Family Saturniidae
rss Luna Moth in Northern Vermont
Location: South Burlington VT
June 5, 2011 4:50 pm
On a home in South Burlington, Vermont
Signature: VtSkier
Luna Moth
Dear VtSkier,
Thanks for sending us your photo. This is our most northerly sighting this year and our first letter from Vermont in a very very long time.
Looks like a Ray
Location: Putnam County, New York
June 4, 2011 3:01 pm
Hi I saw this the other day when I filled my gas tank. Look so unusual( to me anyway)aorta looked like a manta ray. Love to know more about it.
Signature: Thank you
Luna Moth at the ATM
Gas Stations are magnets for certain insects that are attracted to bright lights at night and gas stations that are near wooded, swampy and otherwise open spaces are the richest hunting grounds for Giant Silkmoths, Toe-Biters, Beetles and Sphinx Moths. This beauty is a Luna Moth. If we ever decide to make another calendar, this is exactly the type of image we would use in it.
Thank you. I had never seen anything like it, did a little more research and learned it only lives about a week. No wonder.
Thanks again.
Mating Cecropia Moths
Location: Stow, Ohio
June 2, 2011 2:03 pm
Hello! I just happened upon your website while searching for ”mating cecropia moths” because someone told me that’s what these were when I posted this pic to my facebook account today! So when I saw the ’bug love’ page, I thought maybe you’d like to have copies of these photos. 
These were found around 7:30 in the morning in Stow, Ohio on 6/2/11.
Signature: Sincerely, Misty from Kent, Ohio
Mating Cecropia Moths
Dear Misty,
We are positively thrilled to post your photos on our Bug Love pages. We are sure many of our readers are anticipating the ravenous hoard of caterpillars munching on the leaves of, according to BugGuide: ” various trees and shrubs including alder, apple, ash, beech, birch, box-elder, cherry, dogwood, elm, gooseberry, maple, plum, poplar, white oak, willow. (3)(1) may also feed on lilac and tamarack” that this pair will produce. Should she lay eggs, they will hatch in about a week and you can release the first instars onto a tree in your yard. Surely you have at least one tree on that long list.
Moth identification
Location: Trinity National Forest, Trinity County, CA / May 30th / 2,500 ft elevation.
May 31, 2011 9:40 am
I looked through the large moth photos and did not see this particular guy. Some of the silk moths were close, but not spot on. It has about a 4.5 inch wing span. Any help would be appreciated.
Signature: K. Fisher
Ceanothus Silkmoth
Dear K. Fisher,
Your lovely moth is a Ceanothus Silkmoth, Hyalophora euryalus. The distinguishing feature of this species is the “discal spot on hindwing shaped like an elongated comma pointing toward outer margin” according to BugGuide.
Ceanothus Silkmoth
Silk worm moths
Location: Sherman, CT
May 30, 2011 2:01 pm
We just found both of these in our yard in CT. Both silkworm moths, we think a polyphemus and a prometheus–any thoughts. Both about 5” wing span.
Signature: Dee Ratterree
Female Prometheus Moth
Hi Dee,
We agree with both of your identifications. The Prometheus Moth is a female. The sexually dimorphic males are smaller and have very dark coloration. The Polyphemus Moth is also a female. The antennae of the male are much more developed.
Polyphemus Moth
Freaky bug
Location: douglasville georgia
May 29, 2011 12:30 am
I have no idea what these bugs are but they are all over my house and yard. I live in georgia and they appeared aroind may 26th.
Signature: Damisha Truitt
Spotted Apatelodes
Hi Damisha,
This is a Moth known as the Spotted Apatelodes, Apatelodes torrefacta, and it is perfectly harmless. They do not even feed as adults since they do not have working mouth parts. We are intrigued that they have appeared in such numbers. According to BugGuide, the caterpillars feed upon the leaves of “ash (Fraxinus), cherry (Prunus), maple (Acer), oak (Quercus).” Perhaps you had a large caterpillar population last season on your nearby trees, and though you did not notice the caterpillars, they eventually metamorphosed into a new generation that recently emerged as adults. Here is a link to a photo of the Caterpillar. Does it look familiar?
Identification of Huge Butterfly/Moth
Location: Moosic, PA 18507
May 28, 2011 9:07 am
Found this on a concrete wall outside work…The wingspan was about 6 inches across when opened…Never saw anything like it…Was just wondering what it was…Thanks
Signature: Pat Corbett
Cecropia Moth
Hi Pat,
The Cecropia Moth is frequently confused for a butterfly because of its large size and beautiful coloration. The average person erroneously believes all moths are small and drably colored.
mating Anisota moths
Location: Fayetteville, NC
May 27, 2011 7:31 am
Found these yesterday on a stump that was also home to some new bird hatchlings. I couldn’t get a dorsal view without disturbing them, but even from the underside, they’re very pretty. Hopefully they finished their business before the mother bird looked up.
Signature: Patrick
Mating Oakworm Moths
Dear Patrick,
Thank you so much for sending in your photo of mating Oakworm Moths in the genus Anisota.
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