Promethea moth

[ pruh-mee-thee-uh ]

noun

1. a silkworm moth, Callosamia promethea, having reddish-brown wings, each with a border of white or yellow, the larvae of which feed on spicebush and other lauraceous plants.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Promethea moth¹

1900–05, Americanism; < New Latin, feminine of Latin Prometheus Prometheus

Example Sentences

In June of 1911, close six o'clock in the evening, I sat on the front veranda of the Cabin, in company with my family, and watched three moths sail past us and around the corner, before I remembered that on the screen of the music-room window to the east there was a solitary female Promethea moth, that day emerged from a cocoon sent me by Professor Rowley.

From Project Gutenberg