Another photo ...

Nice find, great photo!

Wow !

He's amazing.

Wow, that looks huge.

So cool.

Wow! Beautiful as is most of nature! I love the 'eyes' on his wings. :)

Ginny

Some moths are so beautiful, this one for certain. Nice photo!

SCG

Yes, this moth was big, about 4 1/2 inches from wing tip to wing tip and had a large heavy body. The coloring is even nicer than pictured, what doesn't show up very well is the mauve tone along the edges of the wings.

These moths have undeveloped mouth parts and do not eat and live for only a short period of time and this brief period is dedicated to reproduction. Sightings are few due to their low numbers and short adult phase. I wish I had taken more photos, though he was uncooperative and would flop around like a fish out of water.

Beautiful!!Think I've ever only seen one .Great picture

I guess the above moth had been successful with reproduction, as a friend had spied this large cocoon of the polyphemus moth attached to a plum tree branch.

Really cool! Be cool to build an enclosure for it and watch it enclose and feed it through its cat stages.

SCG

I have grown caterpillars into moths before, but my attempt with a sphynx moth this summer dropped dead the first day. Not sure why. It was in the final instar and I found it on the sidewalk.

Anyway, once it's a cocoon all you need to do is put it in an enclosure and wait for the adult to emerge.

I will need to intervene, as otherwise this cocoon will fall to the ground only to get stepped upon or destroyed in some manner. Maybe, I'll later place it in some leaf litter in the surrounding forest and possibly put a small screened enclose over it for protection and allowowing me to observe the moth emerge next spring.

Very nice!...no need, I'll come an pick it up!