HELP - Has my Elephant Hawk Moth Chrysalis died?

Frisky · #1 (**permalink**) 10-07-2010, 04:23 PM

Since end of August last year I have kept 2 Elephant Hawk Moth Chrysalis. Everything was going well up until about 6 weeks ago when they suddenly stopped twitching. Are they dead? There is no movement at all. Any help is much appreciated as I love these little fellows (Harold and Dougal) so much and have seen them transfer from caterpillar to chrysalis and kept an eye on them and nurtured them for all these months.

phoenixslayer23 · #2 (**permalink**) 09-01-2012, 10:39 PM

hi me and my partner are in the same position as you and i was wondering. did they hatch at all ??

Frisky · #3 (**permalink**) 10-01-2012, 07:22 AM

Unfortunately they did not hatch and I think the problem was that they got too hot. I kept them in the cool, in the garage, but one day in Summer, the garage door was open and the sun got to where they were. I didn't realise this until it was too late.
They are generally supposed to hatch around July (at the latest), I believe so, I would imagine yours are probably dead unfortunately - unless of course you got them this Summer - in which case it is too early.
It appears to be a hard process to keep these chrysalis and in future I shall leave them in the garden.
Sorry I couldn't help more :-(

phoenixslayer23 · #4 (**permalink**) 10-01-2012, 02:27 PM

you have been a big help help thank you very much.
we got them as the chrysalis in september and at first they were moving but then they all of a sudden stopped

Matt Smith · #5 (**permalink**) 10-01-2012, 04:05 PM

The main problem with keeping chrysalises that pupate underground is dehydration. Having reared lots of UK hawkmoths, I have found the best way to overwinter them is in an unheated shed. Keep the chrysalises in a sealed box on a layer of damp - but not soaking - peat or sand. Do not stand the box in direct sunlight. A quick peek and lift of the lid once every couple of weeks will be enough to provide enough oxygen. Give them a very light spray of water once a month or so, again, you are not looking to flood the container, just keep the peat moist and keep the humidity up.

Bring their box in about a month before they are due to hatch, take the lid off and put thit in a cage with some sticks so that the emerging moth can climb up and expand its wings. Spray lightly every day to keep the peat moist untill they emerge.

Jim Ford · #6 (**permalink**) 10-01-2012, 04:38 PM

When I raised one I kept the chrysalis in peat, in a jar on the kitchen windowsill (receiving no direct sunlight). This meant that it was 'under my eye' every time I did the washing up, and if it looked dryish I'd give it a spray with water. It also meant that I didn't miss it's subsequence emergence.

Jim

Frisky · #7 (**permalink**) 11-01-2012, 09:22 AM

If it was only September you got them, they might have gone 'dormant' so don't give up yet. I remember mine going really dark when they had died and they felt light and hollow, not heavy as they did before.
Maybe wait until a warm day and hold them for a while in the sunshine and see if they twitch. If they do, they are alive and follow the suggestions that have been given above.
It would appear they are not as easy to keep as people think. My children have kept and successfully 'raised' lots of the more common moth variety, but their 'emerging' time was only weeks compared to 9ish months of the Elephant Hawk Moth. I cried when I realised mine had died and that was mainly because I felt i'd let them down.
Now, only if it were 100% necessary would I keep another. Last time they were on a fuschia plant and in the area they were in, a large frog lived. Whilst I love the frog and the way he keeps the garden free of slugs, I felt he would eat these catapillars, now i'm not so sure. I think leaving it to nature is best if possible :-)