Moths
Emperor Gum Moth, Opodiphthera eucalypti
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera

A Burnet Moth (Zygaena sp.), a daytime flyer. This one is getting nectar from a thistle (and pollinating it) in Estonia.

Mating pair of Laothoe populi, or Poplar Hawk-moths. showing two different colour variants

Caterpillars of the spongy moth (Lymantria dispar dispar) are colourful pests which feed on the leaves of many trees.

Moths are insects of the order Lepidoptera. They are closely related to butterflies, which evolved from them. They also have wings, just like butterflies. Most species of moths are active only at night. They can be told apart from butterflies in several ways. Moth antenna look like little feathers, and their wings are held flat on their backs when they are not flying.

Most Lepidoptera are moths. There are thought to be about 160,000 species of moths (nearly ten times the number of species of butterflies). Thousands of species are still to be described. Most moths are tiny: they are called micromoths or microlepidoptera. The large moths are much better known, but fewer. Most species of moths are nocturnal, but not all. There are crepuscular and diurnal species.