Mariposa de la Muerte-Black Witch Moth

Description:

Moth night last night lots of little ones in my porch also huge bugs. This beauty was 8 inches and came to pay a visit inside the house!! It was a clear night no rain, fog or wind. A Moth with a huge Story. I consider myself very lucky and happy I am not superticious!!?? On Cat Island, Bahamas, where they are locally known as Money Moths or Moneybats, the legend is that if they land on you, you will come into money, and similarly, in South Texas, if a Black Witch lands above your door and stays there for a while you will supposedly win the lottery.

Notes:

Pupae of the Black Witch moth were placed in the mouths of victims by serial killer 'Buffalo Bill' in the novel The Silence of the Lambs. In the movie adaptation the moth was changed to a Death's-head Hawkmoth. Spanish name for this beautiful Moth: Mariposa de la Muerte and Bruja Negra In many cultures, one of these moths flying into the house is considered bad luck: e.g., in Mexico, when there is sickness in a house and this moth enters, it is believed the sick person will die, though a variation on this theme (in the lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas) is that death only occurs if the moth flies in and visits all four corners of one's house (in Mesoamerica, from the prehispanic era until the present time, moths have been associated with death and the number four).