Life Cycle of the Owl Moth (Brahmaea wallichii)

I have this sneaky feeling that global warming has screwed up the timing of the moth season. I mean at Thimphu’s altitude, I believe that the moth season typically begins sometime at the start of next month …. But the fellows have been pretty active as of end of last month. Well, my worry isn’t so much that these wondrous creatures are rather erratic in their timing …. I mean earlier the merrier! But I worry that their chaotic, premature appearance could very well be an indication that not everything is hunky dory in our famous land of GNH. We can’t have that …. I mean we do have a reputation to uphold! After all, we did make a claim that we have the singular distinction of being the only country in the world that is carbon negative!!! Hehehe.

Well, global warming has sent everything into a tailspin – it is irrelevant that we have no role in its cause ---- we still have to suffer its affects. We can already sense that it has already affected even the human psyche – there is no longer honesty in our truth. Honesty, valor, duty, service, dedication are no longer virtues to be proud of – they are beginning to be seen as hindrances to personal glory and success.

Well, I remain unimpressed! For me the celebration of life is key --- being alive, and being able to find fulfillment in the simplest of life’s passages is what matters – giving joy rather than seeking it is my endeavor. It is probably the reason why wonderful things happen to me. Take, for instance, the following life event.

Of the more than a thousand moths I photographed so far, the Owl Moth (Brahmaea wallichii) is one of the prettiest. Few days back, it decided to reveal to me how it starts its life.

It starts its life inside a perfectly spherical egg that is no more than 2-3mm in dia. When the eggs are laid, it is creamy white in color. Over the days, it turns dark brown – obviously the larvae inside is maturing and ready to hatch.

I am not sure how long it takes for the eggs to hatch – but my experience is that the eggs hatched within less than 2 weeks of my first noticing them.

The caterpillars when they emerge out of the eggs are cute, hairy beings with black bodies stripped with white bands …. and dashes of yellow.

When they move, it looks as if they are slithering on their back --- they look like they move belly up - the legs appear to be growing out of their backs. But I am sure that is not true – I think they have legs under their belly.

But I have not seen the full process of the metamorphosis - how they transit from caterpillar to full grown moth … but the following is how they look when they are fully grown.

A full grown Owl Moth (Brahmaea wallichii)