next message in archive
next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects
--Boundary_(ID_O40CwV5PlYeE3j695gik2w) Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Begin forwarded message: > From: "James W. Wolford" <jimwolford@eastlink.ca> > Date: September 8, 2011 4:53:20 PM ADT > To: Nature BNS <nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca>, John Gilhen > <GILHENJA@gov.ns.ca> > Cc: Angela Joudrey <aljoudrey@eastlink.ca> > Subject: [ValleyNature] snake and caterpillar IDs > > Angela, regarding your hairy caterpillar, there are quite a few > different woolly-bear species of moths in Nova Scotia, but I will > guess that yours were possibly acrea moths, sometimes called salt- > marsh caterpillars, and their ground colour of hairs is quite > variable, according to a field guide to caterpillars I have, but > often a nice reddish-brown colour. > > But I won't contradict Jim Edsall, who is much more knowledgeable > than I, when he wrote: > > "the reddish brown furry caterpillars are the Virginia Tiger Moth, > Spilosoma virginica," > > Jim Edsall > Dartmouth, N.S. > check out my personal website at > http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/jim.edsall/ > > Angela, the woolly bear that you mentioned it was not, the black- > brown-black species, is the isabella moth. > > Most of the woolly bears are kinds of tiger moths (family > Arctiidae) but not all of them. > > One interesting thing about these hairy caterpillars is that, > somehow, the process of pupation results in those hairs making up > the outer coat of the cocoon, and this must be an effective > protective adaptation. > > Cheers from Jim, writing this without any books in hand, in Wolfville. > > Begin forwarded message: > >> From: Andrew Hebda <HEBDAAJ@gov.ns.ca> >> Date: September 8, 2011 3:32:15 PM ADT >> To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca >> Subject: Re: [NatureNS] snake and caterpillar ID >> Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca >> >> It sounds like a Green snake. Post-mortem changes cause a loss of >> the yellow pigmentation, with colour reverting to anything from a >> soft to metallic blue. >> >> >> Andrew Hebda >> Nova Scotia Museum >> >>>>> AngelaJoudrey <aljoudrey@eastlink.ca> 9/8/2011 3:16 pm >>> >> >> I am late in posting this. >> >> On Monday ( Labour Day )while running along Chester Road, I >> stopped for a snake that had been hit and was dead on the road. >> >> I picked it up ( not very squashed ) to set it in the ditch and >> was surprised at how blue it was underneath. >> >> The snake was less than a foot long, slender, dark dark grey- but >> not black, and a beautiful blue underneath. >> >> I checked the Natural History Museum website on Snakes in NS, but >> none there seemed to fit what I found. >> >> Any ideas? >> >> There was also many many many many reddish brown furry >> caterpillars crossing the road. They had one speed, super fast. >> They were a few cm long. And they were on a mission. To get to >> the other side? To build a cocoon? >> >> Any ideas as to which ones they were? There were not the woolly >> bear, there was definitely not any black on any of them. >> >> Thanks >> >> Angela in Windsor >> >> >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Nature mailing list > Nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca > http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/mailman/listinfo/ > nature_blomidonnaturalists.ca --Boundary_(ID_O40CwV5PlYeE3j695gik2w) Content-type: text/html; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "> <br><div><br><div>Begin forwarded message:</div><br = class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type=3D"cite"><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #000000"><b>From: = </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px = Helvetica">"James W. Wolford" <<a = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</a>></fon= t></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>Date: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">September 8, 2011 4:53:20 PM = ADT</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>To: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">Nature BNS <<a = href=3D"mailto:nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca">nature@blomidonnaturalists.c= a</a>>, John Gilhen <<a = href=3D"mailto:GILHENJA@gov.ns.ca">GILHENJA@gov.ns.ca</a>></font></div>= <div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #000000"><b>Cc: </b></font><font = face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">Angela = Joudrey <<a = href=3D"mailto:aljoudrey@eastlink.ca">aljoudrey@eastlink.ca</a>></font>= </div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>Subject: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica"><b>[ValleyNature] snake<span = class=3D"Apple-converted-space"> </span>and caterpillar = IDs</b></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div> = Angela, regarding your hairy caterpillar, there are quite a few = different woolly-bear species of moths in Nova Scotia, but I will guess = that yours were possibly acrea moths, sometimes called salt-marsh = caterpillars, and their ground colour of hairs is quite variable, = according to a field guide to caterpillars I have, but often a nice = reddish-brown colour. <div><br></div><div>But I won't