Maltagorea ambahona

Maltagorea ambahona

Updated as per Saturnafrica Fascicule #15, Basquin, March, 2013; January 30, 2014; March 15, 2015

Maltagorea ambahona
mal-tuh-GOR-ee-uhMam-buh-HOH-nuh
Basquin 2013

Maltagorea ambahona male/female??, Massif d'Ankarata, Ambatolampy SP, Madagascar,
1900m, courtesy of Patrick Basquin.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY:

Superfamily: Bombycoidea Latreille, 1802
Family: Saturniidae Boisduval, [1837] 1834
Subfamily: Saturniinae Boisduval, [1837] 1834
Tribe: Urotini, Packard, 1902
Genus: Maltagorea, Bouyer, 1993

MIDI MUSIC

"African Midi Music"

ON.OFF

DISTRIBUTION:

Maltagorea ambahona (wingspan: males: 63-65mm; females: 69-75mm // forewing length: males: 38-40mm; females 45-50mm) flies in
Madagacar: Massif d'Ankarata, Ambatolampy S P, at elevations near 1900m.
This moth belongs in the rostaingi group.
Visit Maltagorea rostaingi Group Comparison Plate.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in February. There are probably additional flight months.
Maltagorea ambahona larval hosts are unknown, but many Maltagorea species utilize the tapia tree as a larval host.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females emit an airbourne pheromone at night and males track the scent with their antennae by flying in a zigzag pattern into the wind.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS 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.

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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 Maltagorea is a contraction of the Malagassy branch of the Tagoropsis / Pseudantherea group.
Mal from Malagassy Republic (Madagascar);
tago from Tagoropsis:
rea from Pseudantherea

The species name ambahona is indicative of presence on the massif d'Ankarata which is commonly known as ambahona.

Maltagorea ambahona HT male, Massif d'Ankarata, Ambatolampy S P, Madagascar,
63mm, February 28, 2003, 1900m, on my home computer only.

Maltagorea ambahona HT male (verso), Massif d'Ankarata, Ambatolampy S P, Madagascar,
63mm, February 28, 2003, 1900, on my home computer only.