Hi Nancy

Many vividly colored insects do indeed signal with the bright colors either a toxic chemical or stinger.....

however I know of no adult moth nor butterfly here that one could not touch (however since such can be fragile I would refrain from handling any)

but there are indeed caterpillars that are irritating to be sure! the saddleback comes to mind...wow, what a punch it has!

As I learn and identify different species of insects I am sure to research this aspect of their biology as well.,,before directly and personally (and painfully) finding this out.

Thanks so much for coming back with the comment. I'm thinking you are saying NOT to handle this. A friend went to Virgina and came back with this pretty moth and put it in his tank with a cover mesh so that it doesnt get out. He said he hasnt touch it yet but I know I dont want to get sick or hurt nor him. We realy want to hold it. should we get rid of it or can we keep this and frame it when it die? Thanks again Nancy

You are in no danger from holding moths, at least not in this country. They have no stingers and no biting mouthparts. If you want to handle a large moth like this one, you can let it walk on your hands and very gently touch the thorax with your finger, but avoid touching the wings as the scales will rub off quite easily. Framing a moth is not as simple as caging it until it dies and putting it in a box. There is a long process and specialized equipment involved, which you can research online. If you keep a moth alive in a cage it is just going to beat all its pretty wing scales off, so it won't make a very good framed specimen anymore. Much better off holding them for a bit, taking a couple nice photos, and framing those.

a very nice response, thank you for elaborating more completely than did I.

I visited your postings of your photography.... exquisite images!