Spotlight | 台北市立動物園資訊網

Spotlight:theatlasmoth...Oneofthegoliathsoftheinsectworld,theatlasmothisagentlegiant–butbehindeveryoversizedmothisaveryhungrycaterpillar.The ...

It means they spend most of the day resting to preserve energy, only looking for a mate at night.

The pressure is on the caterpillars to consume enough food before going into the cocoon to sustain the moth when it is reborn.

In the wild, atlas moth caterpillars eat the leaves of cinnamon, citrus fruit, guava and Jamaican cherry trees.

In the butterfly house, they are fed on privet from the Museum Wildlife Garden.

Luke says, We dont let them roam free in the exhibition because they eat so much. This allows them to build up fat reserves for the adult to live off.

If we didnt monitor their eating, we would have no plants left in the butterfly house, so we keep them in their own feeding area while they are growing.

Native to China, India, Malaysia and Indonesia, the moth shares a name with Atlas, the Titan god o...