Found a Luna Moth

[havalotta]

Many people talk of the false eye spots. I think they look more like small leaves starting on a twig and used as camouflage.

[MrILoveTheAnts]

Originally Posted by swamp thing

I think you might be confusing tent caterpillars (genus Malacosoma) with gypsy moth larvae - gypsy moths don't make tents, and commonly defoliate entire trees. If it happens a few years in a row, the tree could easily die, maybe from someting else taking advantage of its weakened state.

I have only ever seen a tree defoliated completely once. I can understand taking care of the tents in one's yard but why on earth would you do a forest? Remember the east coast has always been here, and the trees have been growing with these problems long before we came to North America. If an area has bats, birds, and wasps then they're under control already.

[swamp thing]

You've lost me - are you talking about tent caterpillars or gypsy moths? Yes the east coast has always been here, but not gypsy moths...Gypsy moths are a recent non-native invasive species, and at first had no natural enemies, and have caused extensive damage. Some states do aerial spraying because it's a serious problem.

I don't know that tent caterpllars are anything more than an occasionally serious native pest, especially on Prunus species - birds will eat them, but only if their tent has been torn open somehow. I don't know of any major control efforts for tent caterpillars, as in a forest like you mentioned.

320,000 acres defoliated by gypsy moths in New Jersey in 2007:

Gypsy Moth Tree Damage Examples

[MrILoveTheAnts]

Originally Posted by swamp thing

You've lost me - are you talking about tent caterpillars or gypsy moths? Yes the east coast has always been here, but not gypsy moths...Gypsy moths are a recent non-native invasive species, and at first had no natural enemies, and have caused extensive damage. Some states do aerial spraying because it's a serious problem.

I don't know that tent caterpllars are anything more than an occasionally serious native pest, especially on Prunus species - birds will eat them, but only if their tent has been torn open somehow. I don't know of any major control efforts for tent caterpillars, as in a forest like you mentioned.

320,000 acres defoliated by gypsy moths in New Jersey in 2007:

Gypsy Moth Tree Damage Examples

Ohh ok I've always assumed the two were the same thing. Yes you're right then. But it's still hard to believe a wasp or something hasn't found them to be a suitable food source.

[swamp thing]

That's the entire nature of invasive species problems, whether it's plants or animals -they are not part of the ecosystem. It can take decades (or maybe never) for birds to change habits regarding a food source, the same thing with other species.

Here's a blurb from wikipedia:

Natural gypsy moth control
Gypsy moth larvae have several predators which can help decrease their population. Lack of predation is one reason they can go from a normal part of the ecosystem to an actual threat to trees. Among their predators are:

• deer mice -- are considered the most important predator of low-density gypsy moth populations and their abundance may be critical in determining whether populations go into an outbreak mode. Their abundance is strongly affected by the amount of mast (e.g., acorns) in the previous year.
• tachinid flies -- parasitize gypsy moth populations. While they may become quite abundant during a gypsy moth outbreak, they apparently have little effect on the population dynamics.
• braconid wasps -- also parasitize gypsy moths but play a minor role in their dynamics.

There is not any evidence that releasing or enhancing gypsy moth predators or parasites can reduce gypsy moth populations. Manual removal of gypsy moths may be a viable method for reducing damage on small, open-grown trees and shrubs.

[swamp thing]

Here's a link with pictures of gypsy moth larvae and tent caterpillars, they are pretty similar. Take a good look at the camel's hair colored fuzzy egg masses that the gypsy moths leave on tree trunks:

Tent Caterpillars and Gypsy Moths - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation

[TheLorax]

Is it your favorite because it has no mouth and can't eat up all your plants?

It's an intensely beautiful moth. So large and the colors are so intense. I first saw one when I was a little girl. I've only seen a few since then. They aren't all that common any more.

[biigblueyes]

I've never seen one. It is beautiful, and I imagine more so in person.

[MrILoveTheAnts]

Apparently they can be raised in captivity. I read in "Caterpillars of Eastern North America" by David L. Wagner that if you put a female in a paper bag for an evening or until she deposits her brown eggs you can start them as pets. The female is then let go, but you end up with caterpillars. I imagen from there you have to feed them leaves to their various host plants. I've never had any luck with butterfly rearing in captivity so I'd probably just put the caterpillars on a host plant out in the yard.

[Dirty Knees]

I bought a butterfly kit and raised the caterpillars. It worked. I think I bought it at Discovery.