I saw this guy today while watering the plants. He's a tiger moth of some sort, but I don't know enough nor did I see enough of him to really make a definitive identification. He could be a Figured, Ornate, Virgin or Mexican Tiger Moth. I never got a chance to see his abdomen or his hind wings. I brought the camera inside to download the pictures and when I went back, he was gone.
The sites I used to look him up said that three were more likely to be found in the Western part of the US. Being in North Central Texas, I have to guess based on current findings that it might be the Figured Tiger Moth. It's the only one I've seen reported in Texas at any of these sites.
I'll probably be interested enough to continue looking into this. I found info here and here. I also went to the local library to pick up some books on butterflies and moths. See kids? You CAN find neat stuff at the library!
