my furry little friend

Here is the interesting back story from wikipedia on this 4″ wide lady wtih the heft of a bat:

“The noctuid moth Ascalapha odorata bears the common name Black Witch. It is considered a harbinger of death in Mexican and Caribbean folklore. In Spanish it is known as “Mariposa de la muerte”

But the propagation of this myth across the islands reveals a certain adaptation to local culture… or whatever you might call the equivalent in Texas… =)

… death only occurs if the moth flies in and visits all four corners of one’s house (in Mesoamerica, from the prehispanic era until the present time, moths have been associated with death and the number four).

In Jamaica, under the name duppy bat, the moth is seen as the embodiment of a lost soul or a soul not at rest. In Jamaican English, the word duppy is associated with malevolent spirits returning to inflict harm upon the living

In Hawaii, Black Witch mythology, though associated with death, has a happier note in that if a loved one has just died, the moth is an embodiment of the person’s soul returning to say goodbye. On Cat Island, Bahamas, where they are locally known as Money Moths or Moneybats, the legend is that if they land on you, you will come into money, and similarly, in South Texas, if a Black Witch lands above your door and stays there for a while you will supposedly win the lottery.”

I better bring her back with me to Texas….