Finding cocoons and adding more information to your observations

Good afternoon!

I hope you have all been having fun searching the hillsides for silk moth cocoons! That said, they can be tricky to find - I personally have yet to locate one. Here are some tips to narrow your search locations and increase your chances of finding cocoons! Please visit the Cocoon Watch Join webpage (link here) for more information.

How to find cocoons:

Cecropia Moth:

• Loose cocoons spun in the vegetation at the base of cherry and apple trees, tight cocoons attached longitudinally to branches.
• Edge habitat, along fences and roadsides.
• Urban areas and cemeteries can be productive

Promethea Moth:

• Cocoons spun into a leaf, remains hanging from the tree.
  
• Roadsides, edges of open areas, power line cuts, and saplings along stone walls.

Polyphemus and Luna Moths:

• Polyphemus cocoons can be found in trees, but are most commonly found in the leaf litter, Luna cocoons are always spun in the leaf litter. As a result, both are difficult to find. See the link here for more information.

Columbia Moth:

• Base of the trunks of Tamarack and Pin Cherry trees, always in boggy areas.
• This species is location specific - be sure to search in appropriate habitat.

So I found a cocoon and am uploading it to iNaturalist, now what?

When uploading observations to iNaturalist on the web interface, you have the option to add "Fields" (not available on the iPhone mobile app). You can add information such as "Associated Observation," linking your cocoon observation to an observation of the host tree it was attached to, or that of a parasite found on the cocoon (likewise, you can use Interaction -> Parasitized by). Some fields you may wish to include are:

• Associated observation
• Associated species
• Habitat
• Interaction -> Parasite of (see example)
• Interaction-> Parasitized by (see example)

After uploading, you can select the observation you have uploaded, and scroll down the observation page. On the right hand side, you will see the field you have selected (and have the ability to add others), along with a section called "Annotations." Here, you can select the life stage (pupa), and if known, you can add alive or dead as well.

Fields and annotations enrich the value of your iNaturalist observation. Filling out these fields can help us better understand how to conserve these species, as we could have more information on preferred hosts, frequency of parasite occurrences, and habitat information on where each species occurs. Adding fields and annotations also makes your observations searchable by the fields/ annotations you have filled out.

If you have any questions, feel free to email jpupko@vtecostudies.org. Happy cocooning!

Posted on November 10, 2021 11:45 PM by jpupko