A Madagascan Sunset Moth Array by artist, naturalist and bestselling author Christopher Marley, featuring eight extraordinary specimens. Displaying spectacular iridescent wings, this day-flying moth of the family Uraniidae is considered one of the most impressive and appealing-looking of all the world’s butterflies and moths. Famous internationally, it is featured in most coffee table books on the order Lepidoptera and is much sought after by collectors. Sunset Moths are black with iridescent red, blue and green markings, and, as occurred when it was first recorded in 1773, are often mistaken for butterflies. There is a fringe of white scales on the wing edges, wider on the hindwings. The moth has six tails, very often lost or damaged during its life. Pattern variations are common. Unlike in many other moths, its wing color does not come from pigments, but rather originates from coherent scattering and interference of light by the microstructure of the ribbon-like scales covering the moth's wings. These structural characteristics make this species a subject of research in optical science. ; Artist: Christopher Marley ; Country of Origin: Madagascar ; Issued: 2015

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