Wings of Paradise

The lovely saturniid moth, the most majestic of insects, also has one of the most poignant and romantic life stories: born without a mouth, a stomach, or any defensive mechanism beyond camouflage, each moth lives just a few days--long enough only to mate--and then it dies. Because the moths are nocturnal, and some species are endangered, many people will glimpse these beautiful creatures only through the paintings of John Cody, who has been called 'the Audubon of Moths.' Cody has spent a lifetime studying and painting the Great Saturniids, also known as silkmoths. In pursuit of his avocation, Cody travels frequently to distant and exotic locales to collect cocoons and learn about the moths' native environments. He then brings specimens home; as the moths emerge from their cocoons, Cody has only a brief time to capture and record their distinctive coloration before they die. Seventy-two of Cody's paintings of saturniids are included here, accompanied by his commentary on the moths' life cycles, habitats, and geographical range and on the circumstances of his finding and painting each moth. A foreword by Richard S. Peigler, curator of entomology and saturniid specialist at the Denver Museum of Natural History, provides scientific background on the Saturniidae.