Thanks to an online pal of mine in the UK who identified this moth yesterday, I now know that it's correct name is Actias luna. It was hanging beneath one of the exterior lights on my house for a while, possibly allowing its wings to expand fully, and it was beautiful--and huge (wingspan was approximately five inches)! After reading about it online, I learned that it's fairly common around my part of the country, even though it's not often seen (probably because the adults have no mouth parts and, as such, only live for a week). Very cool moth, and I was sad to see that it had departed by the time I got back from dinner. I just hope it found a mate and lays lots of eggs before its week expires.
Steve
American moon moth
Linear Mode
