Moths as important to ecosystem as their butterfly counterparts

Everyone loves butterflies. The sun-loving insects are often festively colored and easily seen as they visit flowers. About 140 butterfly species have been found in Ohio, which may seem like a lot. But the order Lepidoptera has a much larger division than butterflies.

Moths are the other Lepidopteran group. At least 2,000 species have been documented in the Buckeye state, and hundreds of others undoubtedly await discovery. There are 15 times as many moth species as butterflies. Worldwide, there about 17,500 butterfly species. Moths number about 160,000, dwarfing butterflies.

As moths are primarily creatures of the night, they are harder to observe than their diurnal counterparts, the butterflies. Yet they are all around us, everywhere, doing important work.

Plant pollination is part of the moths’ trade, but one must venture out after nightfall, flashlight in hand, to catch them in action. Many of the same plants that attract butterflies also lure moths. White flowers are exceptionally alluring to the night shift.

Another little-known but critical service that moths provide is serving as bat food. About a dozen species of the highly mobile mammals ply their trade in Ohio. Bats use sonar, or echolocation, to bounce sound waves off other flying objects to pinpoint their locations. Most of these flying objects are moths, the No. 1 prey item for bats (followed by beetles).

Phoebes at Howald mausoleum:For 50 years, hundreds of phoebe birds have called this South Side location home

It isn’t just flighted moths that are eaten by predators. Moths have a four-part life cycle: egg, caterpillar, cocoon and moth. The caterpillar phase is often the longest-lasting actively mobile part of the life cycle, and caterpillars might be thought of as tube steaks with legs.

Legions of predators lust for protein-rich moth caterpillars, and mortality in some species can approach 99%. To counter this, moths have evolved a carpet-bombing reproductive strategy. Females of many species lay hundreds, if not thousands, of eggs. This is necessary in order to ensure that some of the larvae successfully run the gauntlet and make it to the reproductive adult stage.

Best-known of these caterpillar predators are birds. Nearly all of our songbirds seek out moth caterpillars, and many species eat them in enormous quantities. The caterpillar eaters include chickadees, cuckoos, kinglets, vireos, warblers, wrens and many others. Even normally vegan sparrows harvest caterpillars to feed nestlings. The rapidly growing chicks need protein-rich food sources.

Saving the wood duck:Nest boxes, game laws bring wood duck back from brink of extinction

Visually, moths can be incredibly showy, collectively imbued with a rainbow of colors and often displaying ornate patterning. Photographers who make their acquaintance often become smitten and become night owls in their quest to photograph moths.

Most moths are intricately linked to native plants, often in very specific ways. Landowners large and small can help grow these important insects by planting indigenous species.

I am giving a talk on the mysterious world of moths at the Westerville Public Library, 126 S. State St., at 7 p.m. Thursday. The talk is based on my new book, co-authored with Chelsea Gottfried, "Gardening for Moths" (Ohio University Press 2023, 288 pages). The program is free and open to all.

Naturalist Jim McCormac writes a column for The Dispatch on the first, third and fifth Sundays of the month. He also writes about nature atjimmccormac.blogspot.com.