Lunas Away

Luna moth. J. Schaeffer

We've seen it all this summer--the eggs hatching, caterpillars eating and growing, and cocoons "resting".  Finally, the beautiful luna moths have emerged.  What an amazing transformation!

These stunning creatures will live for only a few days, long enough to create the next generation. The adult moths have poorly developed moth parts and do not eat, relying instead on the vast amount of nutrition consumed as a very hungry caterpillar.  From the next generation of eggs, the caterpillars will eat more sweetgum, hickory or black walnut this fall and over-winter as pupae that can be found on the forest floor.