Polyphemus Moth Caterpillar
Aug. 26th, 2024 06:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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birdfeedingI found a giant silk moth caterpillar crawling around a can on the patio. I love Saturniid moths. They get huge, and many look spectacular. Even their caterpillars are big and interesting. This one is about the size of my pinky finger, so it's probably a middle instar and still has a lot of growing to do. I'm really excited to see one of these guys. I expect the birds will be excited too -- these are the Polish sausages of the caterpillar pantry.
I am pretty sure this is a polyphemus moth caterpillar. At first I thought cecropia, because that's what we usually get here, but the knobs are way too small. It lacks the side stripe and dark hind end of a luna, although I have seen luna moths a couple of times here.
This is the typical position with the humped back.
The rear view showed a brown X.
Here I have placed the caterpillar on a maple branch, silhouetted against the sky.
I turned on the flash to show the colors one last time.
For reference, Fieldhaven is about a 2-acre rural lot in central Illinois. Below are some giant silkmoth larval food plants that I have growing in my yard. (These trees also attract lots of birds, squirrels, and other wildlife.) In order to attract the moths, you really need to grow the larval food plants, because that's what they search for. Adults do not eat anything, surviving on stored fat from the larval stage for the few days or weeks it takes them to find a mate and reproduce.
Cecropia: lilac, apple, ash, cherry, dogwood, elm, gooseberry, maple, plum, white oak.
Polyphemus: oak, grape, hickory, maple.
Promethea: wild cherry, apple, ash, basswood, lilac, maple.
Luna: black walnut, persimmon, hickory.
I am pretty sure this is a polyphemus moth caterpillar. At first I thought cecropia, because that's what we usually get here, but the knobs are way too small. It lacks the side stripe and dark hind end of a luna, although I have seen luna moths a couple of times here.
This is the typical position with the humped back.
The rear view showed a brown X.
Here I have placed the caterpillar on a maple branch, silhouetted against the sky.
I turned on the flash to show the colors one last time.
For reference, Fieldhaven is about a 2-acre rural lot in central Illinois. Below are some giant silkmoth larval food plants that I have growing in my yard. (These trees also attract lots of birds, squirrels, and other wildlife.) In order to attract the moths, you really need to grow the larval food plants, because that's what they search for. Adults do not eat anything, surviving on stored fat from the larval stage for the few days or weeks it takes them to find a mate and reproduce.
Cecropia: lilac, apple, ash, cherry, dogwood, elm, gooseberry, maple, plum, white oak.
Polyphemus: oak, grape, hickory, maple.
Promethea: wild cherry, apple, ash, basswood, lilac, maple.
Luna: black walnut, persimmon, hickory.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-08-27 05:59 am (UTC)I looked up polyphemus moths and we actually have them here. You wouldn't think I could have missed a moth with a four to five-inch wingspan, but I haven't seen any. Maybe I flee the mosquitoes before they come out to play.
P.
Thoughts
Date: 2024-08-27 06:25 am (UTC):D It's from the saying that caterpillars are nature's hot dogs, for how birds feed them to chicks. Except these caterpillars reach the size of hot dogs!
>> I looked up polyphemus moths and we actually have them here. You wouldn't think I could have missed a moth with a four to five-inch wingspan, but I haven't seen any. Maybe I flee the mosquitoes before they come out to play.<<
Possibly. Just because they're present doesn't necessarily mean they're common. Also they're surprisingly well camouflaged for a hand-sized insect. They look a good deal like brown-spotted leaves. Lunas are a bit easier to spot with that pale jade color.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2024-08-28 12:00 am (UTC)I've seen one Luna moth over the years I've been hiking in Minnesota, and a handful of Cecropia moths.
That's a good point about their camouflage. Of course all the illustrative photos want to make sure that you can see the insect, but I can see how they would just disappear.
P.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2024-08-28 12:36 am (UTC)Yeah, the cecropia in particular changes colors a lot.
http://somethingscrawlinginmyhair.com/2013/07/24/cecropia-moths-raised-from-eggs/
Here's the polyphemus:
http://butterflies.aa6g.org/Butterflies/Raised/polyphemus.html
>> I've seen one Luna moth over the years I've been hiking in Minnesota, and a handful of Cecropia moths.<<
That's awesome. :D
>> That's a good point about their camouflage. Of course all the illustrative photos want to make sure that you can see the insect, but I can see how they would just disappear. <<
Here's an example of a cecropia against brown leaves and sticks:
https://ogden_images.s3.amazonaws.com/www.observertoday.com/images/2024/07/09185316/CECROPIA-MOTH-667x500.jpg
What you can't really see from there is that, in dappled light, the white spots on the moth look like sunspots on the background.