I was coming home from a meeting at school yesterday afternoon when I found this beautiful moth lying on the ground in the St. John's Wood tube station. I think it had probably beaten itself senseless against one of the lights, or maybe with autumn coming it had reached the end of its natural life span. At any rate, it was barely moving.
I picked it up and brought it home, mainly to photograph and identify it. I held it gingerly by the wings, but it was still a bit bedraggled by the time I got to our flat. (It's surprisingly windy in the tube -- you never really realize it until you're trying to keep something as lightweight as a moth from blowing away!)
Turns out, this is a Red Underwing moth, or Catocala nupta. Apparently they're quite common, and they fly in August and September. I love how furry it is -- like an insectile teddy bear!
I took my pictures and set it out on our balcony, where some bird has probably snacked on it by now.
What a lovely moth! My chickens love me when I gift them with a moth from the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteHow cool!
ReplyDeleteI love the pop of color.
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Beautiful moth! I can't believe you managed to carry him back to your flat without damaging it or having it blow away on you!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice red!
ReplyDeleteI normally don't like moths … dumb creatures.
such a pretty moth! Nice that you carried it home, so much nicer than dying unappreciated on the street. A beautiful white moth died right by my mothers photo and I could not help but think she sent it and put it there on purpose- dead people sometimes do that sort of thing...
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