The Magnifying Glass

Giant Leopard Moth Caterpillars and Winners

We found this little guy on our wood pile a few days ago.  At first we thought he was a woolly bear caterpillar that would turn into a Tiger Moth.  But upon further research, we found that there are many, many kinds of tiger moths.  And this one is the caterpillar to a Giant Leopard Moth.  The two caterpillars are very similar.  However the woolly bear has orange or red bristles on his front and back ends.  Leopard moth caterpillars look solid black, but have red stripes on their bodies that can only bee seen when they roll up...usually after you have disturbed them.

Right now our little caterpillar is dining on lots of dandelion leaves and a few violet leaves and flowers.  Eventually, after eating all he can, he will leave his exoskeleton behind and enter the pupa stage for a few weeks.  And will finally emerge as a Giant Leopard Moth.  The Hilton Pond Center has a great description of the life cycle of the Giant Leopard Moth.

After holding the guy for quite some time, we read that we probably shouldn't have.  We learned you should always try to use a stick or a piece of wood to hold bristly caterpillars as some people get a rash from them.  Oops!  Luckily this little guy is not of the dangerous variety and is considered fairly friendly.

Last year we had several of these caterpillars and even got to watch the mama moth lay her beautiful pale green eggs.  So, who knows.  Maybe this is one of the babies come back to visit us.  We like to think about our caterpillars and moths (and butterflies) as friends here.  And really they are.

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And thank you to all who played along in our Boomerang! giveaway.  It is always fun finding new people who share in our love of nature.  The three lucky winners of the Boomerang! free episode giveaway are:

Cristie Baron - Episode 8 Annie Oakley....My daughter is very into horses and think she would find her lots of fun!

Emily - Oh there are way too many!  I must admit that much like some of the other commenters, I am a "start from the beginning" kind of gal!  One of my boys, however, would love to start with the episode about robotics - #2, I think.

Brittany - I'd have to go with episide #6 because who doesn't love Dr. Seuss?  And my 4 year old is obsessed with China right now.

If you all would please send an email to Dave of Boomerang! with "magnifying glass winner" in the title of the email and Dave will reply back with the download information.

Welcome And A Boomerang Giveaway!

Welcome to The Magnifying Glass!

Stefani and I have been dying to tell you all about our little space here for quite some time.  We have both hinted about it.  I've had it linked in my sidebar for months, but just like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, like a bird's return from the winter, the timing must be right.

"The Glass" is still a work in progress.  More resources should be available in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.  We're just getting started in this place.

And to celebrate our new endeavor, we've teamed up with Boomerang! who happens to be doing a bit of celebrating of their own.  The folks over at Boomerang! are celebrating a newly designed website and blog. (which I absolutely love!)

I first became acquainted with this pint sized audio show through Blair who is a contributor to the Boomerang! blog.  And from the beginning, our boys were instant fans.  We love Widget & Whack and Natalie's Natural Wonders segments...of course!

I have been thinking a lot about the idea that kids are interested in hearing about the very same topics that adults are, if packaged in a way that is fun and new.  Here is an example...my boys want nothing to do with the Biscuit books their teachers want them to read to move up the ladder on their Accelerated Reader bulletinboard in their classrooms.  No sir!  I have been watching them consistently choose much more advanced books and struggle through them...even getting frustrated at times.  I finally asked one of them why he didn't just read the Biscuit books the teacher gave him.  And he simply responded, "Because Mom, I want to read something interesting!  Biscuit is boring." (no offense to Biscuit readers, my 4 year old loves Biscuit)

I hear you little dude!

And that is the driving force behind Boomerang! 

"Children don't read to improve their skills - children read because they are curious. Boomerang! feeds and cultivates that curiosity by introducing them to a vast world of ideas."

"Children will become readers only if their emotions are engaged, their imaginations stretched and stirred."

Join us in celebrating, new blogs, nature, curiosity, big ideas and all that is good and right in the world as we give away your choice of Boomerang! episode downloads.  And just because Blair says she always feels bad at giving a prize to just one person in these kinds of giveaways, she has arranged for not one, but three lucky people to win.

To enter the giveaway, simply check out the Boomerang! available episodes page, then come back here to comment under this post telling us which episode you would download if you were one of the the winners.  Easy peasy!

Please feel free to share the news of this giveaway with your friends!  The little "share this" button at the bottom makes it easy to do that.  And I will leave the comments open until Wednesday night at 10 p.m. to give everyone ample time to get the word out and to enter.

Good luck to everyone and welcome to Boomerang! and The Magnifying Glass! 

- Eren

P.S.  The photo at the start of this post is of a yellow bellied slider that we came across during our nature walk this past week.

Making an Insect Stretching Board

It's the new birdwatching - butterfly and moth watching. 

We've been having so much fun learning how to identify butterflies, making our own nets and logging our finds into our Checklist of North American Butterflies. 

One of my guys in particular has gone completely bonkers over it all, so he was over the moon when we gifted him with his own insect stretching board for his birthday.

 

Its purpose is to dry butterflies and moths in an open-winged position before they are identified and pinned in a collection box.

It's just a little wooden board with strips of cork glued to it.  The strips were cut from 12x12 squares that we found in the office supply section of our local discount store. 

There's a small space in between each strip. The body of the insect sits in the space, and the wings are held back by small lengths of cardstock, then carefully pinned.

 

We made one pair of cork strips slightly farther apart than the first set, and doubled the thickness to accommodate full figured moths. 

In a few days, the insect will be dry and ready for the box. 

 

A few more tips for the butterfly collector: 

1) Be mindful! Never take more than one of each kind of butterfly or moth. If you catch one that you already have in your collection, let it go so that someone else can have a chance to see it. 

2) Hold butterflies and moths by their feet, so that you don't damage their wings 

3) If you are going to save a butterfly for preservation, you can use a kill jar, or just put it in a jar in the freezer.

4) If you're looking for an easy, inexpensive way to display your collection, check out the instructions for our homemade boxes here. 

5) We highly recommend the Golden Guide to Butterflies and Moths for identification. It's full of great information, but put together in a format that is simple and appealing to young naturalists. It's also just the right size to slip in a field pack when you're headed outdoors!

6) Also, in an act of shameless self promotion - the April issue of our Book of Days also contains a lot of great information for young lepidopterologists. It has directions for making nets, information on the differences between moths and butterflies, charts to help identify your finds, lists of butterfly resources, as well as tips on finding and rearing caterpillars. We hope you'll check it out!

- Stefani

Book Review: I Love Dirt! 52 Activities to Help You And Your Kids Discover the Wonder's of Nature

My boys love dirt.  Well what boy doesn't?  Their mama loves dirt, and well, we all love this book.  I Love Dirt is authored by Jennifer Ward, who is also the author of another of our favorite kids books, There Was A Coyote Who Swallowed a Flea.

However, unlike her other books, this time she offers simple lessons and ways to help parents experience nature with their children. 

6 Reasons We Love I Love Dirt!

1. Great activities with instructions that are simple and clear.
2. Beautiful illustrations.
3. Activities included work for a wide age range of children.
4. It is organized by seasons, making it easy to find activities that work not matter what time of the year it is.
5. This book is a great size and easily fits into a backpack or nature pack.
6. The author includes questions and answers as a way to take each activity a step further (ideal for families with older and younger children both).

★★★★

Check it out!

-Eren