Notes: Note the crossed tails in the resting position of this moth. Only the Argema mittrei of Madagascar shares this characteristic. All of the other tailed moths keep the tails straight or angled outward. Found in equatorial East Africa, the larva feeds on sandalwood, wild mango and paper tree, Commiphora mollis. In captivity it will feed on walnut, Eucalyptus and Liquidamber (text ©2009 John Cody) [Solandra nitida written on reverse] A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.

Notes: This moth is named after Simla (now spelled Shimla), the mountain resort in north central India where the British once centered the government. Being on the western slopes of the Himalayas, Shimla has a climate more temperate than tropical, and C. simla can stand low temperatures. The caterpillar feeds on cherry and is as beautiful as the moth, having a yellow head and body covered with thick, long, pale turquoise hair. The cocoon is an open mesh, dark and stiff, as though varnished. (text ©2009 John Cody) A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.

Notes: This day-flying silkmoth is found in south Texas, Mexico and Central America. The caterpillar feeds on wild cherry, acacias and many other plants and may remain cocoon-bound for several years. The cocoon is neat, gray, hard and compact with an escape hatch and is attached to a twig with a strong silken stem. It can be raised in as dry a place as western Kansas if it is sprayed daily with water, as Dr. Cody has shown. It is pictured here on lilac, one of the larva's food plants.(text ©2009 John Cody) A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.

Notes: This moth resembles that other moon moth, the Comet Moth of Madagascar, but it is smaller. In spite of the name, the larva does not feed on the mimosa but on wild mango, sandalwood and the paper tree, Commiphora mollis. It is found in eastern and central Africa and has been raised in Europe on sweetgum. (text ©2009 John Cody) A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.

Notes: This moth is found in the western Himalayas of northern Pakistan at 12,000 feet. Collected in 1923 by Major C. H. Stockley of the British army, who placed four specimens in the British Museum, it was not recognized as a new species until 1995. It was then discovered to be such by Dr. Richard Peigler of the Denver Museum of Natural History, who named it in honor of Dr. Cody “in recognition of his work through art, writings, and lectures to bring awareness to the public of the need to preserve habitats of Saturniidae” (Journal of Research on Lepidoptera, 1996, 32: 8–15). (text ©2009 John Cody) A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.

Notes: This painting is a departure in size from the usual Imperial format of 22 × 30 inches. It was made for a special exhibit at the annual meeting of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, which limits the size of entries. This is the first of Dr. Cody's paintings to show the upper surface of the female moth. (text ©2009 John Cody) On reverse: ‘Female from Malaysia’; Background: 4 glazes of indigo, 1 glaze moonglow and salt; cropped unfinished line drawing of moths and plant. A work by this artist, not in the Hunt Institute collection, was included in the 9th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration, 1998.