Monday, May 25, 2009

Hold Still Little Fellow! I want a picture!!

We were out of town over this three-day Memorial Weekend.
We visited my parents in north-central Iowa.

You know how it is... time is fleeting, and you must leave for home before you're quite ready.
After reaching our driveway and driving towards our garage door, a quick glance to the right at our steps to the front deck/walkway resulted in my quickly stopping the car for photographs!! You won't believe this, but right there... on the front step... was a beautiful, newly hatched, Cecropia Moth!

I had to run to the immediate neighbors' to invite them for a look! I don't think they'd ever seen one before! Now YOU get to see it, too. (It's continues to remain on the step, even after these past two hours or so!)
Isn't it Beautiful?
My neighbor wanted to try to give perspective as to the size of the moth.

Just thought you might enjoy this as much as I did!

In fact, if you want to learn more about Cecropia Moths, click here for some interesting reading!

And here is a site that has even more information!

20 comments:

Gail said...

I did Shady! It was wonderful! It is wonderful~~gail

Anonymous said...

That's... amazing!

IBOY said...

They are one of the true wonders of nature!
don

Lisa at Greenbow said...

What a gorgeous find. I think they are one of the most beautiful moths ever. It is huge too.

Rosemary said...

Thank you for the photos I am enjoying, can't believe the size.

Shady Gardener said...

Hi Gail! Wasn't it gorgeous?? It was gone this morning, though. Hopefully to a safer location!

panhandletilth - What a moniker you have! Glad to have you visit... It is amazing. :-)

IBOY, Absolutely! Weren't we fortunate??

Lisa, I agree completely.

Rosemary, I'm glad I was able to share them! I hope he's in a safe place, today.

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

That is pretty amazing, it's really big. Pretty markings on it too.

Umā said...

that's an incredible moth! i was lucky enough to see one of the caterpillars last autumn. it ate a big section of a rhododendron, but it was worth it! now i'm wondering if i'll see the moth!

i posted pics here...
http://secretnotebookswildpages.blogspot.com/2008/08/bejewelled-garden-guest-crecopia-moth.html

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness... what great pics of the moth! I can't believe how close you were able to get without having him move. Very cool--and glad that your neighbor put her hand there for perspective, too. Amazing how big he is.

Shady Gardener said...

Hi Catherine, Thanks for visiting and leaving your comment. Yes, indeed, the moth was so pretty!

m heart, I hope you're able to see your moth! It's a wonderful experience. :-)

Kim, Thanks for your visit! I'm sorry I haven't visited you in awhile! I love your GBBD post... we share the favor of several plants. AND you provided an ID for the 'Ivory Queen' Allium that my mother has in her garden! :-)

F Cameron said...

Awesome! I've only seen these in butterfly conservatories. I'm so glad you shared these fantastic photos with us.

Cameron

Sandra said...

It is beautiful. What a rare treat for you!

Kathleen said...

That is a BEAUTIFUL moth Shady Gardener ~ so lucky you spied him. You really took some great photos of him too. I haven't ever seen one in my garden. I'll have to click the link and read up. Hope you had a great holiday weekend with your parents.

Kathleen said...

I just clicked the link thru and these moths are fascinating. After looking at the pics, I think I've seen one of the caterpillars at the end of summer (in their largest stage). It's amazing they can overwinter and who knew once they hatch, they can't eat. What a bummer. :-(

Shady Gardener said...

Cameron, I HOPE you get to see one of these in "real life" someday!

Sande, It really was... and I hope you get to see one sometime, too.

Kathleen, Hi! This was definitely a wonderful treat. I hope you'll be able to see one of these moths. Be on the watch for a chrysalis! :-) (It would be great to find it after it mated and be able to preserve it). By the way, my filipendula is looking wonderful!!

Monica the Garden Faerie said...

Wow, what a wonderful moth, both in size and color! I'm trying to get hummers to "hold still" for a photo. I think instead I need a better camera!

troutbirder said...

You got me on this one Shady! I'm not too much into bugs of any type (except for flyfishing) but this is one gorgeous moth!

Shady Gardener said...

Monica, I know what you mean when you're talking about a better camera. I really love my little photo-taker, but I don't have the telephoto capability!

troutbirder, It is gorgeous! I wonder what you'd catch if you had something like this on your hook?? ha!

Rune Eide said...

I can truly say that I have never seen anything as large as this. I usually have to try a macro lens :-)

Thank you for the nice comments!

Shady Gardener said...

RuneE, It's a beauty, isn't it? :-)