DISTRIBUTION:

Lobobunaea niepelti flies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire), Africa.

Rolf Oberprieler offers the identification of L. niepelti for the moth depicted above. He is not sure 100% sure of his "diagnosis".

Thierry Bouyer indicates it is Lobobunaea rosea, and Thierry indicates the two species are quite distinct when one examimes a series.

Thierry also indicates that Bunaea reginae is the same as L. niepelti.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Lobobunaea niepelti moths are on the wing in October and possibly in other months.

Larval hosts are unknown.

Bunaea reginae = L. niepelti female, Stanleyville, DRC, October,
Lepidoptera Types of the Royal Museum for Central Africa

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Lobobunaea niepelti females attract males with an airbourne pheromone.

Bunaea reginae = L. niepelti female (verso) , Stanleyville, DRC, October,
Lepidoptera Types of the Royal Museum for Central Africa

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Females deposit eggs at night on hostplant foliage. Larvae feed and mature in approximately six weeks. At maturity, the larvae leave the host plant to pupate in subterranean chambers.

Larval Food Plants

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae. 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.

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.

The genus name Lobobunaea, is from the Greek and refers to a lobed hill-dweller. The genus specimen type is Lobobunaea phaedusa, males of which have a valve with a subapical lobe. The hindwings are also lobed at the anal angle. It may also be a montane species.

The species name niepelti is honourific for Niepelt, a contempory of Strand.

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