Subject: Black Witch Moth
Location: Honolulu Hi
May 6, 2013 3:07 pm
Hey bugman, just reporting sightings of Black Witch Moth here in Hawai’i.
Is this a male or female?
Signature: Hawai’i Kane
Black Witch
Dear Hawai’i Kane,
This Black Witch is a male of the species, and to the best of our knowledge, they are not called Black Warlocks. Female Black Witches have bands on the wings.
Subject: Black Witch Moth
Location: southwest
August 26, 2012 4:34 pm
This lady was sitting in our office, in Hollywood. quite impressive at 6”
Signature: paul
Female Black Witch
Hi Paul,
Thanks for sending your photo of a female Black Witch. We have read that they are now naturalized in the areas of the U.S. closest to the Mexican border, but most U.S. sightings are from migratory individuals that fly north during the Mexican rainy season and appear in September. The migration is quite curious since they do not really survive the northern winters.
Subject: large moth
Location: Rio Medina, Texas
July 12, 2012 11:56 am
Good Morning, saw this moth on the back deck this morning. I can’t seem to find it or the name of it.
Thanks from South Central Texas
Signature: Richard
Black Witch
Dear Richard,
This spectacular moth is a male Black Witch (see BugGuide for explanation), a species from Mexico and Central America that has been periodically reported flying north as far as Canada for no apparent reason. More recently it has been reported to be breeding in the southernmost United States, most likely because its food plants Cassia and Acacia are commonly grown in gardens, though we suspect global warming might also be a factor. There are many superstitions about the Black Witch and you can read about them on the Texas Entomology website, where this one is mentioned: “ Similarly in South Texas if a Black Witch lands above your door and stays there for a while you would win the lottery!” Let us know if you hit it big.
Black Witch in Los Angeles
Black Witch
Bug of the Month: October 2006 – Black Witch Moth
Black Witch
Huge white witch moth!
Location: Colombia, south america
May 15, 2012 4:57 pm
Hello guys I found in my house a huge white witch moth! I would love to share the pictures with you. Hope you like it! when it flew away it was like a huge bird!
Signature: David Fernando Realpe Jaramillo
White Witch Moth
Hi David,
Thanks for sending us your photos. According to the University of Florida Book of Insect Records, the White Witch: “Thysania agrippina (Noctuidae: Catocalinae), the white witch moth, has the largest reported wing span of any lepidopteran. This neotropical species is reported to attain wing expanses of up to 280mm. While all books on Lepidoptera and entomology consulted award this status to T. agrippina, no supporting documentation from the primary literature was located. In wing area, some species of Saturniid moths from southern Asia surpass T. agrippina.”
Location: Amazon River, Brazil
Ed. Note: Tracey sent this photo in a follow up to a 3 Sphinxes from the Amazon posting. We have requested additional information.
White Witch from Brazil
Hi again Daniel
The white witch photograph was taken on 15 Feb 2011. I can’t tell you the exact location but we travelled in a riverboat from Manaus in Brazil “for approximately 45 minutes on the Rio Negro to reach Guedes Lake”. (Can’t find it on a map) We took a walk from the waterside not far inland. It was taken mid morning local time and the moth flew away seconds after.
… I’m very pleased you all liked them.
Tracey
Male and Female Giant Silkmoth from the Amazon
White Witch from Trinidad
Fulgorid Planthopper from Brazil
Black Witch from Hawaii
big butterfly from buenos aires
Location: buenos aires, argentina
January 22, 2012 3:04 pm
Hello wtb, today when I woke up and went to the bathroom to wash my face I found this big butterfly grabed to the hand towel. It gave me a good scare. It has not moved the entire day, I wonder if it’s alive. I wish I had a better camera so I could take macro shots of it but the ones I’m attaching I think are fine.
Regards from argentina.
Signature: gabxolotl
Black Witch
Dear gabxolotl,
This is a moth known as a Black Witch, Ascalapha odorata, not a butterfly as you speculated. There are many superstitions surrounding this wide ranging species as well as many colorful common names, many of which are indicated on BugGuide. Your submission is the southernmost report we have ever received for a Black Witch and BugGuide does not even list South America as part of the range. Wikipedia, however, does include the common name ”Pirpinto de la Yeta” from Argentina. The Texas Entomology page has a nice report on the natural and cultural history of the Black Witch and the same name is listed for Argentina.
big moth
Location: San Pedro California
September 28, 2011 9:23 pm
This big moth, or whatever it is was found in the eaves om my neighbors house. I would guess it’s about 6 inches wing tip to wing tip.
Signature: Delbert Crawford
Black Witch
Hi Delbert,
Your moth is a Black Witch, a common species in Mexico and Central America. As early as the late 19th Century, there were reports of Black Witches making northern migrations in the fall, and they are sometimes found as far north as Canada. In recent years, Black Witches have naturalized in the states closest to the Mexican border. Perhaps global warming is contributing to the northern range expansion. The white diagonal bars on the wings indicates that your specimen is a female Black Witch.
Moth size of Giant Swallowtail
Location: Seminole, Florida
July 20, 2011 10:14 AM
Hi Daniel
Saw this at about 7:30a.m. today in front yard. I thought it
was a bat at first. Seminole ,Florida 33776
No exageration – it is the size of a “Giant” – Giant Swallowtail.
Sorry the pics aren’t better.
Do you know what it is?
Have a Great Day!
Brent
Black Witch
Hi Brent,
Your moth is a male Black Witch. Females have light bands across the wings. The Black Witch is a species associated with more tropical climates, though their northern migrations have been recorded for more that 100 years. It is unclear why so many individuals fly north, as far as Canada, since their food plant, the acacia, does not grow in the North. In recent years, the Black Witch has been reported to breed in the southernmost U.S. We may be witnessing a range expansion due to global warming. According to BugGuide: “The northward migration out of Mexico is triggered by Mexico’s rainy season which typically starts in early June and lasts through October. Most US records are from June-August, with a considerable number of records from September-Novermber. [sic] Very few US records from December-May.”
I like This
