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Luna Moth

post #1 of 20
8/12/09 at 4:35pm
Thread Starter 
I woke up this morning to a Luna Moth hanging on the screen outside my bedroom window. I tried to get a picture, but none of them turned out well, so I've posted one I found online. I read they only live one week and I think this one is dying. It's been in the same spot all day, it's still alive, but barely.
It's a very cool moth!

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post #2 of 20
8/12/09 at 4:46pm
So pretty I've never seen one.
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post #3 of 20
8/12/09 at 4:58pm
They sound like a baseball if they hit your windshield!

I've always found moths fascinating.
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post #4 of 20
8/12/09 at 5:12pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrblanche View Post
They sound like a baseball if they hit your windshield!

I've always found moths fascinating.
It's big - 4" - 5" wing span! It is very interesting.
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post #5 of 20
8/12/09 at 7:21pm
We get them occasionally outside our house, but I didn't know what they were called until now. Yeah, they are HUGE! I love moths. I think they are so pretty and the patterns on their wings are so unique. I'm still learning the different kinds, and I'm guessing that moths are the same as most other animals...the colors are more vibrant on the male than on the female?
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post #6 of 20
8/12/09 at 7:30pm
Luna moths are beautiful Have you ever seen a Cecropia (sp) moth? They are even larger. Your luna moth is ok, they only fly at night. If it is a female, she will not fly as much as the male. But come morning, if it is a female, you may find a male luna with her. If it is a male, he will fly away after dark in search of a mate.
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and I'm guessing that moths are the same as most other animals...the colors are more vibrant on the male than on the female?
With moths no. The best way to tell the males from females, is to look at the antennae on top of their heads. They use them to detect the female pheromone. Males have larger/thicker antennae. The body of the male is slimmer than the female. The luna is this picture appears to be a male
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post #7 of 20
8/13/09 at 7:51am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AmberThe Bobcat View Post
Luna moths are beautiful Your luna moth is ok, they only fly at night.
The one I saw was a female and she was gone this morning (I'm glad to know she was okay!). Thanks for all the info.
Cathy
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post #8 of 20
8/13/09 at 3:23pm
Thread Starter 
I found my Luna Moth on the ground below the window. Her short life is over, but I'm glad I got to see such a lovely creature!
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post #9 of 20
8/13/09 at 5:06pm
What a beautiful moth! I'll have to look them up. I raise butterflies as a hobby but love moths as well. The only really cool moths I have are the snowberry clearwing hummingbird moths. They look like large fluffy bumble bees. Thanks for sharing!!!
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post #10 of 20
8/13/09 at 5:42pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tamgirl99 View Post
What a beautiful moth! I'll have to look them up. I raise butterflies as a hobby but love moths as well. The only really cool moths I have are the snowberry clearwing hummingbird moths. They look like large fluffy bumble bees. Thanks for sharing!!!
Whoa! What a beautiful moth! How does one go about Moth-watching? Where are they found?
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post #11 of 20
8/14/09 at 5:16pm
That's really beautiful. I love the furry antenae.
I don't think we get them up here in Canada, at least I've never seen one.
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post #12 of 20
8/15/09 at 2:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by clpeters23 View Post
I found my Luna Moth on the ground below the window. Her short life is over, but I'm glad I got to see such a lovely creature!
Awww, sad to hear this. Sadly, these large moths have a very short life span. They can't even eat. Their main purpose is to breed and lay eggs for the next generation. You were fortunate to see such a beautiful creature
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The only really cool moths I have are the snowberry clearwing hummingbird moths. They look like large fluffy bumble bees. Thanks for sharing!!!
I have those hummingbird moths up here in Ohio as well. Not sure if they are the same exact species, but they are a hummingbird moth. They hover in flight, feeding on the nectar from flowers, just like a hummingbird.
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post #13 of 20
8/16/09 at 12:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by clpeters23 View Post
Whoa! What a beautiful moth! How does one go about Moth-watching? Where are they found?
LOL, my front porch! We leave the light on at night because the dogs go in and out, and we have SO many flying around the light and attached to the screens that it's getting unreal. We also have a bug light to zap mosquitoes (I'm sorry, I can't stand being bitten) and I've rescued a few from the lamp. They aren't small enough to actully go "into the light" but they still get stunned. They crawl up on my finger and onto the back of my hand...get their head back on straight and fly away. Some of them are gorgeous! We have one species here that has pink wings with yellow spots. Anyone know what that is?
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post #14 of 20
8/16/09 at 1:00pm
Thread Starter 
Check this link: it this it?

http://www.uniquedaily.com/wp-conten...-pink-moth.jpg
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post #15 of 20
8/16/09 at 3:53pm
Wow, that pink one is so pretty! That's something you'd expect ot see in the tropics instead of North America.
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post #16 of 20
8/16/09 at 4:01pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pushylady View Post
Wow, that pink one is so pretty! That's something you'd expect ot see in the tropics instead of North America.
You're absolutely correct. I had no idea there were such beautiful moths!
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post #17 of 20
8/17/09 at 5:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by clpeters23 View Post
Very similar but the yellow is more in the center of the wings:

http://cherylsafina.files.wordpress....pink-moth1.jpg

Found a pic, but still have no idea what it is! Maybe it's the same species as the one you posted.
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post #18 of 20
8/20/09 at 3:52am
Years ago, my ex bf's dad found this big ol' fat green worm thing on their tomato plant. He looked it up and I forgot the name of it. Anyway, he kept it in a small box in the garage and fed it and it finally went into a cocoon. It stayed that way for quite some time and he feared that it had died. He still held on to it anyway. Well, turned out that the worm turned into a Luna Moth. He was so happy to see it, so he waited until that night and let the creature go. I remember something about the Luna moth not having a mouth or something and their main purpose is to find a female and mate. It was all very interesting.
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post #19 of 20
10/12/09 at 11:50am
By me Luna's are rare as we have very few Oak trees which the caterpillars eat. But we do have other cool moths. We have bagworm moths, hawkmoths (tomato hornworm), and the largest, Polyphemus moths! These are huge!
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post #20 of 20
10/12/09 at 5:32pm
Thread Starter 
Stunning! What are their dimensions?


Quote:
Originally Posted by keith p View Post
By me Luna's are rare as we have very few Oak trees which the caterpillars eat. But we do have other cool moths. We have bagworm moths, hawkmoths (tomato hornworm), and the largest, Polyphemus moths! These are huge!
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