 and 2001. Jeffrey P. Crolla of the Toronto Entomologist's Association provided numerous other records.

     The distribution of records across Canada's southern provinces suggest a high degree of observer bias, where most records are reported from provinces with the highest human populations, which are not necessarily where the highest number of stray moths occur. In particular, the high number of reports from Ontario is strongly influenced by records from Point Pelee NP, the southernmost point in Canada, often referred to as Canada's "banana belt!" In addition to its southern latitude (equal to California's northernmost latitude!), it's also frequented by tens of thousands of birders and other naturalists annually. 

This image shows the Black Witch Moth (Ascalapha odorata) collected on August 18, 2006 on a rocky headland jutting out into Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, Canada by the Barcode of Life Initiative. This specimen represents the northernmost Black Witch Moth ever collected, displacing an individual found near Juneau Alaska in 1957!

Canadian records by month

Canadian records by Province - west to east

Alaska Record

     A female Black Witch in "excellent condition" was found on October 4, 1957 at Auke Bay, 12 miles north of Juneau, Alaska (Spangler, 1957).

     Juneau is one of the northernmost significant population centers.

Spangler, P.J. 1957. A record of the black witch, Erebus odora (Noctuidae), in Alaska. The Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 11(6): 205.

Florida Records

     Black Witches are resident in south Florida (Covell 1985), however that population is apparently non-migratory. Kimball (1965) compiled the most thorough list of Florida Lepidoptera of the time, reporting scattered records from some 72 private and 34 institutional collections.

     Kimball listed the collection holding the specimen and the month it was collected specimen. According to Kimball, regular collecting in Florida began in 1875. The American Museum of Natural History launched four entomological expeditions to Florida between 1911 and 1914. The published results of those expeditions formed one of the main literature sources that Kimball drew upon. He also searched the relevant entomological journals for Lepidoptera records from Florida.

     Kimball geographically organized the records he reported by "Distributional Areas" based on (with slight modifications) the regions delineated by West & Arnold (1952). The following graphic is nearly identical to Kimball's Distributional Areas with the exception that Regions V-VIII are lumped in with Region IV. Interestingly, Kimball listed no records for the Keys, but one A. odorata record from the Dry Tortugas in July by W.M. Davidson!

     Here I list the cities, months and quotes concerning each A. odorata record Kimball found. They are segmented by each of the four main regions he identified.

Region I Escambia Co.: Warrington  (far west panhandle):  "five late summer"
Region II Alachua Co.: Gainesville (south-central Reg. II):  June, July, Sept, Nov. "appears to be rare in this area"
Region III Hillsborough Co.: Tampa, St. Petersburg (SW corner of Reg. III): August.
Region IV (includes V-VIII) Various locations: Every month except March

     That the Black Witch is rare north of south Florida is exemplified by the fact that all of Kimball's records north of Region IV fall into only three counties. Given the date and the location of the panhandle records, they are most likely the product of a late season southward migration rather than having originating in south Florida. Indeed, the majority of the records from Regions II and III could be the product of late season south bound individuals.

     That this insect population is non-migratory in south Florida is actually to be expected. Winged animals born on an island (or a peninsula) and having the genetic impulse to travel are less likely to contribute their genes to the next generation than are the individuals that don't have the impulse to travel, thus an island bound-population is likely to become sedentary or even flightless over time as the non-traveling individuals contribute more of their genes to the succeeding generations than do the emigrating individuals.

     In contrast to Kimball's absence of Florida Key records, Ron Gatrelle reported the following observation:

Georgia Records

     Georgia Museum of Natural History, the largest insect collection in Georgia with more than 650,000 pinned specimens, has only four Ascalapha odorata specimens. The first was collected in 1953, the next two in the fall of 1971. This frequency may be similar to the Florida records north of Region IV. 

     In sharp contrast to all the western and mid-western states profiled, Georgia shows no "seasonal surge" with one or two months having large numbers of records. June and July are the surge months at this latitude across the southwest, yet I could find no June BWM record and only one for July...

Other Southeastern States

     Similar to the low number of BWM records known from north Florida and Georgia, I have only found a paucity of BWM records the following states:

     Amazingly, southeastern Canada has a comparable number of BWM records as does the southeastern U.S.

     Note that Tropical Storm Cindy dramatically increased the number of Southeastern U.S. BWM records

Bahamas Reports

From: curtis and jacqueline campaigne [campaigne at starband.ne] 
Sent: Wed 10/13/2004 12:22 PM 
To: mike.quinn@tpwd.state.tx.us 
Subject: Bahamas - Records of the Black Witch Moth 

Hi, I live in Cat Island, Bahamas, and we have an awful lot of your moths here. They are locally known as Money Moths or Moneybats, and the legend is that if they land on you, you come into money. They are very common, and although they are more frequent in March and September, they are more or less an all year resident here. After hurricane Frances and Jeanne, the winds were primarily from the northeast, and that kept the moneybats away from the homes on the west coast of the island. (There are no homes on the east coast). Yesterday, however, when the wind changed and we got southerly winds again, they came back with a vengeance. Hundreds of moneybats invaded the houses , and the Mockingbirds had a field day. The Mockingbirds seem to love the moths, and pick them off the decks and porches in the morning.

I do have some pictures, so if you want some more, please tell me.

Yours, Jacqueline Campaigne Orange Creek Cat Island, Bahamas

____________________________________________________

From: thompson john [houndfish at hotmail.com] 
Sent: Mon 9/20/2004 4:13 PM 
To: mike.quinn@tpwd.state.tx.us 
Subject: Bahamas - Black Witches 

Hello, I am a natural history enthusiast from Nassau, Bahamas. I ran into your website while trying to find information on a most interesting black witch (here they are called "moneymoths" or "moneybats") behaviour that I witnessed last night. I collect native Bahamian trees and I have a tree locally known as "anaconda", or to Florida Keys residents, "Geiger tree". This tree (Latin name Cordia sesbestena) suffers from heavy attacks by the larvae of a tortoise beetle, and as far as I know the tree is the one and only host plant. I do not spray them, as the adult beetles are quite beautiful in metallic green and gold. The beetle larvae are much less attractive, and are capable of much damage. They eat the soft leaf tissue and exude a sticky secretion which may build up around them as a thick film. I would guess the solution to be sweet like aphid honeydew, but have no burning desire to taste it. 

Anyway, last night I was outside with a flashlight and I noticed 7 moneybats on the smallish tree, sucking the larval beetles' secretions. They were not even fazed at close inspection under bright light. Have you ever heard of this? Moneybats are very abundant here and are considered good luck, with a windfall of wealth not far away if they settle in your house.

Request for Help

Please report new BWM county records to mike.quinn@tpwd.state.tx.us  
Please include date, location (distance to nearest town) & county of record.
Also please include sex, condition of moth & prevailing weather conditions.
If you find a new county record, please send a low resolution photo if possible. 
Thanks, Mike

Bibliography  

Bahari, S. 2004. Those multiplying moths that migrated from Mexico. Star-Telegram.com. Posted on Sun, Jul. 11, 2004.

Baust, J.G., A.H. Benton & G.D. Aumann. 1981. The influence of off-shore platforms on insect dispersal and migration. Bulletin of the Entomological Society America 27:23-25.

Brennan, P. August 12, 2004. Bat-like giant moths alight in O.C. The Orange County Register, Page A1.

Brou, V.A., Jr. 2003. Ascalapha odorata (L.) and Thysania zenobia (Cram.) in Lousiana. Southern Lepidopterists' News 25(3):91.

Comstock, J. 1936. Notes of the early stages of Erebus odora L. (Lepidoptera). Southern California Academy of Sciences Bulletin 35:95-98.

Covell, C.V.  1984. Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.

Engelhardt, G.P. 1934. Tornados and butterfly migrations in Texas. Bulletin of the Brooklyn Entomological Society 29:16.

Farquhar, D.W. 1934. The Lepidoptera of New England. Ph.D. thesis, Harvard University. 328 pp

Forbes, W.T.M. 1954. Lepidoptera of New York and neighboring states. III. Noctuidae. Memoirs of the Cornell University Agricultural Experimental Station 329:1-433.

Freeman, B. 2003. A Fallout of Black Witches (Ascalapha odorata) Associated with Hurricane Claudette. News of the Lepidopterists' Society. 45(3):71.

Hodges, R.W., T. Dominick, D.R. Davis, D.C. Ferguson, J.G. Franclemont, E.G. Munroe, J.A. Powell editors. 1983. Check list of the Lepidoptera of America North of Mexico (Including Greenland). E.W. Classey Limited and the Wedge Entomological Research Foundation, London. xxiv + 284 pp.

Hoffmann, C.C. 1918. Las mariposas entre los antiguos Mexicanos. Cosmos 1.