Hickories host many beautiful moths and butterflies. The most spectacular is the hickory horned devil, the larva of Citheronia regalis, the royal walnut moth. A full-grown larva often exceeds 12 centimeters (nearly 5 inches) in length and sports 10 large horns just behind the head. Though formidable looking, the caterpillar is harmless. It is most often encountered when it leaves its host and wanders about in search of a pupation site that it excavates in an underground chamber. The moth that emerges the following summer, the royal walnut moth, is one of the largest and most beautiful
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It is declining throughout its range and is already extinct in New England.
