Moth or Butterfly?

After our brief dinner at Dover, i spotted this Moth hovering around my home corridor. It was a big Moth in my context and was not shy to my photographing it :)

Is it a Moth or Butterfly?

A check on the internet:
1. Most butterflies are day fliers whereas moths are generally nocturnal in habit.
2. Butterflies generally rest with their wings closed in an upright position whereas moths rest with their wings held in a horizontal or roof-like position.
3. The antennae of moths are usually feathery without a club. Butterflies, on the other hand, possess antennae that gradually thicken from the base upwards to form a club.


This is therefore a Moth, an Attacus Atlas or more commonly known as Atlas Moth, so named because its wing patterns resemble maps.

Atlas Moth has the largest wing surface area of all moths, and has a wing span of about 26cm. The one here is about 20cm, the size of my palm.

With a stout, hairy body and a short abdomen looking out of proportion to its enormous wings that was decorated with transparent, triangular window-like areas. It was fascinating to watch.

Only found in Southeast Asia, the Atlas Moth is common in Singapore where we surround our inhabitat with greenery.

(Oh, and a call to China later confirms that Sis would be flying back tomorrow, reaching here by midnight.)