My God, #moths are so freaking cool!

[thegardendude@regenerate.social]

My God, #moths are so freaking cool! I mean, how can you not be amazed by the Cecropia Silk Moth? https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=Cecropia-Silk-Moth

[gsuberland@chaos.social]

@thegardendude they're gorgeous, I have one as my lock screen image.

also a big fan of rosy maple moths. rhubarb and custard little things.

[thegardendude@regenerate.social]

@gsuberland When I first saw a pic of the rosy maple moth, I thought to myself, "That can't possibly be real" but somehow they are, lol

[faraiwe@mstdn.social]

@thegardendude #MOTHTODON

[chewie@mammut.gogreenit.net]

@thegardendude beautiful

[rhempel@mstdn.ca]

@thegardendude I found one of these moths on the ground in the park on the way home one day about 20 years ago. Brought it home to show the kids and as it was very weak I had it in an open plastic container. Came back to find it had laid little black spots - eggs!

The eggs hatched, we fed them with water and willow leaves, and eventually only one caterpillar survived. It grew to a bit fat unit about the size of my ... finger complete with multicolored balls on the ends of stalks, it was terrifying and beautiful and ate a LOT.

Eventually it spun a cocoon, and I put the branch with the cocoon in a brandy snifter and forgot about it.

I came into my home office in early spring and there was an awful stench. It took me a while but eventually I figured out the smell was some stuff that had oozed out of the cocoon!

The kids and I got to watch a beautiful cecropia moth emerge from the cocoon - and as it was still too wintery to release it, and we found out they don't eat anyways, we euthanized it