Caterpillar Book, step 5

This next moth is my favorite so far. It's Acherontia atropos, the Death's Head Hawkmoth. Actually, the Death's Head Hawkmoth refers to any one of these three species of moth: A. atropos, A. styx and A. lachesis in the genus Acherontia. According to Wikipedia, they have several unusual attributes. First, they can squeak loudly and flash their abdomen when disturbed or irritated. (Who would want to irritate a Death's Head moth?) Second, they actually raid beehives for honey! Somehow, they manage to mimic the bees' scent in order to be "invisible" and move about in the hive undetected. Quite a trick!

Presentation at Valley of the Moon Art Association

I was invited to be the artist presenter at the Valley of the Moon Art Association's monthly meeting for April.
They meet at the Sonoma Hills Retirement Center - a lovely place. Yesterday was the big day, and it seemed to go quite well. It was my very first PowerPoint presentation, so I was a bit nervous about whether or not everything would go smoothly. No problems occurred, luckily! The screen went up OK, there was a plug nearby, the projector and laptop all worked without a hitch. The best part, however, was how receptive and enthusiastic the VMAA artists were. They made it very comfortable for me, and we talked about both my abstract and natural history bodies of work for about an hour. All in all, it was a very rewarding experience. As an added bonus, I now have a PowerPoint slide show of about 40 paintings all set for another time.

To end the presentation, I showed the small original paintings of moths and butterflies I've completed so far for the caterpillar book in progress. I've now completed the Death's Head Hawkmoth, so I'll post that as soon as I get a chance to photograph it. I'm thinking that the finished art book may be titled "The Little Book of Metamorphosis". What do you think?

Caterpillar Book, step 4

The fourth caterpillar/moth installment is done!

This one is the Whitelined Sphinx Moth, Hyles linneata. This species is also known as a Hummingbird Moth, and is easily mistaken for a hummingbird. The very handsome moth results from a mostly green caterpillar.

Caterpillar Book, step 3

The third caterpillar/butterfly combination is Marpesia petreus, the Ruddy Daggerwing. I find the small similarities between the caterpillar and butterfly forms of the species fascinating.

Caterpillar book, step 2

The next moth that I've painted is the Euchaetes egle, or Milkweed Tussock Moth. It is a very simple, humble looking thing. The wings are very plain, and only the body shows any bright coloration. Its caterpillar, on the other hand, is remarkable. It bears a strong resemblance to a very small, shaggy, multicolored dog! The caterpillar obtains toxins from its food source, the milkweed plant. The moth retains some of these toxins, but also emits ultrasonic clicks to deter predatory bats. One theory is that the sound imitates a different, much more toxic moth. Ultrasonic sound is also important in attracting mates, as these moths don't emit pheromones.