Atlas Moth vs Luna Moth
Two of the world's most photographed silk moths — but they live on different continents and look completely different up close.
The short version
Atlas moth (Attacus atlas) and luna moth (Actias luna) are both giant silk moths in family Saturniidae — and both are wildly photogenic — but they're easy to tell apart once you know what you're looking at. Atlas is the bigger of the two by a wide margin, lives in South + Southeast Asia, and has triangular cobra-head wing-tips. Luna is North American, smaller, and has long pale-green tail streamers off the hindwings.
How to tell them apart
- 1
Range: atlas moth is found across South + Southeast Asia (India, China, Indonesia); luna moth is exclusively North American (eastern US + southeastern Canada).
- 2
Wingspan: atlas moth reaches 24-30 cm (one of the largest moths on Earth); luna moth tops out around 11-12 cm.
- 3
Color: atlas is rust-brown with white-edged transparent windows; luna is pale lime-green with maroon eye-spots.
- 4
Wing shape: atlas has the famous cobra-head triangular wing-tip; luna has long flowing pale tail streamers.
- 5
Caterpillar host plants: atlas larvae eat tropical broad-leaf trees; luna larvae feed on hickory, walnut, and birch.
- 6
Mouth parts: both species have NO functional mouth parts as adults — they live 4-7 days only as flying reproductive units, fed entirely by larval reserves.