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Malaysian moon moth

Actias maenas

Photo by kevogecko
Published on Project Noah
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3.44414, 101.83

Field Notes

Description:

Approximately 10 inches width. Beautiful red tails. The species is considered to form a super-species complex that includes Actias ignescens Moore 1877 (Andamans), Actias isis (Sonthonnax 1897) from Sulawesi and Actias groenendaeli Roepke 1954 from Flores, Timor and Sumba. Actias rosenbergii (Kaup 1895) from Ambon is of doubtful status. This species is further divided into subspecies with the nominate form from Continental Asia and A. m. diana Maassen 1872 from Sunda and in the Philippines.

Habitat:

A recovering tropical jungle near a clean, unpolluted, clear and pristine river stream.

Notes:

Spotted it on a trail by a river stream in a tropical jungle reserve in Pahang, Malaysia. The night before was a raining and the river had swollen. Have not seen it around the area before.Thanks to NuwanChathuranga, I now know it is a "Malaysian" Moon Moth and not a "Madagascar" Moon Moth - since I took the photo in Malaysia... duh! Thanks!

Species ID Suggestions

Malaysian moon moth (male)

Actias maenas

Comments (18)

That's the most stunning creature! Thanks so much for sharing!
Congrats kevo, your spotting is featured in the Project Noah blog http://blog.projectnoah.org/post/56441645577/saturniidae-the-emperor-moths
Vivid colors; and a background of green really makes it pop.
Stunning moth kevogecko! Welcome to Project Noah!
The most beautiful moth I've ever seen! Stunning!
Terrific moth spotting, and welcome to Project Noah! Could you add this to my mission, "Moths of the World?" http://www.projectnoah.org/missions/8841449
Fantastic moth! Great spotting.
Thanks, Maria! It was huge - so pretty hard to miss.
What an absolutely gorgeous moth!
This looks very similar to a Madagascan moon moth but the markings is very different. Could it be some other species?

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