INSECTO-MEDIA: A review of Bryan Pfeiffer's “Four Wings and a Million Prayers” by Anna Court
A blog about entomology relevant podcasts, documentaries, presentations on line, books, and other media.
O.K., this blog column could be called INSECTOPEDIA, which is the title of a terrific book I read a few years ago by British biologist Hugh Raffles. I’ll post that review soon. I thought INSECTO-MEDIA was the best title for my blog since I plan to review entomology related books, podcasts, documentaries, presentations – anything worthwhile and publically available online or in print. (Also considered were suggestions from my creative son: “On the Fly” and “The Nervous Tick” and Orientomology (?). These were, fortunately, rejected.)
I have just one rule for content in these posts: the material I review has to be publically available. I don’t want readers to have to spend money to indulge. Even the books will be available through Maine Library Interlibrary Loan.
Oh, I have another rule: no cheating: I will have read, seen, or listened to all of everything I review.
So here goes the inaugural blog: Bryan Pfeiffer’s presentation with terrific photos for the Camden Public Library, Four Wings and a Million Prayers. The presentation was co-sponsored by Coastal Mountains Land Trust and brought to MES members’ attention by Roger Rittmaster – a stellar photographer of butterflies, author of an essential how to book on this subject, and a long term member of MES. Roger is also a board member and volunteer supreme for the Coastal Mountains Land Trust. Thank you Roger.
Who is Bryan Pfeiffer, you ask? He’s a Vermonter, a well-known naturalist, writer and nature philosopher. Roger Rittmaster made up that last title for Bryan but you will see in his presentation that he is reflective about his nature experiences in a philosophical way. Bryan started as a boy scientist/naturalist and that love of nature has never left him. He has studied and photographed nature – mostly birds and insects – from the tropics to above the Arctic Circle, and his essays have appeared in the New York Times, Aeon and Orion magazines, Northern Woodlands, Field and Stream. His latest project has been photographing rare butterflies for the state of Maine. You can read some of his essays and articles and see his photography to at www.bryanpfeiffer.com. Bryan also leads workshops such as “Field Photography for Naturalists and Biologists” – a full day session limited to just 8 participants. Maybe after Covid you can take one of his workshops.
Screen capture of Bryan’s website, www.bryanpfeiffer.com.
Bryan is well known so over 225 people from all over the U.S. attended his presentation. He said he came to his love of insects through birding and he presented photos of some the insects that have fascinated him: the Dogbane Beetle, Six Spotted Tiger Beetle, Scorpionfly, Swift River Cruiser dragonfly, Owl-Eyed Bird Dropping moth, and the Crowberry Blue butterfly found only (in the whole world!!) in Washington County, Maine. He noted that insects represent 400 million years of evolution.
Bryan went on to discuss and show photos of three insects with some remarkable habits. His intent, he said, is to put ourselves in their place and he does this with lively descriptions and beautiful photographs, as well as his own stories and memories of where he found these insects and what emotions and memories they inspired.
One of the insects is Pantala flavescens - a broad winged Glidder that has a world distribution and the longest single generation migration of any insect - trans-oceanic, trans continent, no less. How do we know this? Examination of hydrogen molecules (they are like location “fingerprints”) on their wings. They feed on aerial plankton on their way. How do we know this? I’m not sure.
Monarchs (Danaus plexippus) migrate, too, Bryan notes, but different generations return. Monarchs tagged on Monhegan Island fly 2,983 miles to their wintering site in Mexico. They have no business at sea, Bryan said, but all along the East Coast, you can see Monarchs migrating.
The last insect Bryan highlights is the caddisfly (order Trichoptera). In the larval stages, the creature builds a stick case out of twigs and stones. In this way, it can move and feed with some protection from predators who would have to spit out the stones and twigs. Ugh! Bryan found some of these at Grape Vine Creek on a visit to the Grand Canyon and he pondered the fact that their temporary quarters were made from rocks spanning the history of the earth. These little stone masons, he said, were putting a tiny portion of the Grand Canyon back together again.
When they post it, you can access Bryan’s presentation at the Camden Library’s website: https://www.librarycamden.org/event/cmly-four-wings-and-a-million-prayers/ . His film, Birding in Vermont is available through Maine Libraries Interlibrary Loan.
By Anna Lee Court, MES member. Comments may be made to annaagnesleecourt@gmail.com.
