BIGGEST Moth in the WORLD! White Witch Moth / Thysania agrippina by Bart Coppens [ft REGUA Brazil]

[@BartCoppens]

LONG VERSION of this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iIvYhox-lqiieLc Thank you! 'll travel the world for YOU and film the worlds biggest butterflies and moths - if you help me. You see, it isn't cheap and KZbin demonetised my ENTIRE channel. Consider supporting me on Patreon for as little as 1$: www.patreon.com/BartButterflies If we get enough Patrons, I could film insects in the U.S.A - or India, Malaysia, Australia and other places!

[@prolly.thomas]

They aren’t the biggest moths though, aren’t the attacus/atlas moths bigger? Edit: The Hercules has the most surface area, the White Witch has the widest wingspan, and the atlas moth is just the largest overall.

[@BartCoppens]

@@prolly.thomas Size is measured in wingspan; not surface area. Thysania agrippina is the largest flying insect with the largest wingspan. As for surface area, Attacus atlas is actually significantly bigger than C. hercules(!). In fact C. hercules are often overstated in terms of size

[@prolly.thomas]

@@BartCoppens Yeah, maybe I shouldn’t have went with the info I found on a random facebook post, I even edited it because the original thing said the atlas was the smallest, my fault. And yeah, I definitely was kinda wondering how come hercules has the “most” surface area when it’s wings are so narrow, I see how it’s definitely an overstated thing.

[@BartCoppens]

@@prolly.thomas So there is a longer version of this video on my channel and in it I show the top 5 biggest WITH sources! It will be interesting to you :) look for the long "Thysania agrippina" video

[@prolly.thomas]

@@BartCoppens Oh, Thank you! I’ll be sure to watch it.

[@prismoth]

these moths are so gorgeous, i wish i could hold one

[@Hannah-pg4dq]

The camouflage is impressive, they look like a patch of bark or lichen.

[@BartCoppens]

Pretty cool how a moth this large is still camouflages

[@SaveTheInsects_Team]

Wow, that's an Amazing moth! Thank you so so so much, for teaching us about them, and so many others! 🦋

[@facelessfigure7985]

The Atlas may hold the world on its snake-ridden wings, but the White Witch reigns supreme.

[@user-qej8130kal0oqjal]

Wow the best camouflage Bart i watched your videos everyday.

[@davinawonderling9361]

These moths are absolutely beautiful 🤩!! Nothing witchy about these huge moths ❤

[@beebee-bq2yd]

this is really cool! its awesome you get to do this stuff. could you maybe do a video on moth mannerisms ? thanks ^_^

[@BartCoppens]

Could be interesting! I'm working on some moth trapping videos if that helps.

[@beebee-bq2yd]

@@BartCoppens ill be sure to check them out when they come! :D :D :D

[@entrippyZ]

Love moths, that things beautiful.

[@An-kw3ec]

That's an amazing job, like a modern Darwin, I went my town's biology center expecting to see some cool insects ,but the government only supported entomologists for plague control programs, so I only saw fruit flies, must be cool to do such expeditions, and that moth is so beautiful!.

[@BartCoppens]

Well, I share many of my experiences online :) that helps

[@cinderedrockjf8055]

Haha! that's the culprit for the giant hole in my carpet.😂 Now you know what people meant when you say to them,"looks like you got a little bit of a moth problem?" Then they reply,"nope we got Big moth problem."here's your sign. 🤣

[@prolly.thomas]

It isn’t the culprit for the holes in your carpet, white winter moths are satuurnids, and don’t eat (atleast not carpets) which i’m 99% sure of. most likely the holes are from clothes/carpet/rug moths, which are a lot smaller, but they can still eat a lot.

[@cinderedrockjf8055]

@@prolly.thomas haha haha 🤣. I know pal, I raise insects as a hobby on occasion. That joke came from a old Muppets movie. I wasn't being serious one little bit, oh you sweet summer child. 😂✌️

[@prolly.thomas]

@@cinderedrockjf8055 I’m such an idiot, sorry I should’ve been able to tell by the laughing emojis, no idea what I was thinking.

[@jenniferloving9054]

That's a big moth, and very beautiful.

[@LthrWrstlr1]

How do you measure the size of any lepidoptera? Is it wing span? Is it wing area? or is by weight? I think if you average all that out for females the Atlas moth wins.

[@eclipxe8809]

What a shame that the hostplant of T. agrippina has not been found yet, a mistery is a mysery

[@cristianocampos9153]

Impressed..I didn't know she lived here in the Atlantic Forest, i live in Rio de Janeiro, I thought she was a Moth only from the Amazon Rainforest.

[@BartCoppens]

I'm sure you can find them close to Rio! But not in Rio itself (they dont like cities)

[@Heatseeker872591]

Have you manged to breed this species yet ? I just see on another channel , it said scientists have no idea what the caterpillars even look like. I believe you will be the first.

[@BartCoppens]

I tried but my experiments so far have failed.

[@Heatseeker872591]

@@BartCoppens I'm sure you will find the secret..😀

[@michaelveis3294]

This moth occasionally is found in Texas. It has been seen as far North as Oklahoma and Kansas.

[@jenniferloving9054]

Wow! So there's a chance I might see this moth if I keep my eyes peeled. Been interested in insects,arachnids, other animals like them since I was a kid. My dad 's also interested in them, and has been teaching me since I was young what he knows.

[@piekielrl]

Hi Bart, I posted a question on your other channel, but here it is again - I was fascinated to see your white witch moths drinking grape juice! Where did you get them back at your "home?" I am in the USA and have been trying to find a breeder / supplier of LIVE white witch moths for some time, but no one seems to have them. Where can I get some? They are actually native to the southern portions of the USA, so no permits re required to get them, unlike the permit I had to get to obtain atlas moths. Many thanks!

[@BartCoppens]

I tried to breed them many times and failed. It is not possible to obtain them in captivity. The life cycle and food plants are unknown and breeding is not possible at the moment. The only way to see them is in the wild. I caught mine in Brazil

[@Dakotaraptor_Official]

I've actually caught a male and female white witch moth and pinned them, i don't plan on catching anymore because they're endangered

[@BartCoppens]

Well as far as I know they're not endangered, but it's good to be modest and not collect more than you need :)

[@Dakotaraptor_Official]

@@BartCoppens ok

[@Subhashini1981]

You are an amazing human👌👍stay blessed. Much awaited vlog

[@WarhammerWings]

I'd catch and breed them myself, and pin them when dead.

[@Dakotaraptor_Official]

@@WarhammerWings how am I supposed to breed white witch moths? An i do t need anymore anyo

[@Heatseeker872591]

So this is larger than the atlas?

[@BartCoppens]

Yes because the wings are longer! But atlas have big surface area

[@Heatseeker872591]

@@BartCoppens ahh thank you for explaining. I haave just recently found out them witchety grubs from australia are actually caterpillars and turn into huge wood moths

[@BartCoppens]

@@Heatseeker872591 Yes and some of those are record breakers for the worlds HEAVIEST moths!

[@Caserchastli]

I love Moths

[@Purwapada]

wow! lucky! I heard a (2002) report that its sister species, Thysania zenobia, hosts on Senna and Cassia, family Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae. It seems likely that T. agrippina larvae also feed on woody legumes. So maybe some Senna or Cassia species with concurrent range of T. agrippina could be traced? What plants did you raise the larvae on? I'd love to know

[@BartCoppens]

I tried various Fabaceae such as Cassia, Mimosa, but also some random plants like Hibiscus, Ficus, Inga.. none were accepted

[@BartCoppens]

You may want to see the longer version of this video!

[@Purwapada]

@@BartCoppens oh lol i'll have a look.

[@Purwapada]

@@BartCoppens oh ok I see that's a shame. Good to try tho 😁 I wonder if the fat reserves in the adult could be analyzed to see if there are any giveaways as to what the larvae eats. Maybe idk

[@WarhammerWings]

The fact you caught two is impressive in itself. Do you plan on breeding them if you identify the sexes?

[@BartCoppens]

Yes I plan to do experiments with this species next year :)

[@tpytehb84serber59]

да, увидеть бы такую в реальности, просто супер!!!

[@qba4506]

maybe they feed on trees?

[@silviarosati-t9t]

la mariposa falena