moth - Economic significance of moths, Attraction to light, Notable moth species

An insect belonging to the order Lepidoptera, which comprises the butterflies and moths. Moths are distinguished from butterflies by being active mostly at night, by folding their wings flat over the body when at rest, and by having complex comb-like tips to their antennae; but there are exceptions.

?Moths
Emperor Gum Moth, Opodiphthera eucalypti
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Lepidoptera

A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly. the study of butterflies is known as butterflying, and the study of moths mothing, the latter giving rise to the term "mother" for someone who takes part in this activity—sometimes written with a hyphen inserted (moth-er) to distinguish it from the word for a female parent.

Economic significance of moths

Moths, and more particularly their caterpillars, are a major agricultural pest in many parts of the world. There are several species of Saturniidae that are also farmed for their silk, such as the Ailanthus moth (Samia cynthia group of species), the Chinese Oak Silkmoth (Antheraea pernyi), the Assam Silkmoth (Antheraea assamensis), and the Japanese Silk Moth (Antheraea yamamai).

Attraction to light

Moths will circle bright objects, and thus appear to be attracted to light. The moth instinctively attempts to correct by turning toward the light, causing airborne moths to come plummeting downwards, and - at close range - which results in a spiral flight path that gets closer and closer to the light source.

In 1972, Henry Hsiao, now a professor of biomedical engineering, suggested that the reason for moths circling lights may have to do with a visual distortion called a Mach band . It should be noted that many moths fly directly towards light sources, which contradicts this hypothesis, in addition to the simple fact that moths obviously do not fly solely in order to seek safety.

Night-blooming flowers usually depend on moths (or bats) for pollination, and artificial lighting can draw moths away from the flowers, affecting the plant's ability to reproduce.

Notable moth species

Large and dramatic Moth species include:

Death's-head Hawkmoth Acherontia sp. Luna Moth Actias luna Atlas moth Attacus atlas The largest moth in the world Emperor Gum Moth Opodiphthera eucalypti Polyphemus Moth Antheraea polyphemus

Moths that are of economic significance include:

Gypsy moth Lymantria dispar Cotton bollworm or corn earworm Helicoverpa zea, a major agricultural pest Codling moth Cydia pomonella, a pest mostly of apple, pear and walnut trees Light brown apple moth Epiphyas postvittana The silkworm Bombyx mori is the larva of a moth.

Other notable moths:

Peppered moth Biston betularia The subject of a now well known study in evolution.

A moth	Case Moth (Psychidae)	Case Moth (Psychidae)
Looper Moth	Giant Leopard Moth (Arctiidae)	Dryocampa rubicunda Rosy Maple Moth	Grammia parthenice Tiger Moth (Arctiidae)
Nyctemera amica (Arctiidae)	Chelepteryx collesi (Gray) (Anthelidae)	Chelepteryx collesi (Gray) (Anthelidae)	Lyssa zampa (Uraniidae) Grey Sunset Moth
Atlas moth