Zertillion fauna: Heat Haze Mothling

The heat Haze moth, or mothling, is one of few insects that survive the colds of Zertillion.
It has gotten its name as it is most commonly found hitch-hiking on the Heat Haze Narrow-wing greyanimebeast.deviantart.com/…

It will bury itself into the larger animals feathers to keep warm, and only comes off on occasion.
During the short but slightly warmer summer they fly off to breed and fatten up on whatever edible they can find, fruits and berries being the favorite.
Then, as it gets colder again they will seek back to the warm bodies of the Narrow-wings and will feed on its food scraps.
They even lay eggs into the larger animals feathers, though only a couple eggs every year.
They go through the normal stages; egg, larvae, cocoon then adult.
The larvae feeding on the feathers around it, though they rarely do enough damage to make bald spots.

They live for several years and are mellow by nature, making them very popular to moth and insect enthusiast`s like Hy`s caretaker Ragnar, who has managed to find a couple on the black market.
However, as the Heat haze Narrow-wing they live on are now rare, often illegally hunted and exported, the moth suffers as well. It can not survive the cold without its warm host.

© L.I.J