Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Plume Moth, How Do You Fly?!

When I see an insect with a body-shape like this -- long abdomen, spindly legs, long thin wings suck out to the side -- my first thought is usually "crane fly"....

But this creature who showed up under my porch light last night isn't a crane fly. It's a moth! A Morning-glory Plume Moth (Emmelina monodactyla), to be precise.

What a totally weird moth! I think there must be more to this creature's wings than its resting position shows, otherwise I'm not sure how it would be able to fly. Then again, crane flies manage it, and their shape really is quite similar....

Anyway, I continue to be impressed by the sheer diversity of moths, both in color and shape. I'm glad this one stopped by to show off its weirdness. :)


  1. So many amazing creatures! Almost a year ago to the day I found another plume moth, Geranium Plume Moth, and couldn't believe my eyes, it was so strange-looking. Google it and you'll see what I mean. Thanks for showing us your find.

    1. Wow, you're right, the Geranium Plume Moth is totally strange -- and so spiky! Moths sure do come in some strange shapes!! :D

  2. You can't make this stuff up! Mother Nature is certainly diverse! :-)

  3. There was one of these pretty creatures going around our kitchen for a while. We called it our T fly. One day we noticed it had perched up quite close to the ground. The next day it had more brown on it's wings than usual and the next day it was gone. I have been wondering since what happened to Mr.T Fly and I would be very happy if you solved my mystery for me. Thanks.

  4. Looking at the picture, I appear to have a Plume Moth in my kitchen in South Glos. Never seen one before in the 60+ years I have been interested in wildlife. It is now outside and hopefully will carry on doing whatever Plume Moths do.