We are not 100% sure, but believe this may be the Vancouver Looper (Erannis vancouverensis).  We’ve had submissions of the moth in past years—all males. The females have no wings! Vancouver Loopers are found from northwestern British Columbia south […]

We think this may be the Honest Pero (Pero honestari), but this genus is tricky. Members of this New World genus exhibit sexual dimorphism, polymorphism, extreme geographic variation, and a high degree […]

These showy butterflies can be found from British Columbia south to Baja California and inland to Montana and Nevada. Like many butterfly species, there’s an incredible visual difference between the […]

Two-tailed swallowtails are primarily on the wing in late spring and early summer in Montana. They’re the largest of all our western butterflies (spread specimens sometimes push 6 inches in […]

The Western Sculptured Pine Borer is truly a work of art, with its textured upper side and iridescent bronze luster. An opening of the wings reveals even more beauty. This species was just […]

It takes five years for these insects to complete their lifecycle, spending all but a few weeks of that time underground. Unlike the massive, all-at-once, emergence of “periodical” cicada species […]

The angular edges of the wings, combined with the bark-like appearance of the underside of the wings, allow these butterflies to practically disappear when they land on a tree. The […]

This is a species of flower scarab, and quite the pollen magnet with all that fuzz. It can be found across the US from coast to coast, primarily in the […]

We believe this may be Tibellus oblongus, one of seven species of Tibellus in North America north of Mexico. Slender crab spiders are ambush hunters, almost always found lying in wait on stems, […]

These golden, fuzzy-looking beetles can be found from Canada to Northern Mexico, mainly in the western part of North America. They range in size between 1 to 2 centimeters. Adults […]