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Post by kayleighobrien1206 on Apr 18, 2022 11:42:13 GMT -8
hey! this is a little random but i’m relatively new to moth raising. i’ve been observing a luna moth pupa for 3 weeks, and for the first two weeks she wiggled everyday on her own with or without stimulus, when i sexed the pupa i was barely able to get a good look at the markings bc of how much she wiggled. but as of this week she hasn’t moved at all even when touched. her pupas coloration is getting darker and i’ve noticed some black dots and lines forming on the wing area of her pupa. i haven’t noticed a difference in weight though, my biggest concern is the fact she has not moved. luna moth pupae are supposed to be very active after pupation and it’s just concerning that she’s not loving anymore. will she be ok??
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Post by wingedwishes on Apr 18, 2022 15:37:25 GMT -8
Might be ok. Hopefully did not desiccate. I’ve had them make it when I thought they were dead. I must mine occasionally to keep drying from being a problem. Parasites, air sprays and inbreeding have all led to demise of some of mine in the past.
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Post by kevinkk on Apr 18, 2022 16:01:52 GMT -8
My experiences have been that pupa often are frisky when first formed ,or taken out of storage and as they mature will settle down. The darkening may simply be that the moth is
forming and can be seen through the pupal skin, I've had plenty of pupa expire, and I don't recall color changes, they simply dry out.
Weighing them, is one way to tell if they've died, but drying out can take a long time. I'd guess your moth is about to emerge, you've already got
3 weeks in, it could hatch pretty much anytime now.
I know pupa can move around a lot sometimes, depending on the species, I like to arrange my animals in little rows in the emerging cage, and sometimes they'll
scoot all over the place, but seem to settle down towards the time they are ready to hatch, I think it's something to do with the internal changes from what
was a caterpillar to an adult.
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