Can you identify this bug??
Hello! I found this bug on my screen door — it stayed there for three days and then it was gone — do you by chance know what it is? I live in Virginia if that is of any help. Thank you,
Terri
Hi Terri,
This etherial beauty is a Luna Moth. We started to get photos from the South this year in early March, and by late May we were getting sightings from Maine and Canada. Your photos represent a second generation in the South. Where warm weather prevails for longer periods, the Luna Moth has a second generation that will overwinter as a pupa inside a cocoon wrapped in a leaf that falls to the ground and remains under the snow buried in the fallen leaves.
2 pictures for you
Found your email addy on the very good site you have on the web. The moth (pictures attached) was on our porch this morning at Payson, Arizona. It was resting on a (lit) lamp shade and has a wing span of 6 inches! I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of a moth it is and wondered if you can use the pic for your site or whatever else. Thanks
Reg
Hi Reg,
A few days ago, we received our first photo of this moth, Antheraea oculea, a relative of the Prometheus Moth found in Arizona. That specimen was sent from the Coconino National Forest of Northern Arizona. 50 miles north of Payson. We are copying Bill Oehlke on this reply as he is keeping comprehensive data on species distribution.
¶ Posted 25 July 2008 § ‡ ° help identifying this moth please
I’d love some help on this one! I live in NH and found this beauty on my house one morning around 9 am. Best regards,
Colleen L. Jones
Hi Colleen,
We believe with 95% certainty that this is a female Promethea Moth, Callosamia promethia, but the closely related Tulip Tree Silk Moth, Callosamia angulifera, is very similar. We found a Canadian Biodiversity website that has a side by side comparison of the two species. Males of the species are much smaller and darker.
¶ Posted 21 July 2008 § ‡ ° Beautiful S. Arizona moth
Hi there. I have seen the most bizarre insects since moving to Southern Arizona (almost on the Mexico border)! Thanks to your site, I’ve been able to identify most of them, except for this beautiful moth that we found on the wall near our front door this morning. Can you tell me what it is?
Many thanks!
Tamara Holcomb Page
Bisbee, AZ
Beautiful S. Arizona moth (found it!)
Please disregard my just-sent email. After a little more searching, I did find it on your site. Bill Oehlke identified it as “Saturniidae, Eupackardia calleta” On the posting I found, he had asked what county it was from. We are in Cochise County, in the Bisbee, AZ historic district. The moth was photographed on7/21/08. Enjoy the photo in my previous email (I didn’t want to burden you with another attachment)! Again, Many thanks!
Tamara
Hi Tamara,
Far from disregarding your previous email, we have chosen instead to post it with your lovely image of Eupackardia calleta. We are copying Bill Oehlke on this response so he can add your location data to the information he is compiling on this species with its limited range.
¶ Posted 21 July 2008 § ‡ ° Moth
I see you have this moth on your site. But this ones markings are a little different. We live in the Blue Ridge area of the Coconino National Forest of Northern Arizona. 50 miles north of Payson, Arizona. 6800 feet altitude.
Lynda Perkins
Hi Linda,
This is exciting news for us. According to a site we found, Antheraea oculea was declared a separate species in the 1990s. Here is what the site maintained by Hunter and Joel has to say: “Until the early nineties, oculea was considered a subspecies of polyphemus. Based on the hybridization work of Tuttle, Tuskes and Collins (see “The Wild Silk Moths of North America”) oculea was raised from subspecific to specific status. This moth occurs in Arizona and western New Mexico. At first glance, oculea looks just like a polyphemus, except darker, and with more ‘makeup’ around the eyespots.” The Butterflies and Moths of North America has a map of species distribution. BugGuide has a single photo of a mounted specimen. We are going to copy Bill Oehlke on this as he is compiling extensive species distribution information and this sighting may be of interest to him.
¶ Posted 19 July 2008 § ‡ ° what are these bugs?
Hi!
My name is Sarah. Attached are pictures of some moths that I found mating on my husband’s car. I’m in Jacksonville, Florida the beaches area. Any idea as to what they may be? Thanks!
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
When we first sent you the rather truncated response with just the Polyphemus Moth identification, we had every intention of formatting your lovely photos and posting them. We especially like that your photos demonstrate a change in position and open and closed wing views. Thanks for your lovely addition to our archives.
¶ Posted 12 July 2008 § ‡ ° Tagged: bug love Pink Striped Oakworm Moths “Bug Love”
Species: Anisota virginiensis
Location: Gainesville State College, Oakwood, Hall County, GA, USA
Date/Time: 8 JUL 2008/1210 hrs
The last things I expected to see after my math test were these lovely pink striped oakworm moths “in flagrante delicto” about five feet up a large tree-trunk. According to www.butterfliesandmoths.org , they usually mate in the morning, but I guess these guys were late risers (or long maters!). Unfortunately, I didn’t have my digital camera with me at the time, so a friend took the picture on his phone. With the reduced image quality, the almost impossible fuzziness of the moths is lost, as well as the amazing luster of their colors. The male’s body was not dark brown, as the aforementioned site suggests, but was instead a deep red-purple and orange. Finding these moths made my day, test and all!
Jon-Jacob Deal
Photo by Brian Edgar
Hi Jon-Jacob and Edgar,
Thanks for sending us this romantic image of mating Pink Striped Oakworm Moths.
¶ Posted 10 July 2008 § ‡ ° Tagged: bug love moth
Hi Bugman,
This moth was rescued from a bucket of water in our backyard. We live in west central Illinois. We didn’t know how long she would be with us. So she stayed with us for 3 days, laying eggs each night. We released her so my 6 yr old,Madelynn, would have to perform a moth funeral. We left for 4 days to attend my Grandma’s funeral. Ok, so here is the next dilemma. Momma moth laid all these eggs, which have now started hatching (less than 2 weeks from momma’s arrival). I wasn’t really expecting hatchlings before we got home, if at all. Since we’ve gotten this far what should we do? Thought it might be fun to witness the complete cycle for a few, and release some too. Last summer it was 5 swallowtail butterflies. Madelynn swears her butterflies come back to play each year, because she has seen them and they know where we live! So hopefully you can understand this dilemma. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank You,
Sandy in Illinois
Hi Sandy,
Raising some of these Imperial Moth caterpillars, Eacles imperialis, to adulthood is something neither Madelynn nor you will ever forget. BugGuide includes the following as caterpillar food plants: “Larvae feed on leaves of Bald Cypress, basswood, birch, cedar, elm, hickory, Honeylocust, maple, oak, pine, Sassafras (Sassafras albidum ), Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua ), sycamore, walnut. ” The caterpillars will feed on many deciduous and coniferous tree leaves, and you can search the internet for other lists that will include a tree that is available to you. Thanks for your wonderful letter.
¶ Posted 02 July 2008 § ‡ ° 
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