Make a Donation
Free Gift!
All donations of 100 dollars or more qualify for a free gift! Not only will you receive a free 6-month subscription to the Cecropian Club, but also, please enjoy one of our large silk moths in a mounted display frame, pinned in a neutral pose, just as they appear in the wild! Donations of 500 dollars or more qualify for an additional gift of a one of a kind, hand-made fiber art, Cecropian Club key chain! This is our way of showing our sincere gratitude for your support of native North American silk moths.
What is Cecropian?
Cecropian’s goal is to support local native silk moth populations with our breeding and release programs. All of our moths are sourced from local wildlife habitats or through APHIS permitted moth distributors within the United States. Cecropian works directly with the wildlife conservation trusties to obtain permission to monitor and capture individuals for study and breeding. Our selective breeding focuses on strengthening survival traits that pertain to the moths native range. All of our release programs are timed with local moth flight windows to maximize the success of the wild breeding pairs.
Why is this project important?
Wild North American silk moth population research is sporadic and incomplete currently. For many silk moth species, little to no information is known about their life stages, population density/range, or even differentiation between possible subspecies. These data gaps are the reason some endangered species are still misclassified as stable. Without meaningful data we can’t determine if a moth population is in decline. By regularly conducting moth observation events throughout the flight season, we collect hard data from sightings and specimen collection. Over time, we will be able to observe trends in population, average wing span, preferred host plants, flight time, and so much more.
By supporting Cecropian, you will have a direct effect on our ability to support these amazing insects. All of our midnight moth observation events are conducted and funded solely by Cecropian’s owner. These data collection events need days of preparation and require custom made field equipment to be set up miles into the woods in the pitch black. The data collection initiative is a vital part of what motivates us. One-hundred percent of the donations to Cecropian are used to fund the advancement of our breeding and data collection projects by helping offset the costs of:
materials for rearing larva,
travel costs of collecting host plant material,
equipment for midnight observation events,
laboratory disposables.