Video: Siberia's Bloodsucking Vampire Moths
Posted on September 25, 2011
A previously undocumented population of bloodsucking moths was discovered in Siberia in 2007. The moth species, Calyptra thalictri, was thought to only feed on fruit, but scientists found that when the Russian moths were offered human fingers the moths inserted their hook-and-barb-lined tongues and began sucking blood. The months may suck the blood of humans and other mammals in order to be able to deliver a sexual gift to females. In the video, one of the scientists letting the moth have its way with her finger says, "It's starting to hurt." Some of the moths suck for as long twenty minutes - a moth would likely be swatted long before then outside of the lab. Take a look:
EOL has an entry on Calyptra canadensis, with some pictures, here.