Moths of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

MOTHS OF CONBOY LAKE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE: Results from 15 sites sampled 26-28 July 2016 Dana Ross 1005 NW 30th Street Corvallis, OR 97330 (541) 758-3006 [email protected] SUMMARY Macro-moths were sampled from Conboy National Wildlife Refuge in Klickitat County, Washington 26-28 July, 2016 as part of an ongoing inventory. Blacklight traps were deployed for a single night at fifteen sites representative of plant communities throughout the refuge and captured a total of 1,302 individuals representing 159 species. Of those, 121 species were new for the refuge and 66 species were documented for the first (23), second (26) or third (17) time from Klickitat County. The known number of macro-moths for the refuge now stands at 191 species. A total of 9 identifiable micro-moth species were also captured and are included in the results. With sufficient additional effort – particularly during the April to mid-July and September time periods – a total fauna of 350 to 400 species appears likely for the refuge. INTRODUCTION National Wildlife Refuges protect important habitats for many plant and animal species. Refuge inventories have frequently included plants, birds and mammals, but insects - arguably the most abundant and species- rich group in any terrestrial habitat - have largely been ignored. Small size, high biodiversity and a lack of identification resources have all likely contributed to their being overlooked. Certain groups such as moths, however, can be easily and inexpensively sampled and can be identified by regional moth taxonomists. Once identified, many moth species can be tied to known larval host plant species at a given site, placing both moth and plant within a larger ecological context. Moths along with butterflies belong to the insect Order Lepidoptera. The larvae (caterpillars) are consumers of enormous quantities of plant biomass and help to recycle plant nutrients back into the soil. Most adult moths feed on nocturnally available flower nectar and in doing so pollinate many flowering plant species. As egg, larva, pupa or adult, moths are an abundant and essential food resource for myriad species of birds (especially nestlings), bats, rodents, reptiles, amphibians and other insects. Moths are, therefore, an essential component of a healthy and productive ecosystem. Sampling that includes the physical collection of moth voucher specimens is necessary as part of any meaningful inventory. Vouchers added to regional collections serve as indisputable evidence of a study’s findings and contribute to a greater knowledge about wing pattern and general morphological variability. When moth information (species, date, location, etc.) is data-based and combined with existing data-sets it can lead to a more precise understanding of each species range, distribution, flight period and relative abundance. Each refuge has a unique assemblage of insects where each species serves one or more ecological roles. Moths are a particularly rich insect group that remains largely unknown for most important wildlife areas including our national wildlife refuges. This study is an important first step towards documenting these relatively inconspicuous yet vitally important life forms that occupy Conboy Lake NWR. 2 METHODS Fifteen trap sites were selected to capture macro-moth diversity by targeting a variety of plant communities and habitat types across a broad portion of the refuge. Sample sites representative of quaking aspen, ponderosa pine, mixed conifer, Oregon white oak, upland meadow and wet prairie habitats were selected based on a provided Conboy Lake NWR habitat map. While most sites sampled where those selected and sampled in 2014, one additional site (#16) was added to replace Site #7 (Figures 1-2, Tables 1-2, Photos 1-5). For each site sampled, a 12 volt battery-powered light trap unit was run continuously over one full night (from dusk until dawn) with a 22 watt circular UV-blacklight bulb as a visual attractant. Moths hitting clear acrylic vanes mounted above the trap fall down through a funnel and into a collection bucket charged with a fumigant (“No Pest Strip”) which kills them in short order. The sample period was chosen to coincide with the new moon, a time when interference from ambient moon light is minimal and the effectiveness of light traps is, therefore, optimal. While warm, calm nights with cloud cover are preferable to cold, rainy or windy nights, most moth species are capable of flying during adverse conditions, thus weather conditions were considered secondary in importance to moon phase. Samples from traps were collected early the following morning, placed in plastic baggies and labeled with location and date using a permanent marker. Samples were then transferred to a freezer until all refuge sampling was finished for the given sample period. After transfer to the lab in Corvallis, samples were placed again in a freezer until they could be processed. Processing entailed thawing moths on a large white sheet of paper and sorting/counting all macro-moths to species. Identifications of most moths were determined immediately. Less familiar moths were identified using the Oregon State Arthropod Collection (OSAC, Dept. of Zoology, Oregon State University, Corvallis) and web-based resources such as the PNW Moths (pnwmoths.biol.wwu.edu) and Moth Photographers Group (mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu). The most difficult identifications required assistance from other moth experts, particularly Dr. Paul Hammond of Philomath, Oregon. One or more voucher specimens for each moth species sampled were retained, mounted and labeled. Each first voucher specimen was deposited in the OSAC collection. Additional specimens will be placed in the Conboy Lake NWR headquarters collection, as desired. 3 Figure 1. Map of north Conboy Lake NWR moth trap locations. Figure 2. Map of south Conboy Lake NWR moth trap locations. 4 Table 1. Moth site GIS attributes I. Trap # Trap Code Habitat Type Date Sampled 1 Ponderosa 1 Ponderosa Pine 7/26/2016 2 Upland Meadow 1 Upland Meadow 7/26/2016 3 Aspen 1 Aspen 7/26/2016 4 Oak 1 Oregon White Oak 7/26/2016 5 Mixed Conifer 1 Mixed Conifer 7/26/2016 6 Wet Meadow 1 Wet Meadow 7/27/2016 7 Emergent Marsh 1 Emergent Marsh (not sampled) 8 Upland/Wet Meadow Mix 1 Upland/Wet Meadow 7/27/2016 9 Upland Meadow 2 Upland Meadow 7/27/2016 10 Aspen 2 Aspen 7/28/2016 11 Mixed Aspen-Conifer 1 Mixed Aspen-Conifer 7/27/2016 12 Wet Meadow 2 Wet Meadow 7/28/2016 13 Mixed Conifer 2 Mixed Conifer 7/28/2016 14 Ponderosa 2 Ponderosa 7/28/2016 15 Oak 2 Oregon White Oak 7/28/2016 16 Conifer 3 Mixed Conifer 7/27/2016 Table 2. Moth site GIS attributes II (Some elevations include minor corrections). GPS Coordinates (10T) Trap # Northing Easting Elevation (feet) 1 627657 5091913 1900 2 625446 5088181 1840 3 625825 5087223 1855 4 628080 5087541 1875 5 629917 5088673 1900 6 629629 5093316 1820 7 628946 5093395 1820 8 631566 5092658 1825 9 632517 5091345 1825 10 632322 5091134 1835 11 631954 5091968 1825 12 634239 5093071 1820 13 635001 5093756 1880 14 633773 5091012 1940 15 631860 5090258 1870 16 TBD TBD 1900 5 Photo 1. Blacklight trap in aspen understory (Site 10). 6 Photo 2. Field assistant Gary Pearson and blacklight trap in Oregon white oak habitat (Site 15). Photo 3. Gary Pearson and blacklight trap in ponderosa pine/bitterbrush habitat (Site 1). 7 Photo 4. Blacklight trap in wet meadow habitat (Site 12). Photo 5. Blacklight trap in upland meadow habitat (Site 2). 8 RESULTS & DISCUSSION A total of 1,302 individual macro-moths representing 159 species (Table 4) were sampled from all refuge moth sites combined during the July 26-28, 2016 sample period. As a result, this study is credited with 66 moth distribution records for the first (23), second (26) or third (17) time that a species has been recorded in Klickitat County, Washington. Individual trap samples (Table 3) ranged in size from 2 to 385 moths and included from 2 to 69 species. As previously witnessed by the author, traps in habitats with at least some canopy/overstory (N=10) scored consistently higher than those in entirely open sites (N=5) for both average moth abundance (121 versus 19) and moth species richness (39 versus 11). The greatest numbers of individual moths and moth species were sampled from the Ponderosa 2 (385 individuals; 69 species), Aspen 2 (190 individuals; 57 species) and Oak 2 (187 individuals; 53 species) sites. The fewest moths were sampled from Wet Meadow 1 and Wet Meadow 2, with just 2 individuals and 2 species each (Table 3). Recent emergent marsh restoration made access to the former Site #7 difficult. Instead, a new conifer site (#16) with abundant snowberry (Symphoricarpos) understory was added. Table 3. Numbers of moths and moth species by trap -code. Trap Site - Code # of Moths # of Species 1 - Ponderosa 1 62 18 2 - Upland Meadow 1 18 11 3 - Aspen 1 22 14 4 - Oak 1 86 42 5 - Mixed Conifer 1 61 32 6 - Wet Meadow 1 2 2 8 - Upland/Wet Meadow Mix 1 12 8 9 - Upland Meadow 2 59 34 10 - Aspen 2 190 57 11 - Mixed Aspen-Conifer 1 38 31 12 - Wet Meadow 2 2 2 13 - Mixed Conifer 2 82 29 14 - Ponderosa 2 385 69 15 - Oak 2 187 53 16 - Conifer 3 96 49 9 Table 3. Macro-moth abundance by trap site (*Micro-moth. County Records: 1= 1st, 2= 2nd, 3= 3rd). Trap Number Family Taxon 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Total *Cossidae Acossus populi P n/a Elophila icciusalis P n/a Herpetogramma pertextalis P n/a Mecyna mustelinalis P P P P n/a *Crambidae Pyrausta fodinalis P P n/a Pyrausta perrubralis P n/a Saucrobotys fumoferalis P P P n/a Drepanidae

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