Luna MothLuna Moth
The pale green tailed gossamer like wings make this Luna moth appear fairy like in flight. With a 4 to 5 inch wing span and finger thick white body it is indeed an impressive moth. It has one brood a year, in the north, in May/June. It lives for about a week and it's only mission is to mate. Females will release pheromones to attract males of their species. This action is referred to as a "call". Males will fly for miles along the pheromone plume to reach a receptive female. Lunas don't even eat or drink during this stage, they don't have a mouth. They do eat in their larval stage and consume the leaves of trees such as the birch, willow and hickory. In the fall they descend to the ground where they form their chrysalis from leaves and the silk they produce. They remain there, amongst the leaf litter, over the winter to emerge the following year. Although some say that numbers have declined over the last few decades, they are still common in our area.
