Luna Moth Cocoons
/Some of my 30 or so luna moth cocoons are over 2 weeks old now. So far – no moths have emerged, but the pupas are making noises as they move around inside the cocoon! I made a short recording of the small noises that reassure me that they are indeed viable and developing.
The cocoons are optimally silk produced by the caterpillar and sweet gum leaves, but sometimes other things get incorporated – twigs and bits of paper towel (which was on the floor of the bin) are the most common additions. At the time these caterpillars made their cocoons, the bins were very crowded and sometimes two cocoons are side by side…too close to separate without risking damage to the cocoons. It will be interesting to see what happens as all of these emerge.
Sometimes the caterpillars don’t use silk and leaves; they are ‘bare.’ I have three that are like that. They are easy to see moving so seem to be acting like the ones that do have the outer covering. Will they emerge and be healthy? In the wild, it seems like they would be vulnerable to be eaten although if they fell to the ground, they might look enough like poop that they would be left alone.
I have so many cocoons that I will have plenty of opportunity to observe moths emerging….so looking forward to that experience.
