Wow huge moth. Must check what's that bug site to find out it's name.

verrry scary eyes. be brave!

I think I saw '666' on its wings.

And you call yourself southern... That's just a baby!

I think this is the first known sighting of a were-moth. Was it a full moon?

You. Are braver than I. I hate moths. I would have run screaming. As it is...I am completely creeped out by your pictures.

That one looks like it could eat a whole skein of Up Country, burp and ask for more. With a glass of vino please.

The moth doesn't want you, but you must step away from the wool. . . .

It's the moth from Silence of the Lambs. You know- the moth over Jodi Foster's mouth?? I looked it up on this entomological identification site:

http://www.filmsite.org/sile.html

My girlfriend Holly had a Silence of the Lambs moth on her front porch on Saturday night and then -for real- a praying mantis came and ate it! It was grody to the max. Yes, in Denver, NOT the rainforest of South America.

ha, i see that and think...wow, it's beauiful!

I think it may be a distant relative of "Mothra."
At this point, I probably would be on the lookout for Godzilla...

bet this really makes ya'll want to come over and have a glass of wine on my patio, doesn't it?

It's asking for a side of fava beans...

absolutely terrifying.

i will not sleep.

i will not sleep.

the moth will track me down through CAP's comments section. i am next.

i must not sleep.

Zoiks!

I hope it doesn't crawl into your ear while you are sleeping and lay eggs that hatch into crawly larvae or anything...!

Just kidding! It's probably harmless. Scary looking but harmless. Probably. Here's a closeup of the Silence of the Lamb's moth - aka "DEATH'S HEAD" moth

http://www.habitas.org.uk/moths/set.asp?item=6064smup

Very impressive size on that one! I would prefer that large moth to the scurrying cockroaches that inhabit the sidewalks outside my building at night though. I hate creepy crawlies that can attack my feet when I'm not paying attention. Ew!

Ah, that's NUTHIN. When living near Pico & Fairfax (in the HEART of LA), I thought there was a stray cat eating my kitty's food. One night, I heard it scuffling about and I was out in time to find it (hiding under our house). It was a freakin' RACCOON!!! I don't which of us was more frightened. :)

-D.

OK, that is the biggest, nastiest, craziest-looking, giant, creepy, hairy, scary thing I have ever seen. You probably couldn't kill that thing with a baseball bat!

Ew.

Er, I think it's an Io Moth. They don't want you, or your stash. They want your oak trees. They have beautiful markings too, for those who find nature inspiring. Moths are very cool, and they are big pollinators. Something to think about next time you are at the grocery store.

Plus, like the lady said, for crying out loud woman, you are from the South! A big moth is harmless- you know what the really scary things are. I can't remember these from my Houston days, but the Lubber grasshopers we have here in my home state of Florida, they are big, the instars are numerous, they eat your plants and they spit "tobacco juice" at you. Ick. (And I like insects generally.)

hee heeee, you said "long enough"....

Don't worry, when you hole up with your posse, the cats and the guns, you can batten down the hatches against bugs too.

9 days until LOST. Woo hoo

Laurie,
It is Manduca sexta, the Carolina Sphinx.. The caterpillar probably had a feast on nearby tomato plants. Harmless to humans as an adult moth, the caterpillars of this species can make a quick mess of tomato plants.
Visit http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/caLosAngelessph.htm
and then scroll down to Manduca sexta

Sorry y'all. Neither the Io nor the Death's Head moth is found in SoCal. It is a member of the same family, though - Sphingidae. That one is either a Carolina Sphinx or a Five-Spot Hawkmoth; I can't tell from the photos. Either way, it's no threat to the yarn stash. Its catapillars are pests of tomato plants, however...

What's wrong with long enough Drew??
Anyway..at least Godzilla didn't show up!!!

Heh, looks like Bill and I are on the same page...unless its undersides were pink, which would make it a Pink-spotted Hawkmoth...

Um, guys, I was kidding when I said I had identified this moth as the Silence of the Lambs moth, since I used only a movie poster as a reference. It just makes it a little creepier to call it that.

Laurie, here is a website where the host will identify any bug you have photographed (including those gigantic slugs that you are always photographing). Beware, he (the bug id guy) gets pissed when you kill the bug (see comments under "Carnage" like " I guess your specimen will not be providing any future generations of pest control."). There is a whole string of moth photos.

http://www.whatsthatbug.com/index.html

Dadgum that's a big moth. I'd rather see a big moth than a big spider though. Those really creep me out.

If ya want to see a really pretty moth check out Luna Moths. They only live about a week after they come out of their cocoons, but man are they beautiful!

http://www.ivyhall.district96.k12.il.us/4th/kkhp/1insects/bugpix/welch-luna.jpg

At least it didn't take a nosedive into your wine, eh?

Bill! Thank you! Terri, do you know Bill? He is the Moth King. Seriously! He is!

I did not do bodily harm to the moth.

It looked like the kind of moth who was probably mobbed up, and I have no intention of getting a visit from the Canneloni Moths, or the Gambino moths in retribution. Nosiree.

Plus, you smash a moth that big and you've got yourself a pretty disgusting splatter to have to clean up. Uh, no thanks! I'd rather that puppy just fly itself away! ;)

The news says the power is out to parts of LA and the valley. Is it time to implement the Women With Guns And Wine emergency strat yet?

I hope you're ok. Good luck!

I heard power went out in LA. Have you been sticking your knitting needles in the outlets to get out of work early?

Kathleen

I just read about the power outages and thought of you and the kitties. Hope all is well and you weren't in an elevator or something....

We got power back on here (Century City). You alright in the Valley? If not, can I come over for the WWGW nite?

-D.

Nature is evil. To quote David Rakoff (who in speaking of NY, that the whole reason to live in NY is to not go outside) "You want greenery? Order the Spinach"

My mom, the farm girl, calls those things Millers. I don't know if she's correct. But they don't seem to eat wool or clothing or yarn stashes. I always thought they visited to eat the cat food on the porch. They're kind of scary when they fly into your hair, but they don't get stuck in there like June bugs (ick!!!) Thank god for San Francisco's chilly climate which discourages bugs. Seriously, we don't have screens on our windows up here.

Hey, I though you said you were from Florida. You know, the place where they have bugs the size of dinner plates? Even if Nature is trying to kill you. I'm just sayin'

Yes, I know. I'm a total wuss. A big knitting wuss.

Now I will have nightmares about your uber moth. Thanks.

That is one UGLY miller! For sure.

"evil glowing eyes of death and will eat you!" HA! you made shoot peppermint tea out of my nose. not a pleasant feeling, but man was that one good, much needed laugh!

Nature can be very scary...

Too Funny! It's just a moth!! (though, quite impressive!!) Do you know how many damn bats I've had in my house. Talk about creepy, crawly, flying hairballs!! UGH!! I'll take a moth over a bat ... anytime. So, yeah, I'd still come and drink wine with you. I'm not afraid of no stinkin moths....bats on the other hand...yuck!

I dn't go camping either but it's because I'm too tall for all that crawling around on the ground to eat and sleep etc. No moths lurking here, giant spiders though and one of my cats gifted me with a bat.

I fear moths, but as I moved through life I learned to supress the urge to flee in terror at the mere sight of even a small specimen. However, I have my limits. You are indeed a woman of courage and substance. I believe that you may meet the qualifications for residency in the glorious Central Valley of California and hereby extend an invite for you to interview for immigration should terrorists, God forbid, wipe out your In-N-Out. We of the North stand ready to welcome you, share our Cheetos, and chat.

However, you SHOULD know that I encountered your moth's distant kin flying about on my patio last week. The experience was no more than a glance from a distance of at least ten feet, but I still quake at the memory. However, up here we consider anything that large to be game, and as my brother was with me at the time and amply armed, I fought the urge to flee inside. I am quite proud of MY courage! Let's form a club...

I live in AZ and we just had the same beast on the back patio! My hubby thought it was a bat (he doesn't get out much). I of course, knew it would eat the children if not caught. Immediatly. So, I grabbed it in a jar and asked the neighbor what it was. Having moved to AZ from UT in January, I'm meeting a whole new range of strange insects here. Anyway, I like your blog & I'll check it out some more.

we get those friggin big ass moths too. they have long noses too! yeeeoowwww. i thought one was a cute humming bird in my garden but i was horrified to see it was a bug. i have a major bug phobia..........as in i will never travel to asia or south america or australia or anywhere that has big bugs.

I know that they're scary SOBs, but goal one in such times of crisis: Save the stash.

I keep mine in a cedar lined closet. Cedar is to moths like garlic is to vampires. Now what we've heard is that such things work. Myth or truth, who knows, but I haven't had any problems since I've turned cedar.

Do it for the stash.

I feel you, sister. For a big city, LA has more nature going on than I can handle some days - or more accurately - nights. Last night, in particular, two possum decided to duke it out on my roof, right above the bedroom for HOURS. The opossum, while normally a rather shy and quiet creature, becomes frightfully loud and hissy when its territory is invaded. I did not have the courage to go outside with a flashlight and end the rooftop festivities. When they did end, there was a rousing chorus of coyotes to close the evening with a finale. And I live in Silverlake, for Gosh sakes!

My husband, Dr. Science, used to work in a moth lab, and manduca was his subject. He was the only gardener I ever met who was thrilled to find tomato hornworms in the garden. Crazy man.

When Silence of the Lambs was released, all the moth scientists were indignant, because apparently they painted the deathshead features onto more ordinary moths. Silly Hollywood types didn't think anyone could tell the difference!

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woah giant moth!!!!!i found on like that in my room!tried 2 crush it...........................................................................................................it flew up to the light

i hav a pic on this site onf a giant moth!http://www.amonline.net.au/sand/news/moth.htm it is huuuuge

i hav a pic on this site onf a giant moth!http://www.amonline.net.au/sand/news/moth.htm it is huuuuge