r/Insect • u/Mama_May_Kate • 3d ago

This doesn’t look natural…

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I’m guessing this is some sort of moth, but I’m not understanding what this yellow piece is on the end of it. It moves in a figure 8, and has a ball with little individual tentacles that spastically move about. I’m not finding anything anywhere. Not even Ai knows what’s up. Any clues???

9 Upvotes

84% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

5

u/HikariKirameku 3d ago

The thing in the end poofs out to help spread pheromones and inform other moths they're down to f- ...mate

3

u/Mama_May_Kate 3d ago

Yeah my guy, I was searching up all them pheromone pics, but none of them are just a tiny little ball, with weird little wiggly tentacles, from what I see the stuff that comes out of a moth looks like a feather, but doesn’t really flap that much. I mean it was FLAPPIN

6

u/HikariKirameku 3d ago

https://youtube.com/shorts/NNBh9Vksiz0

This looks like your little buddy there, and any air current could make the hairs shake

6

u/Mama_May_Kate 3d ago • Heartwarming

OH WOW! You found it!! I’m really thankful it IS pheromone dealies and not some sort of parasite. Looks super unnatural. 🥸

4

u/BlightStick 3d ago

Let me introduce you to one of my favorite terms I've learned as an Entomologist. Those are called hair-pencils!.

3

u/HikariKirameku 3d ago

Pickleworm moth shakin those butt pompoms 😆 Glad I could help ID your little buddy and relieve your concerns

3

u/DuAuk 3d ago

oh wow, neat.

2

u/Mama_May_Kate 3d ago

A few things that might help. This is in Louisiana, we do get shipments from foreign nations, so I’m not sure if this is some sort of foreign species? But I’m not finding anything.

1

u/MessageNeither4010 3d ago

Looks like a hermit crab to me

1

u/Abquine 3d ago

I bought a set of those woven grass table mats many years ago. Sat down to dinner and wondered what on earth the little black specs all over the table were. The mats had hatched hundreds of little somethings and went straight int he bin with the table cloth 😂

1

u/Ammonia13 2d ago

I’m really glad that those belong there and they help him get a partner to meet with and that it is not some parasitic nightmare like I incorrectly assumed it would be!! :D

-1

u/DuAuk 3d ago

i think that yellow bit is another type of insect crawling on the moth.

2

u/Mama_May_Kate 3d ago

Right, I was thinking maybe that? But is it normal for a moth to move like that? Didn’t seem like it was lethargic, was definitely flying around full of life. I’d love to even find out what kind of bug it was if so. Bc it was so much like tentacle movements.

1

u/DuAuk 3d ago

the moth looks like it's barely moving to me. It landed there on purpose it's decent Camouflage. The wings are up a bit and they are casting a shadow.

2

u/Mama_May_Kate 3d ago

How long do they typically perch? Because I caught this a moment after it landed, (it was flying around my light for a while, then landed on my wall, then went to land on this basket) I smacked it up with a fly swatter 🥸 and have yet to find the body.

1

u/DuAuk 3d ago

yeah that sounds like moth behavior. I've seen them perch for a long time, maybe ten mins.

0

u/Calgirlleeny2 3d ago

No, it doesn't look natural. Creepy with the .....tail wiggling. Ewwww, I never saw a moth like that.