Luna Moth

My contribution to eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #85. I've been hoping to get pictures of a Luna Moth for many years.


So those were from Wednesday. This morning, I look out the basement sliding glass door and something with a familiar lime-green color is flopping around in the leaves.

What do you know, a slightly smaller Luna.

Another Imperial Moth showed up last night. Therefore: MOTHRA FACE OFF!

That last is my contribution to Weekend Butterfly #08 at Andyslens. Speaking of Imperial Moths, thanks to reallysmallfish for this:

Last but not least (although smallest), here's an Eastern Tailed-blue:

UPDATE: Mothra Song

Mouse over pics for captions, and click them for larger versions.
~

Polyphemus Moth

My contribution to Eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #81. I'm also linking to Andyslens' Weekend Butterfly #04.

This is a Polyphemus Moth I found outside the basement door in W.V. early in June. Like the Imperial Moth (bottom of post), it was attracted to the light during the evening. (Still hoping to get Luna Moth pics someday...I've seen them twice there over the years.)

Here are a couple pictures I didn't take. First is from a dive boat friend of someone who comments at Eschaton:

And this is a picture my brother-in-law took off St. Thomas last month:

Mouse over pics for captions, and click them for larger versions.
~

Tawny Emperor, Asterocampa clyton

I took a blurry pic of one of these butterflies earlier this month. Saturday, I hiked up the hill opposite the mountain our house is on, and chased two Tawny Emperors up and down a gravel road for a half hour or so.



The Tawny Emperor is not nearly as willing to sit and pose for a picture as a Monarch or Tiger Swallowtail.



Maybe I'll get pictures of a Zebra Swallowtail someday? Or a Luna Moth...I saw one here, one night many years ago.

This side of Cold Run Valley Road features the main buildings of the Coolfont Resort.

Coolfont's Treetop House officially closed last June. Since then, the resort has operated on a limited basis. The Carl M. Freeman Companies purchased Coolfont in November, 2005.

All present buildings except for the historic Coolfont Manor House will be removed next year as work begins on a planned resort community featuring 1,100 homes.

General plans for a 1,100 home resort consisting of mostly vacation homes and condos were announced in September after a week of meetings and workshops involving Freeman company officials, architects, planners, public service officials and community members.

The new Coolfont homes will be built in clusters to preserve green space and will be constructed over the course of 10-12 years.

Or whenever a gigantic real estate bubble comes back. Anyways, here's a few pics I took on the way to the butterflies.







(Cross-posted at Whiskey Fire. Mouse over pics for captions, and click them for larger versions.)
~