What a Sight!

7/18/11

One benefit of being awake when the rest of the world sleeps is being able to see nocturnal creatures like this:

I found this beauty during a 3 a.m. walk at the wood's edge with Comet. I was spellbound!

I love this shot with the 3/4 Full Thunder moon in the background (OK, well now you know that I am a bona fide science nerd, as if I could really hide it for too long LOL).

This is an adult female Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis (Drury) (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae). <---Proof of aforementioned geekdom. They are sexually dimorphic, so I can tell she's a female by her color and size. You can't tell from the photo, but she was about 4" across in her wingspan. She has spent the winter burrowed underground as a pupa, and she probably just emerged and will try to mate after midnight tonight. It's a little early for her emergence I think. I've usually seen them later in the summer. August typically.

The females don't fly until after they mate, so she will likely wistfully wait on this pine tree for her lover to appear and make love to her (LOL! I feel really funny typing that). The males can sense the female scent and will fly for miles to get some action. It's kinda sad though--once they mate they go on to die. They only live about a week, so it has to be a quick and passionate courtship. The adults do not eat. Their mouths are vestigial and they don't really have a digestive tract. That's very interesting! Well, at least to me... The eggs will hatch in about two weeks and continue the cycle of life.

Their populations are in decline because of pesticide use and people trying to keep them as pets for their kids to witness the lifecycle miracle. Light pollution also causes their numbers to decline. They are attracted to light and predators such as bats, racoons, and birds can easily locate them.

I'm simply fascinated by the wild night time critters I find here where I am living. What a treat to be able to see her.