Are Luna Moths Endangered? Get the Facts in a Nutshell

Luna moths are large, striking green moths known for their unique appearance and beauty.

Primarily found in eastern North America, these moths have been drawing attention due to changes in their populations.

There has been a noticeable decline in sightings in some areas of the Luna moth due to a variety of factors, which has led many to wonder whether the moth is now endangered.

Are Luna Moths Endangered?

Although not classified as endangered, their populations can face threats due to habitat loss and pesticide use.

Conservation efforts are vital to supporting the Luna moth population.

By maintaining their habitat and limiting pesticide use, we can help ensure these stunning creatures continue to grace North America’s night skies for generations.

A Decline in Luna Moth Population

One of the leading causes of the decline is the introduction of parasites to eradicate invasive gypsy moths.

Unfortunately, these parasites also target native saturniid moths, such as the luna moth.

In addition to their vulnerability to these parasites, luna moths face other challenges, such as loss of habitat and predation.

Different populations of luna moths have varying reproductive cycles, with one generation per year in northern regions, two generations in the Ohio Valley, and up to three generations in southern areas.

This means that the impact on the species can differ depending on the location, making conservation efforts all the more crucial in maintaining their populations.

Threats and Conservation

Luna moth populations face various threats. One significant issue is pollution, which can harm their habitats and disrupt their life cycles.

Another threat comes from pesticides. These chemicals, used to control pests, can inadvertently harm non-target organisms like Luna moths.

In particular, host trees and host plants, which serve as food sources for Luna moth caterpillars, can be affected by pesticide applications.

Efforts to preserve their habitats and reduce threats can still help maintain healthy populations. These include:

• Reducing pollution by minimizing waste, using eco-friendly products, and supporting conservation programs.
• Minimizing pesticide use and opting for more natural pest control methods.

Recommended conservation actions for Luna moths for different threats:

Threats	Conservation Actions
Pollution	Reducing waste; using eco-friendly products; supporting conservation programs;
Pesticides	Minimizing use; choosing natural pest control methods;

Characteristics and Physical Features

The Luna Moth (Actias luna) is a large, eye-catching moth native to North America. Its most prominent features include its vibrant color, wingspan, eyespots, and tails.

Let’s take a look at the physical characteristics of Luna Moths.

• Color: Luna moths have a distinct sea-foam or lime green color that helps them blend into their surroundings.
• Wingspan: Their wingspan ranges from 3 to 4.5 inches, making them one of the largest moth species in the region.
• Eyespots: Both the forewings and hind wings display prominent, circular eyespots for added protection against predators.
• Tails: Each hind wing has a long, tapering tail that can disrupt the sonar of hunting bats.
• Lifespan: Approximately 1 week (as adults)

Some key features that distinguish Luna moths from others include:

• No mouthparts: Adult moths don’t eat
• Large, full-grown larvae: Around 3 inches
• Attractive to nocturnal predators: Bats and owls hunt on them

Adult Luna moths also have feathery antennae, with males’ antennae typically larger than females’ for better detection of pheromones in mating.

The Luna moth larvae are bright green caterpillars with slim yellow bands on each segment.

As a comparison, the table below highlights differences between Luna moths and a similar species, the Polyphemus moths:

	Luna Moth	Polyphemus Moth
Color	Sea-foam or lime green	Gray-brown to reddish-brown
Wingspan	3 to 4.5 inches	4 to 6 inches
Eyespots	Present on forewings and hind wings	Only on hind wings
Tails	Long, tapering	None
Larvae appearance	Green with yellow bands	Green with yellow spots

Habitat and Distribution

Luna moths inhabit various parts of Eastern North America. These large, green moths can be found as far north as Canada, even reaching Saskatchewan.

Their preferred habitat consists of forested areas where they can thrive.

These locations offer ample food sources and suitable spots for them to lay their eggs. Their life cycle is dependent on the region they inhabit.

In colder regions, like Michigan, luna moths only have one generation per year (univoltine).

However, in warmer areas like the Ohio Valley, they can produce two generations (bivoltine). Further south, they can even manage three generations (trivoltine) .

Life Cycle and Reproduction

The life cycle of the luna moth includes several stages: eggs, caterpillars, pupae, and adult moths.

Female luna moths lay their eggs on host plants, where they soon hatch into caterpillars.

Caterpillars feed on the foliage of various host trees before weaving a silken cocoon within which they undergo metamorphosis.

These caterpillars, also known as instars, go through a series of molts.

Each molt represents a growth phase in the caterpillar’s development. Over time, they reach the pupae stage.

The pupae stage is where the luna moth undergoes an incredible transformation.

Within a cocoon, the caterpillar metamorphoses into an adult moth. Once fully formed, they emerge to seek out mates and reproduce.

Adult moths emerge after two to three weeks and have a brief lifespan, usually around a week, during which they reproduce to complete the cycle.

Mating in luna moths is an essential part of their life cycle. They have a limited lifespan as adults, making successful reproduction crucial for the species’ survival.

Here are some key features of the luna moth life cycle:

• Eggs laid on host plants
• Caterpillars (instars) undergo molts for growth
• The transformation from caterpillar to adult within the pupae stage
• Short adult lifespan emphasizing the importance of mating

The luna moth’s life cycle can differ in length depending on the region:

Region	Generations per Year
Michigan and North	1 (Univoltine)
Ohio Valley	2 (Bivoltine)
Southward (Southern)	3 (Trivoltine)

Conclusion

Conservation efforts for Luna Moths are necessary to protect their unique beauty and their role in the ecosystem.

These moths are not only awe-inspiring to look at but also serve as a crucial food source for various predators.

This demonstrates the importance of preserving their habitat and population for generations to come.

Reader Emails

Over the years, our website, whatsthatbug.com has received hundreds of letters and some interesting images asking us about luna moths. Scroll down to have a look at some of them.

Letter 1 – Luna Moth

Hi bugman!
I found this one hanging on my screen door around midnight tonight. I’m in SE Ohio, and all i normally see are the plain ones, so I was pretty curious! Stumbled onto your website, so I thought i’d ask
Karrie

Hi Karrie,
If you had scrolled down our homepage a bit, you would have found that the Luna Moth was our featured Bug of the Month for April 2007.

Letter 2 – Luna Moth

luna moth pics
hi,
i love the site.
i thought i’d send you a couple of great pictures of a luna moth that came to visit us a few years ago in the laurentian mountains about an hour’ drive north of montreal, canada. he/she had teh eyes of shiva on her back and stared deep down into our souls…. we found the answers there.

Somebody may have put something in the kool-aid though
keep it up….
michael bailey

Thanks so much Michael.
We always like getting Luna Moth photos.

Letter 3 – Luna Moth

What kind is it?
I have found a butterfly looking bug that my father says he has not seen since he was a kid, i will included a pic of the bug so you may identify it and i would like to get a responce soon, Thank You

Thank you for sending in a new photo of the Luna Moth, Actias luna. Many people consider it the most beautiful North American moth.

Letter 4 – Luna Moth

Hi-
We thought you would enjoy seeing another pretty luna moth that has been lounging on our front porch welcoming visitors since yesterday (8-3-04). Since then, it has moved from vertical to horizontal !! Not really exerting itself to much. We are in Dublin, OH (outside Columbus).
Kevin and Lorraine

Thanks so much Kevin and Lorraine,
We are rotating your photo to the vertical position to maximize the size as well as to include the ruler.

Letter 5 – Luna Moth

Hello,
I have been lucky enough to have seen a Luna Moth. It is so beautiful! It was found where I work and was alive for about 2 days (since being found). It has now died and I am wondering if you would know of a way I can keep it without it decaying, some way to preserve it. If you could help it would be greatly appreciated.

Dear Ripleys,
Lucky you. Great sighting. Where are you located? Your moth will dry naturally. The biggest danger is protecting it from dermestid which will devour it. These tiny beetles can be kept out with moth crystals.

Letter 6 – Luna Moth

Hello there! You folks have a very informative web site and a much larger database than I thought. I am very pleased to have found you.

My husband & I had this great visitor on May 22nd (it hung out all day) and would love to know what it is exactly. We live in Pike County, PA. near the Delaware River and I have never seen anything like this. He/she was gorgeous!

Thank you for your terrific site and for any help you may be able to give us in identifying this unique-looking (to us, anyway) insect.
Sincerely,
The Fisher’s

P.S. Wishing I had captured something this beautiful resting on something more beautiful (not our screen door), I Photoshopped our moth onto another picture I had taken of some Coral flowers years back.
Again, thank you! and have a terrific day!

Dear Fishers,
You have been lucky enough to see a Luna Moth, arguably the most beautiful North American moth. These are members of the Giant Silkworm Family Saturniidae.

The caterpillar feeds on gum, walnut, hickory and persimmon tree leaves. In the fall it drops to the ground and forms a cocoon by spinning silk around a leaf. It winters on the ground and emerges as an adult moth in the spring. Adults do not feed. They live solely to mate.

Congratulations on your wonderful sighting and also for sharing your beautiful photo with us. We are reproducing it full size, not the normal 3 inches we usually post. We also prefer your screen door to the floral background.

THANK YOU, Daniel. What lovely and warm people you are over there!!!! I never expected to hear back from you so soon. We appreciate your kinds words and expertise immensely. (And I agree, the screen door shot is better. Thank YOU.) Do take care, Roy & Carie Fisher

Letter 7 – Luna Moth

Time for Luna Moths in Muskoka
Found this Luna Moth today (June 6) hanging from a hosta leaf in our garden under a white birch tree. The discarded cocoon was a few inches away from the stem of the hosta. Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada Bye now,
Barbara Taylor

Hi Barbara,
We have gotten many nice Luna Moth photos since our last posting on May 16, but we have been holding out for a northern sighting. Your Canadian specimen is our northernmost siting thusfar this year. Your lady looks to be full of eggs and we hope she has an opportunity to mate.

Letter 8 – Luna Moth

Luna Moth
Rarely do I get to see large insects, being this far north, so imagine my surprise when one of my co-workers pointed out this moth outside of our office on 5/16/08. After some searching on your site (my favorite reference site) I discovered it was a Luna moth.

Though the one I’ve taken pictures of seems to lack the translucent wings of the others you have. Also thought your readers would appreciate a size comparison for their own reference. Keep up the good work!
Dan
Dublin, Ohio

Hi Dan,
Our readership might appreciate the size comparison, but we appreciate the level of effort you took to achieve that sense of scale. Your photograph really appeals to our somewhat twisted aesthetic.

Our favorite images always tend to be the ones that could never make it into a legitimate insect identification guide. Your photograph is truly artful. Thanks for submitting what is, to this date, the northernmost Luna Moth sighting of the year.

Letter 9 – Luna Moth

found in Kankakee, IL
I thought this bug was beautiful. It had legs like a grasshopper and hopped like one….yet much more clumsily. (never flew) Could you identify it??

This is the most northern sighting we have received this year of a Luna Moth. We expect to be hearing from readers in Maine by the end of the month.

Letter 10 – Luna Moth

Luna moth
Thought I would give you my image of a Luna Moth. This guy stayed around most of the day on one of my many bonsai. Could not help but take a photos of her. Your welcome if you like to add this to your website. Michael McCoy Maumelle Ar.
Michael McCoy

Hi Michael,
Thanks for sending us your Luna Moth photo. We are amused that you called it a flying manta ray.

Letter 11 – Luna Moth

???
I’m not sure if this is a bug. This creature was hovering outside of my mom’s window last night. It is about 10-12 inches long. It has a tan head that looks like the head of a bat. The wings and body are green, with a forked tail. It looks like green leaf lettuce.

She said that it flew like a hummingbird, with it’s wings moving so rapidly it appeared to hover. I have more pictures if needed, but this is the clearest picture because it was really dark outside. It was clearly attracted to the light. She said that when she turned the light out, it immediately appeared outside another window where the light was on.

We wish you had provided a location for your Luna Moth. We expect to be getting sightings from as far north as Maine and possibly Canada by June.

Sorry, this was spotted on April 30th in Cumberland City, TN. Thanks for your help… I eventually found it last night, but I didn’t find anything saying a luna moth could get that big!

Ed. Note: The staff of What’s That Bug? does not wish to comment on the alleged size of the subject Luna Moth, which is estimated at twice the size of all published documentation we have seen.

Letter 12 – Luna Moth

Luna Moth in San Marcos, Texas
I found this moth in my friends apartment complex parking garage. about the size of my hand, maybe a little smaller. thought you might want to add it to the collection

Hi Clint,
Thanks for sending your great photo. Over the next few months, we will be expecting the sightings to move further north as spring hits the northeast and New England.

Letter 13 – Luna Moth

Luna Moth
Hi, I was so glad to find your site as I was searching to find out what this beautiful (what I thought was a butterfly) in my front yard was. I was just out raking leaves and caught sight of this moth jumping. I called my children to see it and we all stared in wonder! After running into the house to get my camera, I took a few pictures to be able to examine it further.

It has the shape almost of a sting-ray and it is so beautifully painted. I’m not much of a bug person, but love to find something I’ve never seen before! As a homeschooler of 3 children, your site will definitely be a source of information from now on for us!! Thank you! Sincerely,
Stephanie
Tallahassee, Florida

Hi Stephanie,
Your photograph of a Luna Moth is quite beautiful. The lighting is awesome.

Letter 14 – Luna Moth

Almost a fairy?
Hi bugman,
Found your site whilst trying to identify this magnificent moth(?) which we pictured in our sunlounge in Orlando Florida. It must have been about 6 inches long and looked just like a fairy. You can even make out a kind of human face if you look closely! We have never seen one before or since. Could you please tell me what it is? Many thanks.
Roy

Hi Roy,
We received our first Luna Moth photo of the year on March 5 and it is still on our homepage. Also typing in a description on our search engine should have led you to the proper answer. We really like your letter because of the fairy moth description, and we hope it will help others properly identify their first Luna Moth.

Letter 15 – Luna Moth

Can you identify this moth?
Hi! I have attached a picture of a moth that we found on our back porch tonight. It’s a mint green color with a dark brown stripe along the top. Pretty big and very beautiful. We live in Orlando, FL (if that helps at all). We hope you can tell us what it is. Thanks,
The Pappas Family
(Shannon, Erik, Maddison, and Hunter) Shannon

Hi Pappas Family,
This is a Luna Moth, a species that ranges throughout the Eastern U.S. and Canada. There are two generations in the south, hence your late in the year sighting.

Letter 16 – Luna Moth

Oh dear, another Luna Moth
Obviously you receive piles of photos of these beautiful moths but, after hearing about them for awhile, we finally found our first one. We’re delighted! Especially since “our’s” has such vivid eyes in the middle of the wings.

It’s early September in East Texas. We gather these moths appear in the Spring. After seeing photos of the Luna cocoons, we remember finding them on the ground a few months ago. This fella must be getting fairly old.

We carefully placed him high in a Sweetgum tree, watched him till he was happily munching on a leaf then left him in peace. We’ve bookmarked your site and will certainly be returning when we find more creatures. Thank you for all your work,
Rebecca (10) and her dad.

Hi Rebecca,
In the South, there are two generations of Luna Moths each year. Adults only live a few days and do not eat, so you were mistaken in believing this moth was munching on leaves. We expect this will probably on of our last posting of an adult Luna Moth until next spring.

It was very gracious of you to respond to our email. A couple of days after find our Luna moth and sending in a photo. my wife was walking in the yard and a “plop” caught her attention.

She found a Luna caterpillar at the base of a sweetgum tree. It’s now living in a large jar with a sweetgum twig and a lot of leaves. We’ve downloaded pictures from your site, details from others and a budding “bugologist” has prepared her first spontaneous 5th Grade science project of the year.

Thank you for taking the time to respond. My daughter was thrilled. Even more so when she saw the photo of her moth on your site. Best Regards,
Carl Strange

Letter 17 – Luna Moth

Luna Moth
Hi Bob,
Thanks so much for your site ! As I’m sure that as many of your viewers, I have suddenly discovered the wonderful world of moths. This beautiful Luna Moth was just outside our door on our business in Gun Barrel City, TX on Aug. 25, 2007.

The interesting thing that I’m sure you have noticed ( that we didn’t notice until after viewing the photo ) is that there is a Plume Moth to the right of the Luna Moth. I hope you able to post this and thanks so much for your incredible site and educational information.
Sam & Ron in Gun Barrel City, Texas

Dear Sam and Ron,
We are not exactly sure who Bob is, but we are very happy to post your image of a Luna Moth. The small moth in the photo is a Plume Moth.