Flattered Turntail

Looking up in the little boys room of my office complex I spotted this little chap, an Eutelia Adulatrix or a Flattered Turntail moth. This little feller look like s/he had been through the cleaners and will most likely not last long with the spiders and janitors on the prowl.

Isabellina

First of all this is my 4000 blog post, wow and what a way to celebrate by this post. Coming home after dropping Matthew off at his holiday job, I saw this little falla. The Chrysopoloma isabellina Aurivillius, not much is found about this beautiful moth online other than it’s name, family, genus, species, and location where it is found, that’s all. Oh and when it was first identified 1895.

Nothing as exciting as this big moth that visited my garden way back November last year, the Greater Death's Head Hawkmoth but Isabellina is beautiful none the less.

Wattle Bagworm

Serve me right for cutting down that grove of black wattle trees in the veldt outside my home, as this morning I discovered a wattle bagworm larva hanging from my garage’s lintel. Bagworms are a pest but now that there are no more wattles for this little fella, s/he has moved into my garden. I don’t mind as long as it doesn’t get out of control. My garden is home to all sorts of strange yet peculiar creatures and I would like to keep it that way.

Beet Webworm

Eish for the name, webworm, this little fella was found on our bathroom ceiling. The Beet Webworm or Spoladea recurvalis is a small moth, about 2cm wide, so much so that I had to zoom in with my cellphone camera just to get a near decent photo.

Sundowner Moth

So a moth flutters in, a Sundowner moth also known as a Sphingomorpha chlorea, and landed onto Hilton’s chequered shirt. No fruit trees here little one so you can flutter off before the cats find you.
 

Death

Oh wow, to find a Greater Death’s Head Hawkmoth in our garden, well Clarice, have the lambs stopped screaming.

Remember the Silence of the Lambs movie poster with a Greater Death’s Head Hawkmoth over the mouth of the girl, yes you do as it still eats away at you, well this is one of those moths. I feel so blessed to find this big moth, over 10cm big with its sinister skull shape on its back, I am sure Hannibal Lecter would be proud of this moth but other than a harbinger of death how much does South African’s know about this beautiful caterpillar/moth that is found in their gardens.

The Acherontia atropos, as this species of Death’s Head Hawkmoth is known as, is named after a river in Greek mythology the Acheron or the River of Pain over which the ferryman takes you over. Atropos the unturnable, one of three Moirai goddesses of fate and destiny who cuts the thread of life. With a top speed of just under 50kph, I am sure you can’t outrun your fate as this moth can be seen feeding like a hummingbird on the nectar of flowers and raiding beehives at night, all for the sweet nectar of life.

So it is not surprising that we have used this moth, in literature and movies like Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and Silence of the Lambs. In the Netherlands, they call this the Doodshoofdvlinder and in French, le sphinx à tête de mort; in German, Totenkopfschwärmer; in Spanish, cabeza de muerto; and in Swedish, Dödskallesvärmare, whatever you call it, I find the Greater Death’s Head Hawkmoth beautiful and life inspiring.

I do wish I can chat longer, but I’m having an old friend over for dinner.