Yes, things have been getting very moth-y on this blog lately, but what can I say? They’re everywhere and they’re photogenic.
This one is less than an inch long. Thanks to my favorite website on the internet, BugGuide, I’ve tentatively identified it as Pygarctia abdominalis, the Yellow-edged Pygarctia. I can’t seem to find much information on it, like what its larval food plant is; maybe no one knows. Its range seems to be limited mostly to the South – Butterflies and Moths of North America has confirmed records in Florida, South Carolina, and Texas, plus one out-of-the-way one in Iowa. (None in Georgia, so I’ll be emailing them this photo.) It turned up Monday afternoon on the front wall of the dormitory. I love its antennae.
Later today I’m off to Hilton Head to visit an old friend. Have a great weekend!
It’s beautiful. Very elegant.
Lucy
Very cool find! Have a great time at Hilton Head.
You are very brave to tackle moth identification. That one has nice orange trim. :-)
Well, my approach to tackling moth identification is to post the photo on BugGuide and let someone else identify it for me, so… yeah. :)