Roughly 210 moth species observed this year, with 195 in my garden. (Day flying moths and caterpillars included in this count.) I don’t have enough observations to track trends, but I can say it was a very good year for Hyles lineata and a very bad year for Prodoxidae in New Mexico.
Highlights:
- Apparent first NM record for Penstemon clarkei
- Tentative first iNat records for Acrolophus luriei, Acrolophus seculatus, Chionodes metoecus, Coleotechnites huntella, Cucullia eccissica, Decodes stevensii, and Anarta inconcinna
- Completing the sweep of (western North America) Heliodinidae genera with my first Aetole
- All of the other arthropods I saw while mothing: approx 20 species each of hoppers and Mirids, 17 species of Neuroptera, 7 species each of scarabs and Braconids, 5 species of click beetles, plus mayflies, vinegaroons, and many hungry spiders
- Observers in New Mexico contributed more than 10,000 moth observations of more than 1,100 species in 2022!
Photo: Schinia with a broken clock
Finally, it was a sad year with the passing of Ian Toal and Vic Fazio, both well-respected members of the iNaturalist community