Moths

[silly~lilly]

I am assuming a moth is nocturnal, correct me if im wrong...Im sure someone will, What puzzles me is, if it wont come out in daylight, why the heck does it make straight for the brightest light it can find at night ?

[andy-hughes]

Daylight is ambient, a bulb at night is a specific source of light, which the moth can sense.

It's really as easy as that.

[silly~lilly]

thank you andy- hughes, that was a very quick response!
Still dont get it though .

[andy-hughes]

You are welcome.

Put yourself in a moth's position - you sense light, but only direct light, with a source you can move towards - such as a bulb or a candle - so you head for the source.

The sun spreads its light over several million square miles, so it has no obvious source that a moth's senses would pick up. We can know the sun is the source of light, because we are rather more sophisticated than a moth (well when you look on here you do wonder ....) so we can appreciate the sun - or any ambient light - as a light source.

A moth needs something direct and within reach to be an attraction.

Hope that clear it up a little better.

[andy-hughes]

Sorry, i realised just as I posted, it may look like I was having a pop at you for not understanding my first answer - I was definitely not referring to you when I mentioned 'people on here' - they know whom they are

[raysparx1]

So andy, why don't the moth fly towards the sun during the day? might take him a while to get there though.

[silly~lilly]

thank you once again andy-hughes, a very good answer. No problem about having a pop, i didnt think that for one moment but then again, i am a bit slow lol and silly of course.

[lajohn]

i am looking for where you post 'people on here' to see if it's me you mean but i cannot find where. where? :-)

[Mortartube]

I believe that many moths use the moon as a navigational aid and various species fly with their bodies at a certain angle relative to the moon.

I often wonder what a moth might think when it flies towards a lightbulb that it thinks is the moon and then reaches it. It probably goes back and tells all the other moths that it flew all the way to the moon. They of course are unlikely to believe him.

[shylock73]

I believe moths fly at night because the birds are at roost and wont eat them, but bats fly and outsmart them with their radar. The reason they fly to the moon is to get height for their pheromones to spread far and wide so that mating can take place, putting it as simply as poss. Watch more of David Attenborough series.