Using moths to make science cool

Adventure is engaging in an unusual or daring experience. Discovery is the act of finding or learning something for the first time. Adventure and discovery are both pretty exciting prospects – so how do moths fit in?

For students involved with the Ahi Pepe MothNet participatory citizen science initiative, the adventure comes from being in the dark. After all, how often do you get to be out at night, hunting for nocturnal creatures? Discovery comes the next morning, checking the Heath moth traps to see if any secretive, winged natives of the night have come by for a visit.

The value of observation

Observation is what leads to discovery – whether it’s something as small as discovering the feathering on a moth’s antennae or something as big as discovering a new moth species.

Rights: The University of Waikato Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato

Observing moths

Magnifying glasses and microscopes can aid students in their careful observation of moths. Notice how these student from Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ōtepoti use paintbrushes, not their fingers, to move the specimens. This keeps the delicate scales on the moth wings intact for identification.

Observation is a skill that improves with practice and knowledge. Students who participate in the Ahi Pepe MothNet project begin their observations by looking at differences in wing shape and colour, whether the antennae are feathery or not and whether the body is thick or thin. Microscopes come in handy to observe the small creatures in detail. Students can then use identification guides to help identify the moths to put a name to a species.

The students at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ōtepoti use their observation skills to give moths Māori names that are appropriate to the moths’ appearance. Being able to give a Māori name to a moth species establishes a special connection for the kura and encourages the curiosity of the tamariki to take a closer look at the moths.

The value of moths

Moths play several important roles within New Zealand ecosystems. They pollinate plants as they move from one nectar source to the next. Moths form integral parts of food webs in native ecosystems – they are eaten by both native animals and introduced predators. Moths also make good subjects for wider environmental monitoring, but first we need to know more about where they live and how abundant they are.

Historically, moths have not had a lot of attention in New Zealand, but that is changing. The Ahi Pepe MothNet project is now funded to cover all of New Zealand. The science team is making regional identification guides for students to use. That means more students across New Zealand will be adventuring out in the dark, looking for nocturnal natives to discover and identify, building their curiosity, increasing their appreciation of moths and learning to use some interesting scientific equipment in the process.

Dr Robert Hoare, one of the scientists involved with Ahi Pepe MothNet says, “When you start looking at things in detail, I think you begin to appreciate them a lot more. You start being more enthusiastic about them, and hopefully you start caring about them and wanting to conserve them.”

And that’s how moths are helping to make science an exciting adventure. Just imagine opening a Heath trap to find the tutu green spindle moth (Tatasoma lestevata), pictured below.

Rights: Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research, Creative Commons 4.0

Tatasoma lestevata

Tatasoma lestevata, also known as the tutu green spindle, is found in both the North and South Islands.