Luna Moth

Description:

Luna Moths have a wingspan of up to 4.5 inches, making it one of the largest moths in North America. They have no mouths and do not eat. They only live a week and in that week mating takes place. The female moth lays 100-300 eggs on the underside of leaves. They will incubate for eight to thirteen days. After they hatch, they wander around before actually settling down on a leaf. Once they go through all of the stages they go into a cocoon. The cocoon is thin and single layered. They come out of their cocoons in the morning. Their wings are very small at first but they enlarge them by pumping body fluids to their wings. Their wings are soft so they must climb somewhere and wait for their wings to get hard. It takes about 2 hours for the process to complete. They then can fly and the process starts over again.

Habitat:

Forests especially ones with a lot of hickory, walnut, sumacs, and persimmon.

Notes:

This moth was attracted to the light that night. The next morning I found him on the window. This moth is really beautiful and very different. I really enjoyed watching him fly around.