6.02.2008

Such A Pretty Fellow

Painted lichen moths, Hypoprepia fucosa, are out and about in numbers this week. As the name suggests, the larvae feed on lichen. Bet they taste icky.
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4 comments:

Hugh Griffith said...

Beautiful! But how can something that eats lichen end up looking like THAT? I bet other moths disapprove.

Marvin said...

I saw my first of the season Sunday evening and started doing a little research. I'd love to find a larvae which are said to flick their fecal pellets away to thwart parasitic wasps using smell to find their prey. That ought to be an activity worthy of an UTube video.

Jane Adams said...

Beautiful picture, amazing colours. We get a lot of moths in the UK.. I'm thinking of getting a moth trap so that I can see them properly. The bats love them!

swamp4me said...

hugh,
I'm sure the other moths make comments behind his back. Jealous, no doubt.

Marvin,
The fecal flicking habit of the caterpillar is intriguing, isn't it? I've never seen one in action though. Must keep my eyes open.

Jane,
The nearly endless variety of moths is pretty amazing. Sometimes I find the wings left over after bats have munched out on the moth bodies.