Monika Leininger
Moths have a gotten a bad reputation. When I say moth, you are most likely visualizing a dull and drab colored insect that is stupid and an evil imposter of the butterfly. Here’s something you didn’t know: Moths are actually one of the most diverse and successful of species in the entire world. In my opinion, moths have taken enough animosity from society and it’s time to dismiss any myths about these magnificent, nocturnal creatures.
I can understand why moths have the bad rap. Most individuals don’t like moths for a myriad of lame reasons whether it’s because they eat your clothes, they seem dusty and gross, they fly right into your face or they scare the crap out of you at nighttime. Well believe it or not, moths are closely related to the family of our beloved, brightly colored, butterflies.
Both butterflies and moths fall under the order of Lepidoptera and then are separated into different families. Moths and butterflies have their similarities and differences.
Let’s begin at their beginnings. Both moths and butterflies start out as a caterpillar and spend months eating plants until they are ready to begin the pupation stage. This stage is where they wrap themselves into silk and transform into their winged, adult self.
The distinction here is that moths make a cocoon and butterflies make a chrysalis. That’s right, most people believe that butterflies emerge from a cocoon. This is because your likely only source of butterfly knowledge and vivid childhood memory of Eric Carle’s book “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” was widely incorrect.
The book straight up lied about two things, the first myth was that a butterfly comes out of a cocoon, which is false. Moths come out of cocoons, not butterflies.
The second fib was the theme in the book of the caterpillar devouring whatever the hell he wanted. The very hungry caterpillar ate apples, plums, pears, oranges, a whole slice of watermelon, chocolate cake, a pickle, Swiss cheese, a cupcake and then finally one single leaf. Let’s be clear, this would absolutely never happen in nature, ever. Each Lepidoptera caterpillar has its specific native host plant that means they can only eat that kind of plant. Folks, that’s why native plants and biodiversity are so important, it is my promise to you that these insects will never eat your pickle.
Another difference in moths and butterflies is that moths are the grander, more evolved species. Moth species actually outnumber butterfly species sixteen to one. Their dark color and stealthy lifestyle has led them to be more difficult for predators to pursue. Who’s popular now?
Butterflies and moths share another difference- butterflies are diurnal creatures, meaning they fly during the day, whereas moths are nocturnal and only come out at night.
What may be the most romantic characteristic of moths is that once a moth emerges from a cocoon, it only has a week to live. In this week, moths are kept very busy in hopes to fulfill their life cycle and reproduce. As their adult selves, most moths have no mouth parts and for this significant week that they are alive, they are solely focused on finding a mate.
Essentially, moths search blindly in the night for sex. The female moths don’t fly around looking for a mate. Like most females in the animal kingdom, they wait for the mate to find them. A male moth can actually smell a female moth’s pheromones from up to seven miles away.
If all of this inspiring information about moths hasn’t changed your mind about these furry little creatures, let’s talk about the mother of all moths.
There is a family of moths called Saturniidae, also known as giant silk moths. These moths can be as big as a bird, brightly colored and have eye spots to look like owls to scare their predators.
What might be the coolest of all the giant silk moths is the Luna moth. Named after our moon, Luna moths are bright, lime green colored moths that have long beautiful tails. These tails actually can throw off a bat’s sonar. Blind bats produce a pinging sound to locate prey in the dark. When they do this they will hear the Luna moth’s tails flapping in the night air and aim for the tails, ripping off the nonessential appendage as the Luna flies free into the night.
Despite the common disdain for these unique creatures, moths are really more benevolent than what meets the eye. Next time you see several moths flapping around your porch light, remember that you are not so different than these insects. We all are just instinctively searching in the nighttime to reproduce.
