Moth Life Cycle

Although I've seen a moth lay her eggs only to have them destroyed by rain, fortunately many other batches of eggs have hatched successfully. Considering how many eggs are laid by moths, some are bound to survive. We had a heavy rain a few days after the moth laid these eggs, and the next two days were very cold. At first, I was afraid that, if it didn't destroy the eggs entirely, the rain might make the larvae hatch prematurely and they would subsequently die from the cold, or that the sharp decrease in temperature would coincide with their scheduled emergence, or that the cold weather itself may cause their premature birth. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the cold may have just decreased their activity. The larvae are alive and well today, despite the low temperature, and are spreading out from the opened eggs.

1. The moth laid her eggs at night, affixing them to the surface of the siding on our shed.

2. The eggs remained unopened for about a week.

3. Within about a week, the tiny larvae hatched. Though originally I believed these larvae were dead because I didn't see any movement, on analysis of the photos I realized that their bodies had moved between shots. Also, you'll notice one of the larvae has traveled a good ways down the siding. Compare the photos closely: you'll notice the movements.

Even later that night I had to study the photos carefully, still thinking they had died, but lo and behold, there was still some movement between shots! The larvae might be staying close together because of the cold.

4. Today the larvae began their journey! You can still see the pattern of the egg cluster: a sort of grid or comb-like arrangement. It appears that not all of the eggs hatched. I don't know about moths, but the larvae of spiders and other creatures often feed on undeveloped eggs.

The egg site was becoming emptier with each passing moment.

As you can see from the photos, moth larvae hatch already possessed of the ability to spin. Soon they'll find food, spin their tiny cocoons, and emerge as the small gray moths you commonly see around your yard and house. I apologize for not being able to pinpoint the scientific name, but there are so many kinds of moths it's quite a tall order to identify such an unassuming one!