Holocerina prosti
Updated as per personal communication with Rodolphe Rougerie, December 15, 2005
Updated as per personal communication with Alain Coache, Senegal; June 3, 2015

Holocerina prosti
hol-os-ser-EE-nuhMPROST-eye
Rougeot, 1978

Holocerina prosti spring male, courtesy of Rodolphe Rougerie.

Holocerina prosti?? male, cf, Senegal,
courtesy of Alain Coache, tentative id by Thierry Bouyer,

TAXONOMY:

Superfamily: Bombycoidea Latreille, 1802
Family: Saturniidae Boisduval, [1837] 1834
Subfamily: Saturniinae Boisduval, [1837] 1834
Tribe: Micragonini Cockerell in Packard, 1914 (1902)
Genus: Holocerina, Pinhey, 1956

MIDI MUSIC

"Moon River"
copyright C. Odenkirk

ON.OFF
<bgsound src="moon.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION:

Holocerina prosti (wingspan: males: 40-50mm; females: 65mm) flies in
western Burkina Faso, (Rodolphe Rougerie) Africa. It is probably also found in
northeastern Ivory Coast and
Ghana, and
possibly from Senegal (AC) to
Cameroon.

Holocerina prosti male, Bold

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Holocerina prosti have two annual flights in Burkina Faso: May-June and again in October. Males from the October flight are much darker than those from the spring flight. Larval hosts are unknown.

Holocerina prosti fall male, courtesy of Rodolphe Rougerie.

Holocerina prosti female, Bold

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females call in the males with an airbourne pheromone, which is detected and tracked in flight via the males' highly developed antennae. Males seem most active at lights between 9:00 pm and 10:00 pm so that is likely the calling time of the females.

Holocerina prosti female, courtesy of Rodolphe Rougerie.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

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.

Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page.

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.

Holocerina is a modification of the Greek 'Holocera' which means entirely waxy.

The species name, 'prosti', is honourific for Prost.