Moth Week – Sat Jul 18th, 2020 – Sun Jul 26th, 2020
Moths might not have the best reputation; you could argue they’re a little underappreciated. The people behind Moth Week would almost certainly argue that moths deserve more credit and appreciation than they get. And that’s what Moth Week is all about. The aim is to celebrate the beauty, distinctiveness and life cycles of moths and their habitats. It’s a time to learn about moths and takes place each year.
Moths are fascinating and unknown, which is quite incredible for such a ubiquitous creature. There are between 150,000 and 500,000 species of moths and we have a lot left to learn about them. Moth Week offers a unique opportunity to learn about them more.
It’s also a chance to contribute to the overall understanding we have of moths and how they life. You’re encouraged to become a Citizen Scientist and add data about moths to the biological data depositories that are found online. The more information that can be gathered, the better.
So, as well as celebrating and appreciating moths, Moth Week is also about finding out more about them because there’s plenty left for us to learn a lot about the species around the world.
History of Moth Week
Moth Week began as an event in 2012 and it was created by the Friends of the East Brunswick (NJ) Environmental Commission. It’s an organization that focuses on helping with environmental education for children and adults, as well as promoting conservation.
The aim was to promote not only an appreciation of moths, but also the citizen science project that’s sprung up around it. This has gone on to become one of the biggest and most successful citizen science projects in the world. And that’s because it’s so easy for people of all ages to get involved.
The success of the project up to now is inspiring and the organizers believe even more people can and will get involved as Moth Week continues to grow year on year since its inception.
How to Celebrate Moth Week
The best way to celebrate Moth Week is to head to nationalmothweek.org and sign up to be part of the citizen project. There are lots of local events that you can attend too, but you don’t need to leave your own garden to get involved. It’s as easy as putting on an outdoor light when it gets dark and waiting for the moths to arrive.
You can contribute photos and things like that to the website because all of the data and information you can possibly provide is valuable and helpful to the people running things. It’s also a lot of fun for parents to get involved by doing this with your children. And it’s a chance for everyone to learn something new.
You might not have known it, but moths are among the most diverse and successful creatures on the face of the Earth and that’s not about to change. So, make the most of Moth Week and learn more about these amazing and durable creatures.
