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6/26/03 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: The Atlas Moth: A Gentle Giant Mary Harris The Atlas moth, Attacus atlas, is the largest moth in the world. The wings may span 1 foot from tip to tip and together the fore- and hind-wings may cover as much area as 65 square inches. Visitors to Reiman Gardens at Iowa State University can see these gentle giants emerge in the display window and free living in the Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing. Atlas moth cocoons are shipped to Reiman Gardens from breeders in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines where these insects are native. The entire range of A. atlas is extensive, with different races occurring from the Himalayas south to Sri Lanka and southern China, across the southeast Asian mainland, all of Indonesia and northern Australia. In some areas they are considered agricultural pests because their caterpillars consume the leaves of avocado, citrus, tea, guava and quinine. The cocoons of atlas moths are large, measuring as much as 4 inches in length. Atlas cocoons are dark brown and have an irregular rough surface. Hanging below the shelves in the emergence cases at the Gardens, these cocoons resemble roosting bats. The adults that emerge from these cocoons are spectacular. When visitors catch sight of one of these newly emerged moths it takes a few moments to become accustomed to their impressive size and notice the beautiful, rich wing pattern and coloration. The wings are covered with scales of purple, brown, tan and red. This pattern of colors includes transparent areas referred to as fenestra. These areas are transparent due to the absence of scales, allowing light to shine through and giving the wings the appearance of "windows." In addition to the rich colors and transparent windows, the wings, particularly those of female atlas moths, are strongly hooked at the tips. Visitors should take a moment to observe these large hooked tips and look for the pattern of colors that produce a snake's head. It is widely believed that this false snake deters predators. The family, to which atlas moths belong, the Saturniidae, is commonly known as the silk moths. One member of this family is the moth referred to as the silkworm, Bombyx mori. This moth produces its cocoons from one long continuous thread and gave rise to sericulture, or silk production. The cocoons of B. mori are unrolled, reeled and used to produce the familiar silk. Atlas moths also produce silk, however, they spin their cocoons from a series of broken strands. In India, atlas moth cocoons are combed and the silk strands spun into thread used to produce Fagara silk. The atlas moth is known in India as the Fagara Silk Moth. Saturniid moths mainly occur in the tropics, however, several species are native to North America, including Iowa. Among the saturniids native to Iowa is the cecropia moth, Hyalophora cecropia. This moth is our largest moth with females having wingspans of 6.5 inches. Cecropia moth caterpillars feed on many common trees such as apple, ash, beech, birch, elm, maple, poplar, white oak and willow. These large native moths produce only one generation per year. When the adults emerge they do not live much longer than a few days, because, like all saturnniid adults, they do not have functional mouthparts and, therefore, take in no nourishment or water. Now is the time to find these beautiful native silk moths, because cecropias are just completing their annual adult emergence in Iowa. However, if you are not able to spot a cecropia moth you can always visit Iowa State University's Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing where atlas moths can be seen year round. To learn more about the Reiman Gardens at Iowa State University visit us on the Web at http://www.reimangardens.iastate.edu/. -30-
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