Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Found my first male IO Moth had eclosed today after the 3rd female eclosed yesterday. The male seems a bit smaller than the females...

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napabob Loc: Napa CA

nice shots of amazingly beautiful creatures

I'm calling em both Harry........😄

Mark Sturtevant Loc: Grand Blanc, MI

Beautiful! I luxuriate in the fuzzies.

newtoyou Loc: Eastport

Little beats some of our moths for beauty when freshly eclosed.
Most of the Giant Saturniids are sexually dimorphic. Not just coloration, but male to female size.
Nature is frugal.
The female ecloses with the eggs formed and ready for fertilization. She needs the extra size to be able to carry fat and the eggs. The fat gets her thru the week to ten days while a mate finds her and she can lay her eggs. These moths have no mouths as adults, no eating.The male finds her, most times, before she flys, by following a phenomenon trail up to a mile long.
Two ways to get her to mate are:
1). Tie a piece of thread around the wings next to the body. Form a loop, not too tight, but too small for wings to slip thru.
Tie her out in an open area and a male may find her and mate.
Or, a tricky way.
2) There are four hard claspers just inside the anal opening of the male. Spread these with tweezers and place the end of the females abdomen between them. The male may clasp it and mate.
Reguardless of method, after she is mated put here in a paper lunch bag and fold it closed. Put it in a dark place. Check a few times a day for eggs. Wait till she dies before giving up, as it may take a week.
If you get eggs, snip them AND A PIECE OF BAG free and put it on fresh food plant and watch them hatch and grow.
I have raised many of the showy moths and butterflies from around Maryland.
Luna moths are the easiest, have three generations (in captivity), and if you have seen one, imagine 50 or more let off at once. I did this for the neighborhood kids once. After that, it was done for the neighborhood. This was before releasing butterflies at weddings became popular.
I hope I am forgiven for being long winded. There is even more to be explained, but this is enough to start a hobby that will never cease to provide you with entertainment and photo opps.
Start with Monarchs. They need help, and food plants are everywhere.
Enjoy.
Bill

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

I'm waiting for the Lunas (I have two) to eclose.... Funny thing was, the females flew off the night I released them. The male is in the same vicinity where I set him out...Oh, and I did notice the females squirted something out of their rear end. Not eggs though. The male did not squirt anything...

newtoyou Loc: Eastport

I believe that liquid is the same as is in the wing veins.
They 'pump up', literally, after eclosing. Then 'harden'.
If handled befor hardening,they will likely be malformed.
Excess liquid is expelled.@@@ see below.
An aside.
This liquid may be the source of "red rain".
When I eclosed as many as 200 Morning Cloaks outside, as they flew they squirted the liquid as they flew. It is blood red, fading to a buff tan, powdery substance.
The caterpillars of this butterfly may form colonies of hundreds on a single Swamp Willow, making them easy to obtain in large numbers.
I would like to do this more. Been a couple years. Last was Imperial moths.
Maybe an 'egg trade'? Thanks for doing and showing this. If like me, the UHH is your only outlet. I volunteer at the Annapolis Children's Museum, but this is closed. I hope it survives to reopen.
Kids get a real joy out of nature.
Thanks again.
Bill

@@@ Misplaced this.

This may also be what dissolves the cocoon, if one is made.
Lunas sometimes DID NOT make a cocoon. They expelled the liquid anyway.

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Just had a 4th female IO Moth eclose today

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Swamp-Cork Loc: Lanexa, Virginia

Excellent set, Scott!

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Well, it looks like I have a 5th Female drying out her wings right now...

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Well, I have had 7 IO moths eclose over the last few weeks, 6 Females & 1 Male. What did I find today? Lo and behold, a second Male just eclosed... Images to follow later...