Saturniidae of Morocco

Saturnia pyri, Fes-Boulemane, northeastern Morocco,
April 17, 2009, courtesy of Henk Smit, Data obtained from Observado.org

Morocco has a Mediterranean on the northern side of the mountains (West of Atlas), but the climate becomes more extreme towards the interior regions. Forests cover only about 12% of the land.

In the Atlas Mountains (Middle Atlas), there are several different climates: Mediterranean (with some more humid and fresher variants), Maritime Temperate (with some humid and fresher variants too) that allow different species of oaks, moss carpets, junipers, atlantic cedars and many other plants, to form extensive and very rich humid cloud forests. In the highest peaks a different climate may occur.

On the other side of Atlas mountains (East Atlas), the climate changes due to the barrier/shelter effect of the mountainous system, turning it very dry and extremely warm during the summer (that can last several months), especially on the lowlands and on the valleys facing the Sahara Desert. The big Sahara begins here, and the climate in this region is desert.

The following three Saturniidae species are expected in Morocco, and they would be found along the northern coast.

Saturnia atlantica
Saturnia pavonia josephinae
Saturnia pyri

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