Pselaphelia flavivitta
sel-uh-FEEL-ee-uhmmflagh-vih-VIHT-tuh
(Walker, 1862) (Antheroea [sic!])

Pselaphelia flavivitta moth courtesy of Jacolene van der Vyver..

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: Pselaphelia, Aurivillius, 1904

MIDI MUSIC "Moon River" copyright C. Odenkirk MIDI CITY ON.OFF <bgsound src="moon.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION:

The Leaf Emperor, Pselaphelia flavivitta (wingspan: 75-95mm), flies in South Africa (below 1200m), Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Thierry Bouyer, 1999, equates this species with dentifera (Maassen & Weyding, 1885) (Copaxa) and with conspersa (Aurivillius, 1893) (Tagoropsis).

Cooper and Cooper identify form 'dentifera' from Mocambique as the common cream-coloured, with brownish markings, female of Pselaphelia flavivitta, and report this colour pattern emerges from the same cluster of eggs producing the yellow form.

Pselaphelia flavivitta male, Zitundo, Maputo Region, Mozambique,
76mm, January 19, 2008, courtesy of Andrea Sciarretta,
tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

Visit Pselaphelia Comparison Plate for identification purposes.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

In South Africa moths are on the wing from September until March and then again in May, suggesting two to four broods annually.

Jacolene Meyer sends an image of a specimen taken on November 19, 2008.

Pselaphelia flavivitta male, Tzaneen, Limpopo, South Africa,
November 19, 2008, broederstroomdrift area, courtesy of Jacolene Meyer.

The Pselaphelia flavivitta caterpillar shows a preference for Afromomum, Cape Mahogany (Trichilia emetica), Forest Mahogany (Trichilia dregeana) and Cape Mahogany (Trichilia lineata).

ECLOSION:

Adults eclose at night from pupae amongst the leaf litter.

SCENTING AND MATING:

Pselaphelia flavivitta females emit an airbourne pheromone and males use their highly developed antennae to track the scent plume at night to locate the calling females.

EGGS, CATERPILLARS AND PUPAE:

Mature larvae at 55mm look like green slugs with a pointed-head area and a widened thoracic-upper abdominal area which tapers to a pointed posterior end.

Mature larvae leave the host plant to pupate in leaf litter. The pupa has a long sharp cremaster and is a well-camougflaged, mottled brown.

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.

Afromomum Trichilia dregeana Trichilia emetica....... Trichilia lineata Trichilia martiana Trichilia roka

Afromomum Forest Mahogany Cape Mahogany Cape Mahogany Cape Mahogany Cape Mahogany

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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 word Pselaphelia means 'seek for the sun', probably alluding to the yellow ground colour.

The species name, 'flavivitta', probably refers to the yellow banding on the wings (Pinhey).

Pselaphelia flavivitta brown female, Cooper and Cooper, my home computer only.

Pselaphelia flavivitta larva, Cooper and Cooper, my home computer only.

Pselaphelia flavivitta pupa, Cooper and Cooper, my home computer only.