Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens is scheduled to host educator and nature photographer Samuel Jaffe and The Caterpillar Lab from Thursday, Aug. 19, to Friday, Aug. 27. Photo by Sam Jaffe
BOOTHBAY — For the fourth year running, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens is scheduled to host educator and nature photographer Samuel Jaffe and The Caterpillar Lab from Thursday, Aug. 19, to Friday, Aug. 27, with a break on Monday, Aug. 23.
The 132 Botanical Gardens Drive exhibit will highlight the diversity and ingenuity of some of New England’s most unusual caterpillars.
“We really love the work Sam Jaffe and The Lab do — it aligns with our mission, and it’s such an unforgettable experience for anyone of any age, from young children to seasoned biologists,” said Daniel Ungier, CMBG’s vice president of Guest Experience and Education.
The Caterpillar Lab is known for its over-the-top, up-close native caterpillar exploration experiences. Visitors can meet dozens of species, all showcased in open-air displays, and including enormous giant silk moth caterpillars, snake-mimicking caterpillars, twig-like caterpillars, and legless slug caterpillars.
Guests can witness metamorphosis, ecological relationships, and even parasitism, all playing out first-hand at display tables and under digital microscopes. The Lab’s experts will be readily available for those who wish to learn even more.
A nonprofit learning facility, The Caterpillar Lab is a functioning caterpillar-rearing, researching, photographing, filming, and educating facility.
“The Caterpillar Lab is all about finding wonder in the unexpected,” said Jaffe.
A night of moth lighting is to be held from 8 to 10:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 20. “Lightsheeting” or “mothing” is the practice illuminating a large white sheet, thereby providing an irresistible surface for insects to land on. A favorite pastime of biologists, it has quickly become a popular hobby worldwide for nature lovers, gardeners, and the naturally curious.
The program is designed for anyone 10 and older, adults and families alike. Moth lighting is an event separate to the exhibit, and participants must register at mainegardens.org.
A Caterpillar Walk will also be offered on select days from 4 to 5 p.m. Participants can join Jaffe on a search of the gardens for native caterpillars and other insects, discovering how these creatures live in the wild. Jaffe will outline how the lab finds its caterpillars, discuss host plants and parasitoids, and share caterpillar-finding secrets.
At nearly 325 acres, the botanical gardens is the largest public garden in New England. For more information, visit mainegardens.org or call 207-633-8043
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