Luna Moth

Luna Moth Actias Luna

Family: Saturniidae
    The Luna Moth is a very interesting and striking critter. I have had the privilege of seeing one in person just once. It was the summer of the 17 year cicada and I was working for the YMCA of McHenry County doing before school care at Valley View Elementary School in McHenry Illinois. Valley View is surrounded by either semi hilly farmland or trees. Every morning we would do homework and play games inside until 15 minutes before the busses arrived at which point we would go outside to the playground. One morning on our way out to the playground one of the six kids in our group exclaimed “Wow! Look at that!!!” pointing towards the area where the brick wall of the building met the sidewalk. I remember turning to look and being fairly startled at the size of the creature, my knee jerk reaction was to pull the kids back until I figured out what it was. We all crouched down about 3 feet away from it and discussed what we thought it was for about 5 minutes. The best explanation I could give to the kids at the time was “I guess it’s a huge green butterfly with wings that look like leaves.” We were all equally awestruck child and adult alike. I worked with another woman who had her cell phone with her and took a picture of it. After some Google searches we figured out that we had seen a Luna Moth.

            The Luna Moth is one of the largest North American moths with an average wingspan of 2 - 4.5in. The Luna Moth, like other moths and butterflies, goes through a complete metamorphosis during its life cycle (egg, caterpillar, pupa and the adult moth). They are found in a wide range throughout Eastern North America. Their range corresponds with the availability of the food that the caterpillars require which is specifically the leaves of certain trees. The diet of a Luna Moth caterpillar consists of a variety of trees including white birch (Betula papyrifera), persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua), hickories (Carya), walnuts (Juglans), and sumacs (Rhus). The adult Luna Moth has no mouth or digestive system and lives off of the energy it consumed as a caterpillar before going into its pupa stage. When that energy is exhausted, the adult Luna Moth dies so it must mate and lay its eggs before that happens.

The adult Luna Moth is nocturnal and at night disperses pheromones in order to attract a mate; depending on the wind they can attract another moth within a range of a mile. After mating the female will lay a grouping of about 5 eggs on the underside of tree leaves, she lays eggs on multiple leaves in order to secure the continuation of her brood in case something happens to one of the leaves. The eggs are deposited on the underside of the leaves to ensure they do not dry out before they hatch. Upon hatching the caterpillars will begin to feed on the tree leaves and continue to do so for about three to four weeks growing larger and larger. When it is ready, the caterpillar will create a cocoon and go into its pupa stage. If this happens in the spring, the moth should emerge in about two to three weeks, however if winter is approaching the pupa will overwinter and then emerge after the spring thaw. After emerging the moth has to allow time for its wings to dry, then it is able to fly.

The Luna Moth is susceptible to predation at all stages of its life. The adult Luna Moth is light green in color with two yellow circles on its wings that vaguely resemble eyes. If the moth is approached by a predator such as a bird, it will flash its wings up at the predator to frighten them and allow for an easier escape. The caterpillar will rear up in a sphinx pose if threatened. Predators of the Luna Moth are those of all moths in general, including frogs, birds, bats, spiders and other small predatory creatures that feed on insects. They have sensitivity to pollutants and pesticides however due to their wide range are not considered endangered although they are sparse and rare to see.
            In order to encourage more habitat for the Luna Moth I would suggest planting several of the moth’s preferred trees in yards and along roadways as windbreaks. I would also encourage people to avoid the use of pesticides on their host trees. Due to deforestation by humans, especially by farmers and housing developers, there are far less trees present than once were. Due to the tendency for humans to choose only certain trees when installing a created landscape, not all of the host trees typically rank among the most popular choices. This results in less biodiversity within tree communities and does not allow for the food sources of all native species to be prevalent. The planting of more of the native variety of its host trees would allow for more opportunities for the Luna Moth to find food sources and lay its eggs. These host trees not only would provide nesting and food for the caterpillar, but would also be a food source for many other creatures native to Illinois. Black Walnuts can be messy but they can easily be planted at the back of a lot, away from sidewalks that they may stain. Common persimmon range is typically in Southern Illinois rather than Northern Illinois however they not only would provide food for the Luna Moth caterpillars but for humans as well.

Luna Moths: Masters of Change, Lerner (Minneapolis, MN), 2008.

"Butterflies and Moths of North America | Collecting and Sharing Data about Lepidoptera."Butterflies and Moths of North America. National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) Program and the USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. <http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Actias-luna>.

Hall, Donald W. "Luna Moth - Actias Luna (Linnaeus)." UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA ENTOMOLOGY AND NEMATOLOGY DEPARTMENT. University of Flordia, Aug. 2010. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. <http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/moths/luna_moth.htm>.