Under normal weather conditions, the pupal phase can take around 2 weeks.
The days spent in the pupal phase depend on environmental conditions. If you've ever seen a Luna moth cocoon you may have felt movement inside the cocoon. This is the most active stage of a Luna moth in its entire life cycle. The pupal phase begins after the 5th instar, in which the larvae begins to spin a cocoon made of thin single-stranded silk. Larvae stay on the same tree where they hatched until it is time to descend to the ground to make a cocoon, or pupate. With each molt, they leave their old exoskeleton behind which they may consume. After each instar a small amount of silk is placed on a major vein of the leaf. Depending upon the availability of food and climate, each instar may take anywhere between 4 to 10 days. Which is why the larvae keep on eating without taking a break. The energy needed during the adult stage is stored in the form of fat during the larval stage. The adult Luna moth does not have a mouth and so it does not eat anything during the 10 days that it lives. The larval stage can be considered the most important part of the Luna moth’s entire life. The larva that emerge from eggs go through 5 instars before they're ready to pupate-an instar is the phase between two periods of molting in the development of an insect larva or other invertebrate animal. Egg laying starts the evening after mating is completed and goes on for several days.
It all starts with an egg that hatches after 10 to 12 days-females lay between 200 & 400 eggs, singly or in small groups, on the underside of leaves of tree species preferred by the larvae. Similar to other members of the giant silkworm moth family, Luna moths undergo 4 stages of metamorphosis: Egg, Larva, Pupa, & Moth. These magnificent creatures can live less than 10 days as a winged adult after taking up to 12 months for metamorphosis. Luna moths belong to the family of giant silkworm moths called Saturniidae. With their beautiful bright green wings and super short lifespans, they're somewhat of a mystery.
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