Luna moth!

Our Saturniid emerged today, and it was a beautiful male Luna moth (Actias luna)! Ian, Caitlin and I had fun playing with it today. We thought it was a male because of its small abdomen. Here are some pictures of the shed pupal casing, and the moth.

Watch these 2 videos to see it in action!

1. Flight muscle warm-up
2. Take-off!

If you would like to raise your own Saturniid, just keep it in a dry container with something for it to crawl up nearby. Holometabolous insects need something to rest on until their wings harden up for flight. Other insects that do this are butterflies, dragonflies and cicadas. Enjoy the weekend!