Looking for a fun and relaxing evening activity? Something that might be more fulfilling than collapsing on the couch? Why not try… mothing?

What’s mothing?

Mothing is forging out into the natural world (i.e., your yard or your street) armed with nothing but a phone and maybe an old bedsheet to find out what moths may be flitting about in your environs.

A recent Ask IFAS publication, “Magnificent Moths: A Guide to Begin ‘Mothing’ and Contributing Your Observations to iNaturalist,” explains how you can become a moth adventurer. “Magnificent Moths” has everything you need whether you’re just giving mothing a try once or whether you discover you really enjoy it and want to seek out cool state-of-the-art mothing equipment like a black light or a moth trap. Best of all, “Magnificent Moths” shows you how to take good, clear photos of the moths you find so that you can upload them to iNaturalist and contribute to our growing body of knowledge about moths.

Your discoveries can help scientists learn about moths.

iNaturalist is a website dedicated to helping you become a citizen scientist. You can use it to identify moths you find and get reliable help confirming your identifications. And you can upload photos of your discoveries to help other moth enthusiasts using the site. You’re not limited to just moths, either! Platforms like iNaturalist are helping to find and map many hundreds of species of plants and animals. You can contribute, grow your skills, and join scientists and naturalists in learning more about the natural world.

Learn more about citizen science on the Ask IFAS citizen science topic page.

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