Last week when my husband and I were at the local markets, we came across a huge moth and wondered what it was. We were lucky enough to speak to a local who told us it was a Hercules Moth. We'd never heard of them before and we'd certainly never seen one. I found the following information about the moth which was bigger than my hand!
The Hercules Moth is the largest species of moths in Australia and one of the largest in the world. The main colour is brown and both the male and female have triangular shape transparent windows on their wings with a white triangle edge.
The male is smaller than the female and she can boast that her wingspan of up to 27cm is the longest in the world. The male has a wingspan up to 20cm, their hindwing is longer with a tapered tail and has more vibrant colouring.
The adult female emerges from the chrysalis without mouthparts as her brief life does not include feeding. After she emerges she will emit pheromones to attract a male. After mating, the female lays 80-100 eggs on the leaves or stems of some Daintree plant species. She dies shortly after that as she can only live only as long as her fat deposits last.
They feed on leaves of several rainforest trees but prefer those of the Bleeding Heart tree.
The Hercules Moth is the largest species of moths in Australia and one of the largest in the world. The main colour is brown and both the male and female have triangular shape transparent windows on their wings with a white triangle edge.
The male is smaller than the female and she can boast that her wingspan of up to 27cm is the longest in the world. The male has a wingspan up to 20cm, their hindwing is longer with a tapered tail and has more vibrant colouring.
The adult female emerges from the chrysalis without mouthparts as her brief life does not include feeding. After she emerges she will emit pheromones to attract a male. After mating, the female lays 80-100 eggs on the leaves or stems of some Daintree plant species. She dies shortly after that as she can only live only as long as her fat deposits last.
They feed on leaves of several rainforest trees but prefer those of the Bleeding Heart tree.
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