Made you look!
But no, really, this bad boy, a Poplar Hawk Moth (I did my research), has a wingspan of about 6 centimeters. He’s huge and I had no idea such things even existed in England, let alone flew around in boring ol’ Sussex. It’s like when I found out, at the age of 10, that England actually has snakes (in fact, the adder is the only poisonous native animal that we have — except for hornets and wasps, I guess). Dangerous animals are for other countries. Like Australia, where you can come home to find a rattlesnake in your bathtub. Or be paralysed and killed in 6 seconds flat by a venomous sea snake.
Meanwhile… over in England… we just have large moths that make young and old alike scarper behind the nearest sofa for protection.
Does anyone know if moths ‘sleep’ at all? I don’t know if this particular hawk moth was ‘odd’ but for all intents and purposes, he just clung to my shirt all day, refusing to be budged. I tried to scoop him into a cup, I nudged him with my finger — nothing. I left him by my window, wondering if, weirdly, he would only fly away at night — I assume moths are nocturnal — and sure enough midnight came, he started fluttering his wings, warming up. A few minutes later off he flew!
Moths do sleep then, but what do they dream of? Wardrobes of delicious, tasty clothing? (Do moths even still eat through clothes, or is that some turn-of-the-20th-century thing that my grandmother always tells me stories about?)
Wow, I didn’t mean to ask quite so many questions… that’s the inquisitive child leaking into the foreground again. Anyway, PRETTY MOTH. Enjoy your Sunday — I hope it’s just as sunny where you are!
pinkjellybaby
May 31, 2009
I was attacked by a giant moth once… it was almost as scary as being attacked by the sparrow!
Abi
May 31, 2009
They do eat through clothing and can do horrendous, untold damage.. the like of which you can only imagine.
Take action.
Amy
May 31, 2009
I would like to begin this comment with the observation that there are no rattlesnakes in Australia beyond those in zoos. Rattlesnakes are native to North America. But yes, apart from that, Australia is generally a haven for all sorts of poisonous beasties. I went through a phase where I would check the toilet before sitting down, after reading an article about a funnel-web spider that bit someone while they were on the loo.
As for the moth – it’s a cutie! I tend to like little creatures like that (except ants and cockroaches). Love the butterfly farm in Penang — the Rajah Brooke’s Birdwings (and relations) are my favourites.
Hezabelle
May 31, 2009
It looks so cute!!!I It’s body is so… bulbous and it’s like it has no head!!
You mentioned “adder” and England in the same paragraph and all I could think of was Blackadder!!! My attention was otherwise occupied after that point.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
I want to change the bit about rattlesnakes now, as it makes me look stupid and unlearned, but for the sake of journalistic integrity… I will let it stand. Acknowledge — no rattlesnakes in Australia! I was going to say ‘black widow spiders’, but rattlesnake came out. I don’t know why.
(You DO have black widow spiders, right…?)
Do they have some kind of anti-clothing acid or something, Abi…? Does that mean you still have those awful naphtha mothballs in your cupboards? Man, my grandmother’s cupboards STANK of that stuff… fond childhood memories…
Hez — I think it’s ‘unique’ in that it its torso misses a certain part, thus why it looks all stumpy. And quite cute.
Blackaaaadder, Blackaaaadder.
Marmalady
May 31, 2009
moths do still eat clothing — but i think only the natural fibres — so if you wnat to be moth-free, polyester is the way to go! (tho i think that might cause you problems in other areas!)
i had a huge moth fly in my window last night and annoyingly circle the light –dunno where it ended up, tho i guess i’ll find out tonight!
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Hopefully not in your wardrobe…
Amy
May 31, 2009
Australia doesn’t have ‘black widow spiders’ (the famous ones) per se, we have a member of the genus called ‘Redbacks’. Poisonous too, though.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Fine.
KILLER CORAL.
Cal
May 31, 2009
Clothes moths eat natural fibres – though central heating has largely reduced their numbers. Hawk moth adults sip nectar from nightflowering plants
They dream…..of huge white blooms…cool caves…gnarled tree bark with crevices packed with cool moss…
Amy
May 31, 2009
You’d be so much better off with venomous jellyfish
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Reminds me of Turkey, the Bosphorus: I looked down over the side of the boat and there were lots of… white things? Like… literally, thick enough that the water was white/opaque rather than BLUE.
I finally figured out that they were jellyfish; I’d never seen one before that. Sheltered upbringing, here on our rainy, temperate isle.
Look at you, Cal! Did you Google that? What kind of night-flowering plants are there in temperate climates anyway…? (You can use Google for that one)
Sadly, no caves here in England…There’s a few over in limestone’ish Wales though…
Cal
May 31, 2009
No I did not google it. I trained as an entomologist at the NHM, cheeky blighter!
Nightflowerers for Sphingids – Geranium genus, Nicotiana in gardens, phlox – basically anything white flowered is likely to attract nocturnal insects.
And there are many, MANY caves in England.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Ooh, OK! An entomologist… very cool. How did you end up doing that? And do you have a fantastic collection of preserved moths and stuff…?
*ponders about Silence of the Lambs…*
Our geraniums haven’t flowered yet. I don’t know what a Nicotiana is, or phlox…
I think our nearest cave is over in Farnham, Surrey — when I say ‘England’ I mean ‘this little corner of the South East’. I should be more specific…
Cal
May 31, 2009
Childhood fascination in bugs -> zoology degree -> entomology Masters. Simple, really
But no, no huge collection of moths. Did have a very good collection of obscure beetles but some went off to live in museums and the rest were lost when we were flooded.
I wasn’t thinking of big red geraniums, which are really Pelargoniums, but Geranium genus which is a native (or naturalised?) and a great nectar provider for moths. Don’t have a photo hand – you may have to google it
Try macrorrhizum.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
We have those! Lots of them. That explains the moths.
Shame about the beetles… they’re beautiful, and so detailed. I want to include some fancy talk of exoskeletons and shiny carapaces and stuff… but I would just sound like an excited layman
Cal
May 31, 2009
Beetles are amazing
Excitement is good too!
Marmalady
May 31, 2009
“…Sadly, no caves here in England…There’s a few over in limestone’ish Wales though…”
come upto Derbyshire –we have caves & caverns a-plenty!
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Isn’t Derbyshire all, like… tribal?
Actually, I had a housemate at university from Derbyshire. He was lovely and kind. But definitely a few tribal traits, like… he bit his toenails… and braided his beard.
Marmalady
May 31, 2009
*doesnt bite toenails* (physical impossibility now, tho at one time i could have if i had wanted too)
*doesnt braid beard* (again, physical imposibility)
*does braid long waist-length hair*
Alison
May 31, 2009
No rattlesnakes in Australia. We do however, have 9 out of the 10 most venemous in the world, so y’know, I don’t think we feel hard done by. No black widows either, but we do have redbacks, which are again, the more venemous of the genus (and I recently had to eradicate a whole bunch from my backyard, and I have seen some on a toilet seat (which is an old Australian joke, stemming from an old Australian song)). Plus whitetails, and funnel webs, and bird eating spiders (related to the tarantula, but bigger). Also known as whilstling spiders because that’s the sound they make when they are getting ready to feed.
Plus, then of course there is the irukandji jellyfish, blue ring octupi, sting rays and great white sharks. All deadly. Not to forget the kangaroos who can gut you from sternum to scrotum in a second, or the drop bears that’ll get you by night, if you thought the cute and cuddlies were OK. On land or in water, just remember that Terry Pratchett quote; Which animals in Australia are safe? Some of the sheep.
I am convinced this explains our warped sense of humour.
PS. As for your moth, I was amused. My cat brought me a present the other day, At first I thought it was a bird. No, just a carpet moth, so named not because they are soft and fuzzy like carpet, but because when you catch them and skin them they make a nice throw rug.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
*hangs head*
Well I thought it was pretty big… mumblemumble…
Pratchett’s love and fear of Fourecks is delightful to read. So delightful that I feel reading a book tells me eeeverything I ever need to know about Australia. There’s nothing else I could possibly gain from actually VISITING, surely? Other than more near-death experiences…
Amy
May 31, 2009
Officially in love with Alison. Without a doubt, the most humorous comment on this post. Oh, the drop bears…
Jo
May 31, 2009
and….. ahem…Cheddar Gorge! Loads of caves, silly boy…..
Helen
May 31, 2009
I thought Geraniums had been reclassified as Pelargoniums? They have here at least… And moths don’t eat clothing, fishmoths do!
We get hawkmoths here too, the worst ones are HUGE and they have these bright pink stripes along their sides, whch makes me think of decaying ribs for some reason… i try and be the tough one around insects, but those ones make me shudder inwardly, just a little bit! And not to knock australia or anything (seriously, you guys have some pretty scary stuff), but you don’t have Parktown Prawns, which are the scariest insects in all the animal kingdom. Even most of the entomologsts I know won’t go near them. And they’re unkillable. nd they squirt ou with black goo…
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Somerset is hardly near to Sussex, Jo…
Here’s a Parktown Prawn, just to illustrate just how hideous they are:
Black goo you say…?
Helen
May 31, 2009
AAAAH!!!! AAAAH!!! Get it away from me!
Helen
May 31, 2009
And yes, if you get too close, they squirt a nasty black liquid at you. Not that I ever got that close to them!
Rica
May 31, 2009
Holy cow. That’s a huge sucker.
Jo
May 31, 2009
Urgh, THAT is why I never eat shellfish!
Just Playing Pretend
May 31, 2009
You are ridiculously talented. I mean who can make a moth seem beautiful? Seriously.
sebastian
May 31, 2009
Well thank you (do I call you ‘Just’?)
I assure you there are prettier moths out there though… and better photographers too. But you are kind to say so, nonetheless
(And welcome!)
the girl in stiletto
Jun 1, 2009
he’s freaking huge! he’s beautiful!!
wait.
he’s not.
your photo is. but then again, i guess i dont need to remind you that because i think you pretty much know that you are…
LOL. i’m kidding, but you really are good with photography, erm among other things (which i assume you are)
sebastian
Jun 1, 2009
That sounded an awful lot like a sleep-deprived Stiletto…
But thank you!
Melissa
Jun 1, 2009
Golly, he’s handsome. He looks like a little tanker! I do find myself wondering where his head is….
MinD
Jun 2, 2009
That’s a moth?!?! I hate bugs. So much. I’m glad I don’t live where you are… That thing looks huge! (That’s what she said, I know, I know.)
Alison
Jul 1, 2009
Re: Reading a book instead of Visiting Oz.
Sure you can get more out of a real live visit. Gorgeous beaches. Beautiful wilderness that goes on forever, and is great for camping (providing you don’t get lost). There’s nothing quite like emerging from your tent earlyish in the morning to see a flock of kangaroos in the mist nearby calmly eating their breakfast.
And some of the locals are pretty damn nice too.
Alison
sebastian
Jul 1, 2009
But it’s REAL wilderness, right? Like… yellow, dusty scrubland? There aren’t much in the way of ancient oaks or gracious silver birches?
Do people really ‘head out into the Outback’ to go camping? To get it away from it all? Or is it more of a ‘Hey, let’s see how long we can survive!!’ exercise?
Now, I believe your bit about the locals being nice. I have a few friends in Oz that I’d like to meet! Yourself included…!