New York is home to around 4,000 species of moths and butterflies that are integral parts of our ecosystems. Hundreds of species of birds, mammals, arachnids, and insects depend on them for food, but they are not always an easy meal. Both caterpillars and adults employ everything from leaping, biting, stabbing, yelling, and stinging to more passive strategies like poisons, camouflage, and mimicry.
In this talk we will look at the myriad of predators, parasites, and parasitoids looking for a meal and the strategies that moths and butterflies use to survive with Dr. Jason J. Dombroskie, Manager of the Cornell University Insect Collection (CUIC) & Coordinator of the Insect Diagnostic Lab (IDL).
This event is hosted by the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI), and is part of a recurring event series called “Science in the Virtual Pub.” This year on February 6 – 12, PRI and its Museum of the Earth will hold events for “Darwin Days,” the annual celebration of the life and ideas of Charles Darwin. This year, PRI is collaborating with Cornell University’s entomology department to offer virtual and in person events exploring the world of insects.