Montana Moth Project 2020 Update | MPG Ranch

Montana Moth Project 2020 Update

January 5, 2021

The authors summarize eight months of moth research on MPG Ranch and in the Bitterroot Valley.

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Montana Moth Project 2020 Update

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Our 2020 sampling produced photographic records of 5,442 moths representing 29 families, 246 genera, and 415 species.

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We launched the Montana Moth Project to understand population trends, diversity, distribution, and natural history of moths on MPG Ranch, the Bitterroot and Missoula Valleys, and Montana.

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We chose sites to monitor moth populations in common poorwill and nighthawk hotspots, a restoration habitat, and riparian and floodplain habitats where we had not yet rigorously sampled.

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We also surveyed diversity, abundance, and phenology across a larger geographic area by collecting moths once a month from April-October at three additional sites on MPG Ranch and five locations throughout the Missoula and Bitterroot Valleys.

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We photographed 5,442 moths representing 29 families, 246 genera, and 415 species across the four sites we monitored weekly at MPG Ranch.

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Members of many genera are most abundant in the summer, but members of some genera are more abundant primarily in the spring or fall

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Collecting specimens helps us document species diversity, frequency, and abundance. Perhaps most important, it provides voucher material for published records and taxonomic revisions

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Some moths exhibit either very similar or extremely variable traits, and having numerous voucher specimens helps us identify and understand variation within species. For example, upon cursory examination, the species below are visually similar.

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We sent tissue samples from moths collected from 2019-2020 to the Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding (CCDB) for DNA analysis. This process added 189 new species to our local inventory.

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We piloted a project using DNA barcoding to identify plant DNA on proboscis and swab samples (ventral thorax) collected from 150 moths at two sites on MPG Ranch

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The Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding suggests that plant identifications are reliable only to the genus level due to the short length of the molecular marker used in the analysis.

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We detected pollen from many other plants like penstemon, paintbrush, balsamroot, and mock orange on numerous moth species.

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We detected pollen from many other plants like penstemon, paintbrush, balsamroot, and mock orange on numerous moth species.

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Acknowledgements:

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References

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species-level plant identifications from proboscis and swab samples collected from moths at MPG Ranch and Teller Wildlife Refuge in 2020

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species-level plant identifications from proboscis and swab samples collected from moths at MPG Ranch and Teller Wildlife Refuge in 2020-2