Cocoon Hunting and Hatching

Shorter hours of daylight and cooler temperatures signal caterpillars that winter is coming. The caterpillars fattened on summer leaves spin cocoons around themselves and during the winter athey develop into moths. The cecropia, polyphemus, hummingbird, promethea and the fabulous luna moth are some of the large common moths of North America that hatch from cocoons each spring.

There are plenty more smaller moths: cottonwood dagger moths, wooley bears, cutworm moths, and underwings, just to name a few. These are harder to find than the big moth cases. Moost cocoons are white or brown and many look like leaves.

Go for an autumn hike and look in forks of twigs. Break off the whole twig. Look on the ground under trees among the leaves. Remember that the cocoons are disguised for protection from birds and predators. They are made to look like leaves and nuts. The Luna cocoons are brown and the size of large pecans.

Place your cocoon in a glass canning jar. You won't need food or water. Can you guess why not? Keep your cocoons in a cold place like the garage, shed, attic or even in the refrigerator. (Be sure to label it so mom won't throw it out.) Your moth won't hatch unless it stays cold for several months.

In the early spring, take your jar out and let it begin to warm slowly. When the days grow warm watch the jar for signs of life. Soon the moth will hatch!

Waitng for the moths to hatch is the hard part. During the winter spend some time curled up with a great book about moths called A Girl of the Limberlost. You'll probably love this book by Gene Stratton Porter as much as I did when I was a young mom and read it to my daughters. You may find yourself more interested in butterflies and moths than ever after this book.

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