polyphemus moth pupa deformed

[Utopia93]

during the pupation process my polyphemus caterpillar made a really crappy tent shaped cocoon and pupated wrong. its wing and antenna is poking out and leaving half its underbelly exposed and green. however its really lively and moves around alot. will it survive to adulthood? should i mercykill it? i dont mind if it comes out deformed (i will gladly keep it as a pet to admire its beauty) i just dont want it to die

 

[What]

Well, photos would really be necessary to give any kind of opinion. I have had a couple minor deformities on pupated lunas but generally the caterpillars simply die before pupating.

My vote before photos is to see what happens when it tries to emerge, might make an interesting pinned specimen.

 

[ShieldMantid1997]

+1 on that. I had a silk worm that made a too small cocoon and it was short and tall(like it got squished) when it came out. Although it only lived for a day.......... :blink:

 

[patrickfraser]

Let nature takes it's course. With my mantids, if there's ever a problem, my first thought is, "Hey, it's still ALIVE". That's the most important part. If there is no "suffering", "Let it be"