Atlas moths anyone?

[PseudoDave]

Thanks for all the info everyone, i've been looking at various suppliers and can soon see the moth collection becoming equal to the other various creatures in number...

 

[Samzo]

Cool Dave,

Hey cam the wings are like paper, the body is the only heavy bit.

 

[Mantis Keeper]

Your moon moth pics look exaclty like the luna moths I see. Are they the same species? Just wondering.

 

[worldofmantis]

I never knew moths got so dang big they look like birds! lol i probably also sound like a noob lolz

 

[Obie]

Your moon moth pics look exaclty like the luna moths I see. Are they the same species? Just wondering.

Same genus. The luna moth is Actias luna and lives in eastern North America. The "moon moth" is Actias selene and lives in southern Asia. There are many beautiful species in the genus Actias. They are closely related to Argema and Graellsia which also come in nice colors and have tails.

 

[Mantis Keeper]

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[PseudoDave]

Can anybody recommend some good suppliers, preferably suppliers of ova but cocoons are good to. I'm in the UK so somewhere that can ship here would be good. I've found a few but i'm looking for a wide range of possibilities first, building quite a large setup to keep these guys in. Cheers for any info, Dave.

 

[nickyp0]

ya me too but in the usa

 

[Obie]

Tom Tewksbury is a good US source of livestock. His email is [email protected] He has Caligula simla ova and some cocoons of the very rare Graellsia isabellae available now.

You can also check the Lepidoptera classifieds at Insectnet.com http://www.insectnet.com/cgi/classifieds/c...ormat=headlines

In the spring there are a lot of folks selling eggs of the common US species and some good guys in Europe selling eggs as well. This time of year there are usually a few cocoons for sale.

Obie

 

[PseudoDave]

Cheers Obie.

 

[Chris Dickie]

world wide butterflies - www.wwb.co.uk

in the uk and sell lepidoptera, phasmids & the odd mantid

 

[Mike]

hmm so these things only live for 1-2 weeks whats the point of keeping them then 0_o :?

 

[Obie]

hmm so these things only live for 1-2 weeks whats the point of keeping them then 0_o :?

Well, I can only speak for myself...but I don't think I've ever held something in my hand that impressed me as much as some Giant Silkmoths. And I've kept a lot of critters over the years. I've never held an adult I. diabolica, but I imagine it would be a similar feeling.

Also, they generally live as long as, or longer than mantids. But they spend the majority of that time in stages other than adult, which I also find interesting...but others may not.











If you want to see great pics of some of the most beautiful creatures in the world, scroll down on this link and click on the first few species! The photographer is a long time friend.

http://www.insectcompany.com/silkmoth/kirbywolfe.htm :shock:

Obie

 

[Mike]

hmm so all of this species of moth only lives 1-2 weeks right?

 

[Obie]

A lot of them live for a year.

But they are only ADULT moths for 1-2 weeks...the rest is spent as eggs, larvae and cocoons. The cocoons are spectacular silk constructions, and the caterpillars are often bigger than a mouse. The adults have no mouth...so they can't eat. They live on stored fat just long enough to breed and lay eggs.

 

[nickyp0]

I think they are fun to keep i have right now Cecropia silkmoth (Hyalophora cecropia [Linnaeus]) and going to be getting in Luna moth (Actias luna [Linnaeus]) i think it is cool the way the cat's change there color as they grow.

 

[Mike]

Man thoes moths look like good mantis food lols

 

[Ian]

I'm still waiting on a few cocoons to hatch out. Some attacus and some Liqu something or other? I kinda lost the latin names...got these about 3 months ago now, any ideas when they should hatch out obie?

 

[Obie]

I'm still waiting on a few cocoons to hatch out. Some attacus and some Liqu something or other? I kinda lost the latin names...got these about 3 months ago now, any ideas when they should hatch out obie?

Sounds like the Attacus are dormant, so its hard to say, it could be awhile. I've had dormant cocoons of A. atlas sit for 6 months to a year. If they aren't dormant they usually emerge in a couple of months. You could try keeping them cool (maybe 15-20C) and dry for a couple of weeks, then increasing the temp and spraying them. Not sure what the other species might be.

 

[Ian]

6 months?! Good grief that a fair while. Thanks for the info.