Hi All,
Hope all of you had a happy Easter, and, for those of you in the U.S., hope you are surviving the horrendous weather that has been hammering the country.
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For new members, it is recommended you check the newsetters periodically rather than just wait for the once a month mailout. I often post special notices in the newsletters, usually regarding short notice special availability items.
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I am now taking orders for eggs.
Take advantage of the great discounts on many species via the link at http://www.insectcompany.com/silkmoth/eggform2007.htm for what I hope will be a useful printable order form. These discount prices will be in effect for orders placed before the end of May.
I am very interested in finding a reliable source for Hyalophora euryalus and Eupackardia calleta livestock: eggs and cocoons (Both are now anticipated as eggs).
If you would like to become an egg subcontractor for either of those species, please contact me. I would also be interested in an annual bulk purchase of at least one hundred overwintering cocoons of each species for a single shipment to New Hampshire.
Saturnia walterorum and Hyalophora kasloensis are now also anticipated as eggs.
I would like to expand the offerings of livestock of U.S. Saturniidae and am interested in Automeris species from the southern U.S. as well as Rothschildia from Texas and Arizona as well as Hyalophora columbia gloveri from the western United States. If you would like to be an egg subcontractor or can provide overwintering cocoons in bulk, please contact me. There is a special request for livestock (eggs or cocoons) of Automeris zephyria (dr) from New Mexico and/or western Texas.
Samia cynthia eggs may also be available at $11.00/dozen; $15.00/two dozen; $19.00/three dozen. Members can indicate they want them if they become available and members can pay after receipt of eggs.
Payment after receipt of eggs will aslo apply to any of the less commonly offered species, including Arizona species, should they become available. Twenty-two members received Arizona Saturniidae eggs last August, and all paid after receipt of eggs.
As of April 3, six members have had luna eggs shipped to them and two individuals have had securifera eggs shipped to them. More securifera and luna wil be shipped over next few days. Cecropia are also flying in southern Alabama.
Dirk Bayer, who is doing the shipping of these early eggs, has offered a very interesting observation. Dirk reared several broods of Callosamia securifera last season. He writes of this year's securifera eclosions/pairings which took place April 1-2, "One of the female securifera hatched from last years 2nd brood cocoons; four of the females hatched from the 3rd brood cocoons and one female hatched from the 4th brood cocoons. I'm glad I saved the cocoons that didn't hatch last year. This may be a normal occurance for this species? Joel sent me six angulifera cocoons last July, I saved the two that didn't hatch, and they hatched last week a male + four days later a female. Unfortunately she didn't attract any males. The third brood of securifera may be the main overwintering brood and the 4th only surviving a mild winter or not at all as in my case last year."
Basically, most of Dirk's securifera cocoons were emerging two to three weeks after spinup, but some from broods two, three and four did not emerge with their siblings despite the same cocoon treatment and rearing conditions. For some reason these pupae went into a prolonged diapause. Development seemed to be triggered by onset of longer hours of daylight after a decline in hours of daylight (overwintering).
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The movement of the WLSS has gone rather smoothly, and I have entered a contract with 1 & 1 Internet to rent webspace from them. I have set up a restricted access, requiring a login name and password, for the files on the newest 1 & 1 site. Most of you currently have access (without login requirements) on space provided by Clive Pratt of insectnet.com. I will maintain the site on the space provided by Clive for at least another year, but will eventually move all private membership access to the 1 & 1 space.
Please submit, at your leisure, a username and password that will be easy for you to remember. Both have to be at least seven characters (which can be letters and/or numbers) long. No spaces are allowed.
An example might be:
Username: Spiderman
Password: stickyweb
There are close to six hundred members now, and I do not always recognize people just by first name or email, so please indicate your full name when sending email correspondence.
Gradually I will be moving everyone to the 1 & 1 login space.
I will also be maintaining another WLSS backup on space I rent from Bizland. If one locale goes down or has to be terminated for some reason (sudden uncalled for rise in rental fee), the other will be ready for a smooth transition.
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Derek Bridgehouse has sent an interesting Hyalophora columbia gloveri aberration. There are no forewing sell markings. Derek has also sent what he believes are natural hybrids of Hyalophora columbia gloveri with either Hyalophora euryalus or Hyalophora kasloensis from Pincher Creek, Alberta.
Also included in his submissions is a nice trio of H. c. gloveri female, H. c. columbia and the resulatant hybrid between the two.
Images are posted in the Aberration section and in the Hybrid section.
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Johnny Marchant has sent nice images with wingspans of Antheraea compta, Caligula zulieka, Arsenura thomsoni, Antheraeopsis assamensis, Cirina forda, Coscinocera rothschildi, Cosinocra eurystheus, Coscinocera anteus, Gonimbrasia rectiliniata, Nudaurelia anthinoides, Nudaurelia wahlbergii, Opodidipthera rhythmica, Rhodinia fugax diana, Rothschildia erycina mexicana, Maltagorea fusicolor, Ubaenea fullerboriana.
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Chuck Vaughn, in California, April 5, has Hyalophora euryalus eggs available. The price is $12 per dozen and $6 for each additional dozen. Add $2 for foreign shipment. I prefer PayPal to speed shipment. Use aa6g@aa6g.org to find me at PayPal.
I expect about 200 eggs from the mating I have this morning and I have at least another half dozen females yet to eclose so I should have eggs for a couple of weeks. I know this is early for most of the country but you can't change nature!
All correspondence should be with Chuck at aa6g@wildblue.net
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Carlos Mielke has just sent me images of spread Adeloneivaia minuta male and female which were not previously depictedon the WLSS. Carlos has also sent a number of corrections. They have been made already on the site, except for the updates on genera pages, whose updates will follow shortly.
Adelowalkeria plateata - the one by Simon is ok, the other on the top
is torresi.
Adelowalkeria torresi - that one by Entomoservice is plateata
Almeidella almeidai - the one is corrupta
Almeidella approximans - it does not accur in Peru, only in the Atlantic slope
Arsenura delormei - photo by me is albopicta and by Kelly Price is armida.
Arsenura thomsoni - the figures shows typical species, A. thomsoni lemairei was
described by Racheli & Racheli, 1998
Cerodirphia mielkei Lemaire, 2002 - lacks on the list (resembles C. zikani)
Cicia crocata - specimen by Izersky is not a Cicia, I can not recognize that.
Cicia norape Becker, 2001 - lacks on the list
Copaxa canella - male and female are actually Copaxa flavina flavina, also
joinvillea f. vitellina is same as flavobrunnea (Wolfe and me are, right now,
describing the joinvillea female and mentioning about these misidentifications
concerning on canella group).
Copaxa joinvillea - both males are flavobrunnea.
These corrections are much appreciated.
On April 9 Carlos sent me another round of corrections:
Hidripa taglia - all paranensis, there is no taglia on this page
Hyperchiria schmiti Meister & Knorke, 2004 - lacks on the site
Leucanella gibbosa - pair from Wenczel is viridescens, there is no gibbosa on this page
Procitheronia principalis - by Izersky is purpurea, also the specimen figured without author
(purpurea)
Pseudautomeris hubneri - first female is coronis, male is coronis, female by Wenczel is subcoronis. P. hubneri has the dorsal abdomen black (unique in the genus)
Pseudautomeris erubescens - specimen by Eric is luteata
Schausiella janeira - hard to identilfy, it is not janeira, maybe polybia or longispina
Scolesa leucantha - it is S. viettei. There is no leucantha
Hylesia pseudomoronensis Camargo, 2007 lacks in the site (just published)
I have made the corrections on the site. Those whose moths haveben corrected should take note.
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Stefan Naumann has just sent me a series of descriptive papers (authored or co-authored by himself), many with images of species not previously depicted on the WLSS. He has also sent a complete list of all his publications. I have posted same. It will take some time to add all the new images and data. Many thanks to Dr. Naumann for providing these papers.
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It is very useful to me to have flight dates and location to county level from all locales for all species, even still in the United States. Please send data for inclusion on webpages for Saturniidae (worldwide), Sphingidae (Americas only) and Catocala.
I just (March 16) received a sighting report with image of a female Hyalophora euryalus from Tehama County, California.
Lunas are flying (March 16) in Baldwin County, Alabama.
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April Flaherty has recently contacted me and will shortly become a member of the WLSS. She is "an artist, a member of The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, American Society of Botanical Artists, and a teacher at the New York Botanical Gardens, in Bronx, New York."
She writes, "This fall, I will be teaching a class in drawing caterpillars, a first for the Garden!"
Many of you may be interested in the class and in the first two shows of the year.
"The first is Butterflies, Moths and Pollinating Insects of the East Coast. Forty-two artists of the Greater New York chapter of The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators have contributed their talents to bring you an introduction to the life cycles of some of our favorite butterflies and moths. The goal of this project was to illustrate as many life cycles as possible, from egg, to caterpillar, to pupa, to final Lepidoptera, as well as the food source for the caterpillar, and the nectar source for the butterfly. Each artist chose one species to represent, so each and every piece is unique not only in content, but in subject and style.
"The opening reception for this show is May 19th, from 1-5 p.m. at the Highstead Arboretum in Redding, Connecticut. It will run until June 22nd.
"The second show is at Gallery Yellow, in Cross River, New York. It is a show which features the teachers and exceptional students from the New York Botanical Garden’s Art and Illustration program.
"The opening reception for this show is May 19th, from 5-8 p.m. and will run through July 19th. More info can be found at www.galleryyellow.com."
One of April's prints is now on site at April Flaherty.
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Wayne Whaley has sent a very nice image of a live male and larvae of Gonimbrasia (Nudaurelia) krucki. ID confirmed by Thierry Bouyer. March 29, Wayne has a pair in copula.
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Sebastian Brandner has just returned from a trip to Central Province, Cameroon. He reports he has taken many Saturniidae specimens from Mont Kala about 60 km west of Yaounde. He has sent an image of a papered female Micragone martinae, the first female of this species that he has seen in 18 years of collecting. Images of the spread moth will be forthcoming.
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Russell Witkop has sent images of live Hemileuca hualapai adults and has some egg rings available.
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Your individualized WLSS homepage has been updated to include many shortcuts to United States State checklists and country checklists for Central and South America.
Two new sections are also being added:
A new Coleoptera (Beetles) page is being created. This page will be resricted to those members of WLSS who have an interest in Coleoptera (Beetles) and who are willing to have their email addresses posted there for correspondence, limited to the Coleoptera family.
This list will not be available through any search engines and will not be linked by me from any of my websites. Instead, those members who register (no charge) will be directed to an unlisted URL.
Members whose names appear on this list have agreed to use the contact information solely for the purpose of furthering their interests in Coleoptera.
Members have also agreed that they will neither post this list/page nor divulge its contents nor share its contents with others.
To have your name and email contact information posted on the Coleoptera page, send email to Bill Oehlke, indicating you agree to terms above.
Much time has been spent and continues to be spent creating refined checklists. Central and South American state, provincial, regional, departmental, etc., checklists have been created for Arsenurinae and Ceratocampinae, are partially completed for Attacinae (Attacini and Saturniini), and eventually will be completed for Hemileucinae. They will be continuously updated as new information arrives.
The lists are intended as id (pictoral-eventually) checklists for people with advanced collections. This is probably the most extensive project on the WLSS with regard to the amount of time I have devoted to it and will continue to devote to it.
Those members who are interested in these checklists and have sent extensive data/images will have access via email from Bill Oehlke.
The pages will not be linked from this site. In exchange for access, I would like continued submission of data (wingspans, capture dates, specific locations, images, foodplants). Contact me directly for access.
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Ludia orinoptena female, recto and verso, from Elone, Cameroon has been posted courtesy of Sebastian Brandner.
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Viktor Suter has sent very nice images of live Dirphiopsis epiolina female and larva, and Dryocampa rubicunda male, female and larva.
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Preston Murphy has just sent beautiful images of live moths with full collecting/sighting data (date, precise location, elevation, clock time) from Malaysia. Visit Antheraea larissa ridlyi, Lemaireia loepoides, Loepa sikkima javanica, Actias maenas diana and Archaeoattacus edwardsi.
I have also updated the Malaysia checklist page.
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Uwe Kauz reports great success rearing Eacles imperialis anchicayensis from Ecuador on privet. He has sent great images of a chuncky 4.75 inch long larva as well as a green form larva.
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Horst Kach has sent beautiful images of live Erythromeris obscurior, Copaxa orientalis, Leucanella linx adults from Ecuador as well as third and forth instar Eacles ormandei niepelti from Durango, Esmeraldas, Ecuador and Titaea tamerlan nobilis eggs and third instar larvae.
He reports taking a female Leucanella flammans so we hope he has success with rearing this species and can provide images of the larvae.
On April 1 Horst sent numerous images of spread specimens, male and female, recto and verso with collecting dates and locations in Ecuador: Eacles masoni fulvaster, Eacles masoni tyrannus, Eacles ormondei niepelti, Eacles ormondei peruviana, Eacles penelope, and third instar Dysdaemonia boreas larvae and fifth instar Eacles ormondei niepelti larva.
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Dr. Anatolij Kulak of Belarus has sent some beautiful images of live moths and/or larvae of Epiphora mythimnia, Epiphora bauhiniae, Pseudobunaea irius, Actias dubernardi, Gyanisa maja, Gonimbrasia zambesina and a hybrid of E. mythimnia and E. bauhiniae.
I will post them all shortly.
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Montreal Insect Show 2007
October 20th-21 2007, from 9 am to 5 pm
College de Maisonneuve, 3800 Sherbrooke East, Montreal
(Located one corner from the Olympic Stadium and the Montreal Insectarium)
Contact Yves-Pascal Dion at info@insect-trade.com
www.insect-trade.com
Yves-Pascal Dion has just sent me a series of Bunaeopsis images from Burkina Faso. Many of the species he has sent are listed by Thierry Bouyer in his 1999 Catalogue of African Saturniidae as "incertae sedis" and Thierry has had a look at the specimens and feels they may all be variations of the same species. Much work needs to be done on the Saturniidae, especially Bunaeopsis from Burkina Faso. None-the-less I have posted images to Bunaeopsis dido, elisa, fenestricula and nigericola files which I will add to the Bunaeopsis genus list as "incertae sedis."
Yves-Pascal also sends images of male and female Lobobunaea phaeax which Thierry equates with Lobobunaea christyi resnoctuae. I will shortly update the Lobobunaea genus file to include all the synonyms listed by Thierry.
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Sphingidae Express
I am going to consider arranging for shipping of Sphingidae eggs again to U.S. destinations from within U.S., and I have at least one subcontractor interested who can likely supply the following: Sphinx chersis, Sphinx drupiferarum, Sphinx kalmiae, Patchysphinx modesta, Paonias myops, Smerinthus cerisyi, all from Michigan, all at $12.00/dozen, $16.00/two dozen; $20.00/three dozen. Drupiferarum and kalmiae larvae get quite large and are very beautiful.
From Prince Edward Island I can probably ship Sphinx poecila, Pachysphinx modesta, Paonias excaecata, Smerinthus cerisyi, but again the expensive Express postage would come into play. It is not difficult to get the Sphingidae to pupate without a soil mix.
Hubert Mayer has sent images of spread Sphingidae specimens with complete collecting data: Xylophanes rhodotus, Protambulyx ockendeni, Manduca neglecta.
The collecting data is extremely useful for the current project of completing more refined checklists. Several ranges have been extended, especially for Pasco, Peru.
Ruth Ann Patton has just (March 17) sent me images of Arctonotus lucidus taken near her home Klamath Falls, Oregon. See Klamath County page.
Paul Johnson reports flights of Proserpinus clarkiae, Hyles lineata and a Euproserpinus species in San Benito County, California.
Ruby Rodriguez of Puerto Rico sent nice images of Pseudosphinx tetrio larvae feeding on her Plumeria cujete.
Val Mansfield sent a very nice image of live Ceratomia hageni moths (March 21) from Ennis (Ellis County), Texas. His young Labrador Retriever apparently ate one of the moths and had to be hospitalized due to a severe reaction.
Sphingidae have been and still are flying in the southern U.S. and I have recently put together adult thumbnail checklists for Caddo Parish, Louisiana at http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/laCaddosph.htm and larval thumbnails for Lee County, Florida at http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/flLeesph5l.htm.
Apparently the moths have been flying since January-February as mature larval images have arrived. A green fourth instar Xylophanes tersa larva had me fooled at first due to very pale lateral "eyepots" and larval and adult thumbnail checklists for Ontario, Canada, at
http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/onOntariosph.htm
and
http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/onOntariosphlar.htm.
The Ontario, Canada, images are from last year, but a nice Sphinx chersis larval image just arrived from fall of 2006. http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/onOntariosphlar.htm
I am very interested in receiving and posting images and data for Sphingidae from the Americas: North, Central and South.
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Arctiidae Art
Lawrence Forcella writes, "By the way, I've done some experimentation with keeping arctiid caterpillars alive in a refrigerator through the winter. I put individual caterpillars in individual plastic vials with plastic snap-on lids (similar to a film canister). I added nothing but a small, moistened piece of cotton. The lids allowed for some gaseous exchange but not much and I only had to re-moisten the cotton once. I did this to try and mimic the little niches I often find arctiid caterpillars nestled in under logs in winter. I housed 3 different species this way and they all survived: Ecpantheria scribonia and Pyrrharctia isabella wionter of 2005 and one solitary Grammia winter of 2006."
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Caterpillars Too!, a North American butterfly website. This is also a private membership site, distinct from WLSS. Many WLSS members have also registered for this site.
I am currently working on Idaho (now complete) and Quebec.
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