Dr. Angela Smilanich to assist EC Stevens and Parker Farms Caterpillar Hunters

Now that winter is behind us, fourth grade students from E.C. Stevens and Parker Farms Schools will be teaming up with a caterpillar scientist from Wesleyan University to hunt for caterpillars in Connecticut. Dr. Angela Smilanich, formerly of Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana (where I was part of the Earthwatch Expedition this past fall), has relocated to Connecticut to pursue post-doctoral research on caterpillar immune systems at Wesleyan University in Middletown. She will be sharing her expertise with us as we explore the Miller's Pond State Park in Durham in search of caterpillars. We will follow our hunt with a visit to the Caterpillar Lab at Wesleyan University in June. How fortunate we are to have Dr. Angela in our backyard!

The Votes Are In!

And the winner is . . .



GEORGIE GUMMY!

Congratulations!

Thank you for voting for your favorite caterpillar!

Official Stats. for "Hunting for Caterpillars"

Hi Everyone,

I just received the statistics from the scientists outlining what we accomplished in the swamps of Louisiana. Wow. It sure was a lot of hard work - but fun!

TEAM 4 Hunting For Caterpillars

*Collected, photographed, identified, logged-in and cared for a total of 559 individual specimens (caterpillars) from plots and general collections in the Pearl River Wildlife Management Area.

*Identified caterpillars from at least 12 different families of Lepidoptera

*Completed 16 plots (which equates to leaf and herbivory estimations, and caterpillar collections on all plants in 1,256 square meters of dense, snake-, alligator-, hog-, chigger-, poison ivy- and mosquito-infested bottomland hardwood forest!)

NEWSFLASH! Caterpillar Election Extended - Bagworm Enters Contest

Due to staff development days this week, many students were unable to log on to the blog and vote for their favorite caterpillar. So, the election has been extended until Friday, November 21st.

We also have a new addition to our list of contenders for "Favorite Caterpillar" - Bertrum Bagworm!

Before you get too excited and cast your vote for this caterpillar, I think you should learn a little more about him.

First, look closely at the green leaf below. Do you see the small bits of dead leaves on it?

When I was examining this leaf, the pieces of dead leaves began to move! I immediately alerted a scientist who informed me that these moving pieces of leaves were in fact part of a caterpillar called the bagworm! Check out its side-view.

Bertrum Bagworm

This larva constructs a bag around its body made of silk and materials from its habitat (such as leaves). How do you think this bag might protect it from predators?

This caterpillar can inflict extensive damage upon trees and shrubs. So look very closely the next time you see pieces of dead leaves moving. Defoliation may be following close behind!

Tulane Lab and Good-Byes

Before we departed Louisiana, our team had to move all of the 500 plus caterpillars that we collected to the Tulane University Lab. Here we are, setting up our rearing rack which comprises the caterpillar "zoo."

Each bag on the rack contains anywhere from one to five caterpillars. The rack is divided into sections for live caterpillars, pupating caterpillars, parasitized caterpillars and dead caterpillars.



The bags below contain parasitized caterpillars. One of the scientists took a parasitized caterpillar out of the bag and removed the parasitoid with the tweezers. Next it was put in an alcohol solution.

A second scientist then took the parasitoid and examined it under the microscope. Notice that his microscope has a camera attached to the top of it. This allows him to take pictures of his specimens and project their images onto the computer screen.

The scientist showed us a wasp parasitoid and a fly parasitoid. The specimen of the fly parasitoid was not in the best of shape. However, parasitoids can always be distinguished by their wings. Can you describe each parasitoid's wings? What do you think the differences are?

Wasp parasitoid

Fly parasitoid

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After we finished our work in the lab, it was time to say our good-byes. Our time together had been educational and memorable. We are all looking forward to getting back to our schools and continuing to share the valuable lessons regarding climate change and biodiversity that the caterpillars have taught us.

Earthwatch Institute, Hunting for Caterpillars - Team 4, Oct.-Nov. 2008.

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New Orleans from above.

Log On and Vote!

It's Election Day! Make sure you remind your parents to get out and exercise their right to vote! Here in Louisiana, early voting has been in effect since last week. As we drove to our caterpillar plotting sites each day we noticed the long lines of concerned citizens, waiting patiently to have their voices be heard. Don't worry, I submitted my absentee ballot before the expedition started.

Well girls and boys. I think that you too, should be able to participate in an election. So, we are going to have a vote for our favorite caterpillar. Everyone gets one vote, and you must cast it on this blog site. The voting will close tonight at 12 midnight Eastern Standard Time, so click on the comments section of this entry and vote today! Don't forget to include your reason for choosing the particular caterpillar as your favorite.


Zebra Zelda


Ikey Inchworm


Willy Webworm



Red-Eyed Button Bobbi



Spiny-Oak Ollie

Hickory Tussock Tommy

Baltimore Bombalocha Barrie

Walter Woolly

Georgie Gummy

Trudie Tortricidae

Purple-Crested Paula

Sally Saddleback

Good Luck to All!

Adventures in Honey Island Swamp

Hello from the swamp of Honey Island, Louisiana. Boy, did we sure have an exciting time today! First, our scientist Mike (Remember, Parker Farms kids, he joined us at our Thursday morning conference), chose to disembark upon the river shore where alligator footprints dominated the beach! Yes, we were a bit hesitant about exploring this spot, and proceeded with caution.

Next, upon staking out our plot, I found the molted skin of a water moccasin hanging from a tree branch! In areas by water, it is common for this snake to relax on tree branches. Therefore in Louisiana swamp territory, one must always be on alert, looking up as well as down, making sure to stay clear of this aggressive reptile.

Sometimes the water moccasin is referred to as the cottonmouth. This is because when it is startled, it flings its head back and opens its jaws, displaying a white interior mouth cavity. It likes to eat warm as well as cold blooded animals and has heat sensing organs to help it detect prey. The water moccasion is one of the deadliest snakes in North America and is best avoided.

Next, we came across Charlotte's Web and her family of baby spiders. There seemed to be hundreds of them! Very Cool!

Now, you may be wondering, "Where are the caterpillars?" Well, this plot wasn't as productive as we would have liked. Oh well. Our other discoveries more than made up for the lack of caterpillars.