Meet the Yellow-collared Scape Moth

I found this moth near Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September, 2012. It is black with bright yellow trim, slender, and about half an inch long. It was nectaring on goldenrod at mid-day. Almost as if trying to pass itself off as a wasp. It is Cisseps fulvicollis, a wasp-mimic member of the Tiger Moth family, Arctiidae. But it is all moth at heart. They fly at night, too, and are attracted to lights. A scape is the lowest section of an insect’s antenna; theirs must have really impressed the entomologists who named them.

Julie Feinstein

I am a Collection Manager at the American Museum of Natural History, an author, and a photographer. I live in New York City. I recently published my first popular science book, Field Guide to Urban Wildlife, an illustrated collection of natural history essays about common animals. I update my blog, Urban Wildlife Guide, every Sunday.

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