Mating is a process that all animals
go through. Moths do it a bit differently. The male has claspers on his abdomen
and once finding the female abdomen, he grabs hold. The pair of moths can stay
coupled anywhere from an hour up to 2-3 days depending on the species. It is
best not to disturb the moths while they are paired as this can break the pair
up. Then you would have to deal with unfertilized eggs as the female will think
she is already fully mated.
Once the pair has mated, the male will
then fly off and go in search of another female. The female on the other hand
will go out and find the designated food plant for her eggs. Depending on the
species, she will lay eggs in short rows or singularly. In captivity, after
mating has occurred, you can place the female in a brown paper sack and let
her lay her eggs there. By doing this, you ensure that you get all eggs from
the female.
Depending on the species, egg incubation
time will vary. I will discuss specific incubation times for eggs on the page
with the lists of moths. Simply select the moth you want to know about and all
information I know will be there including how long it will take for your moth
babies to hatch. Generally eggs can take anywhere from 8 to 21 days to
hatch, but this too varies with each species.
