DISTRIBUTION: Antistathmoptera daltonae rectangulata flies in the Zambesi valley of Zimbabwe (Rolf Oberprieler) and in Mozambique (Thierry Bouyer), near the Rhodesia-Zambia border, and in southeast Zambia (Thierry Bouyer), Africa. Thierry Bouyer confirms it for southern Malawi. The moths occur in low-lying forest and are only on the wing normally after midnight. The subspecies rectangulata Pinhey (forewing length: 50-55mm) is smaller than nominate daltonae. The outer margin of the forewing is very convex and the the apex is narrowly produced. The body and wing colours of males are highly variable ranging from orange-yellow, deep orange brown, olive brown and red-brown to grey-brown. In orange or pinkish-red specimens the thorax may have grey markings. Antistathmoptera daltonae rectangulata, male, Quiterajo Reserve, Cabo Delgado Reserve, northeastern Mozambique, December 3, 2008, collected by Jean-Yves Rasplus with friends Nicolau Madogolele and Michel Martinez; (11°49'59"S - 40°21'36.64"E). It is possible that the specimen I have depicted above as A. d. rectangulata is an undescribed species, or it may be A. d. granti which is known from the Morogoro region of Tanzania. FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS: These moths seem to have a flight season from December-January til April, probably as a single brood. Larvae possibly feed on Cordyla pinnata. ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING: Females emit an airbourne pheromone and males track the scent with their antennae by flying in a zigzag pattern into the wind. EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE: Larval Food Plants It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile. Cordyla pinnata ....... ?? Bushmango/muTondo Return to Antistathmoptera genus Go to Index for African Saturniidae Go to Main Index for all Saturniidae The pronunciation of scientific names is troublesome for many. The "suggestion" at the top of the page is merely a suggestion. It is based on commonly accepted English pronunciation of Greek names and/or some fairly well accepted "rules" for latinized scientific names. The suggested pronunciations, on this page and on other pages, are primarily put forward to assist those who hear with internal ears as they read. There are many collectors from different countries whose intonations and accents would be different. Some of the early describers/namers chose genus and species names indicating some character of the insect, but more often, they simply chose names from Greek or Roman mythology or history. Those species names which end in "ensis" indicate a specimen locale, and those which end in "i", pronounced "eye", honour a contempory friend/collector/etc. According to Pinhey, 1972, "Antistathmoptera" means "wings not formed with a carpenter's chalk line", and this undoubtedly refers to the unusual shape of the wings. The species name, "daltonae" is honourific for a female railway worker, Mrs. Edith Dalton, of Tanga in northeastern Tanzania. The subspecies name, "rectangulata", probably refers to the right-angled hindwing apex.