Here is a short summary (well maybe not so short) of my fascination with moths and butterflies. I do not go into the details of raising any specific moth; it's just an overall summary of my experiences with the critters and my past five years of trying to raise silk moths. Raising the moths has been interesting, but I never really documented the process except for taking some snapshots and video. Maybe some day I'll do that.

I've been interested in butterflies for as far back as I can remember, running around a back yard field in New Jersey chasing sulphurs and whites with a net. I must have been five or six. I can still remember the excitement I received when I caught my first Monarch. It was huge compared to the sulphurs and whites I normally caught.

To this day I still get excited when I capture a new specimen that I have not seen before, even if it is the most drab of species. I've been lucky enough to live and pursue butterflies in various locations, from Pennsylvania to Florida, and currently in Alabama. I also spent two years in Germany and Taiwan which helped fuel my interest as I got to observe new and colorful varieties.

Of course, moths go right along with butterflies, but they were pretty much limited to what showed up at my porch light or what happened to fly up as I walked through a field. I found my first silk moth cocoon in Tampa about twenty years ago hanging from a live oak tree. Not knowing what it was, I took it inside to see what would emerge. I was astonished to one day find a Polyphemus moth hanging upside down.

I never really considered raising caterpillars, except for those I found crawling around and wanted to see transform (Monarch caterpillars when I was a kid and later the occasional tiger moth, hornworm, or oakworm). Then six years ago, a few years after I moved to Alabama, I discovered four young Cecropia caterpillars on my small riverbirch (planted the previous year). I watched them grow to a decent size (probably 4th instar) until one day they were gone (probably eaten by a bird). I was heartbroken. I had never seen a Cecropia moth before and it looked like my drought would continue. Then I checked out the internet and discovered your website. I read up on how easy it was to take care of silk moth caterpillars and ordered some Cecropia for the next year.

That winter I searched for some Polyphemus cocoons (the only type I can ever find in the wild that haven't already emerged) and when a female came out in early April, I mated her with a wild male. That was my first raising of silk moths and I had no problems. I had multiple broods throughout the year.

On a trip to the Home Depot in spring that same year, I discovered my first Cecropia moth ever, a female, on one of their trees for sale. I nabbed her and harvested her eggs. I soon had so many cecropia caterpillars that I released over a hundred on riverbirch and oak trees all over the place. I had cecropia in netting on my riverbirch and oak trees in my yard and kept many more in my bathtub in my house. I ended up with about fifty cocoons when all was said and done, however, I wasn't able to find any cocoons from the many I released loosely on trees throughout the area.

By the way, the eggs I ordered from you came and hatched, but they all dried up during their first instar. I think that was because it was later in the summer and our air conditioner was running much more often and kept the humidity way too low. The ones from the wild female hatched when it was still cooler in spring and the air conditioner didn't run so much.

I, Bill Oehlke, am hoping that subcontracting egg sales so that stocks can be from a more localized range, will help alleviate some difficulties associated with temperature and humidity. Air conditioners, however, will remove a great deal of moisture from indoor air, and sealed containers may be needed for indoor rearing when the unit is running.

That was the only year I had success with Cecropia, even when mating them the next year. I would be lucky to get three or four cocoons and even then they may not all emerge. It's funny though that the first year when I was a true novice at the whole moth raising thing, I couldn't seem to kill them. I would even find big fat ones wandering the grass in my yard (must have been escapees from the netting).

I have since raised Luna, Promethea, and Cynthia all fairly successfully from eggs purchased from you and have had many successful generations of each. I have also raised one generation of Io, Imperial, and Pine devils but with the latter I did not have much success, only having three emerge.

Last year, however, was a disappointing year both with being able to raise caterpillars (both indoors and out) and with mating the few moths that did emerge. I might have to change my technique. The past few years I have been raising the indoor caterpillars in big clear plastic containers. I did this because it would not only hold in the moisture so the caterpillars would not dry up but also keep the leaves fresher longer. It was also nice that I was able to stack them to conserve space.

When the caterpillars were young, I could have fifty or more in one container. In later instars though, I would limit the number to five to ten per container, even less for certain types. Maybe it was too humid for them even though I would clean the containers daily. It worked well in the past. Luna, Cynthia, and Polyphemus really seemed to thrive in these conditions.

I was letting hundreds of these first/second instar caterpillars loose in the wild so that I would only have to take care of thirty or so. All the moths I raised that required Sweet Gum leaves (Luna, Promethea, etc.) had to be kept indoors because I had none of those trees in my yard and outdoor temperatures were just too hot for cut leaves.

Also last year I did not have any Luna or Polyphemus because the last generation the year before all seemed to emerge late in the fall, too late to gather leaves for another rearing. I guess that's one of the hazards of indoor rearing.

Yes, the additional light exposure from indoor rearing can block the normal environmental clues (photo period) that would trigger the diapausing hormones in species that produce multiple broods.

This year I hope to try my hand at Royal moths if I can get some eggs. Also would like to do Imperials since out of five eggs to five caterpillars to five cocoons two years ago, I only was able to muster one moth to emerge last year.

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