luna moth

(Actias luna)

Hodges #

7758

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

N5 - Secure

SNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
luna moth
Photo by Luciearl
 
Description

Luna moth is a large, easily recognized, very common but seldom seen, emperor moth. It occurs throughout the United States east of the Great Plains. It also occurs in southern Canada from Nova Scotia to Alberta. It occurs in virtually every forested or woodland patch in the eastern United States and southern Canada except in some parts of New England.

Adults are active in Minnesota mostly from late May to mid-August. They do not feed. They are short lived, lasting only about a week. They fly only at night, beginning a few hours after dusk. Throughout the range of the luna moth, the larvae feed on many species of deciduous trees and shrubs. However, they show a distinct preference for one or more codominant tree species, and that preference varies by region. In northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, and in southern Ontario, the preferred species appears to be paper birch. In the Twin Cities Metro region, they have been recorded feeding on alder, cherry, and hazel.

Adults have a 3 to 4½ (75 to 115 mm) wingspan. Males and females are similar in both size and appearance.

The eyes are large. The antennae on the male are feather-like with four long branches (rami) on each segment (quadripectinate) continuing nearly to the tip. The antennae on the female are also quadripectinate, but with short rami alternating with long rami.

The wing color is somewhat variable, both by region and by time of year. On the first generation, the only generation in Minnesota, the wings are mostly pale green, but they are gradually more bluish green in the north and more yellowish green in the south. The gradation is continuous over 800 to 1,000 miles, making it impractical to separate the color forms as subspecies. On later generations in the south, the wings are more yellow. There is a thick, deep reddish-purple border on the leading edge (costal margin) of both the forewings and hindwings. On the forewing, there is a sleepy-looking, oval eyespot in the median area. It is outlined with yellow, white, and black, and it is connected to the reddish-purple border by a thick line of the same color. There is a similar eyespot on the hindwing, but it is round and it is isolated, not connected to the border. In the south there is a narrow, brown, postmedial (PM) band on both wings, but this feature gradually fades going north, and it is absent on Minnesota individuals. Each hindwing has a long tail.

 

Size

Wingspan: 3 to 4½ (75 to 115 mm)

 

Similar Species

No similar species in North America

Habitat

Forests and woodlands

Biology

Season

One generation per year in the north: late May to mid-August

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

 

 

Larva Food

many species of deciduous trees and shrubs

 

Adult Food

Adults do not feed.

 

Pests and Diseases

European tachinid fly (Compsilura concinnata) was introduced into North America in 1906 as a biocontrol agent for spongy moth (Lymantria dispar). It also parasitizes moths in the Nymphalidae and Saturniidae families.

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

4, 21, 24, 27, 29, 30, 71, 75, 82, 83.

11/25/2024    
     

Occurrence

 

Taxonomy

Order

Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths)

Superfamily

Bombycoidea (hawk, sphinx, silk, emperor, and allied moths)

Family

Saturniidae (emperor and giant silk moths)

Subfamily

Saturniinae (emperor moths)

Tribe

Saturniini

Genus

Actias (moon moths)

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Actias bolli

Actias dictynna

Actias lacrimans

Actias maasseni

Actias mariae

Actias rossi

Actias rubromarginata

Actias rubrosuffusa

   

Common Names

luna moth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Costal margin

The leading edge of the forewing of insects.

 

 

 

 

Visitor Photos
 

Share your photo of this insect.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach one or more photos and, if you like, a caption.

Luciearl

luna moth

I have only seen the moth once. The caterpillars, I have seen a few times. This was early morning as I was walking my dog.

It is from 2014. Not that great, but was amazed when I came across it in the middle of the road.

MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos
   

 

   

 

 

Camera

Slideshows

Actias luna
Andrée Reno Sanborn

Luna Moth (Actias luna)
About

Actias luna
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actias_luna

larva:
bugguide.net/node/view/562/bgimage

 

slideshow

Visitor Videos
 

Share your video of this insect.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach a video, a YouTube link, or a cloud storage link.

 

 

 
 
Other Videos

Luna Moth (Actias luna) 1500fps flight
Pohjankonna Oy

About

Nov 7, 2015

Actias luna expands wings
The Caterpillar Lab

About

Mar 25, 2020

The giant silk moth, Actias luna, is probably one of the best known (and arguably) the most beautiful of the giant silk moths. Luna moths live all over the eastern half of the United States and Canada. Their wing "tails" are believed to disrupt the echolocation of hunting bats, by bouncing the sound waves off and confusing the bat about the large moth's location. These beautiful moths, like all saturniid moths, do not feed as adults. They only have vestigial mouths and live for only a matter of days, having gotten all the energy they need as caterpillars. They spend winter in cocoons, sheltered from even the harshest of Northern winters, waiting to emerge in late spring to mate and lay eggs, and to start the process over again. Upon eclosion they have to expand their wings by pumping hemolymph into them. the process is a time when they are at their most vulnerable. Once the wings are fully expanded and hardened, the males go off in search of females.

This time-lapse film is made up of 341 individual photographs, taken over a 56 minute period, and then combined at 10 frames per second. It was recorded today during open hours in front of visitors and families. We can't wait to bring you more time-lapse clips now that we have the tools to do it!

Actias Luna Moth - Green Lunar Moth
Zawbone

About

Jun 10, 2013

Found this guy hanging on our screen door. Very cool looking moth.

 

Camcorder

Visitor Sightings
 

Report a sighting of this insect.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Be sure to include a location.

Luciearl
2014

Location: Fairview Twp.

I have only seen the moth once. The caterpillars, I have seen a few times. This was early morning as I was walking my dog.

It is from 2014. Not that great, but was amazed when I came across it in the middle of the road.

luna moth
MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings

 

 

 

Binoculars

 

Created: 11/25/2024

Last Updated:

© MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved.

About Us

Privacy Policy

Contact Us