Why are moths nocturnal when they could be awake during the day to get more light?
In: Biology
Because the birds that would eat them are mostly active during the day. Being active when your primary predators are not is a common survival strategy.
If they were awake during the day they would all fly into the sun and die!
Seriously though… moths don’t need light. Stereotypically they are attracted to light but that’s just navigation thing, calibrated to it being night to begin with. They are not like feeding off of light like photosynthesis or like humans get vitamin D from light.
Moths are flightless larva for most of their life to span. When they do finally develop wings it’s only for a short period of time and most of their energy goes towards finding a mate and laying eggs. moths navigate mostly by smell so light doesn’t really help them much. when they do need to eat there are plenty of plants that actually only bloom at night and require moths.
Moths are nocturnal because they just…are. The same way many other species are diurnal (awake during the day), it’s just a biological and evolutionary trait that exists in the DNA.
Moths are not obsessed with light. They are confused by it. Being nocturnal, they use the moon as a point of reference to navigate the world. Given how far away the moon is and how slowly it orbits the earth, it is a fairly static point of reference. When that light source is much closer, like…say…your porch light, it makes their navigational instincts go haywire. Hence why they swarm lights. It confuses the shit out of them and they don’t know what to do.
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