Hi All,
I have been extremely busy since returning to PEI from a very successful collecting trip to Malay Falls, Nova Scotia. I have been sleeving out thousands of Saturniidae and Sphingidae larvae and eggs.
Yesterday, July 15, I sleeved out over forty small pin cherry trees with four to seven cecropia eggs per sleeve.
In a recent phone conversation with Nathan Boob, Nathan recommended I staple the egg slips (eggs on brown paper lunch bags), using a regular office stapler, to the undersides of leaves in each sleeve. The eggs were scheduled to hatch in another day or so, and the hatchlings should be able to crawl off the paper and onto the foliage as soon as they hatch.
Today I hope to sleeve out the remaining eggs and also the remaining hatchlings (cecropia and columbia) that I have indoors in tubs. I also need to check the first batches (mid June) of sleeved larvae to make sure there is plenty of food in each sleeve.
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August 8: Heraclides cresphontes (giant swallowtail) pupae are available now and can probably be shipped as late as August 20 as they usually remain in pupae for about three weeks. These are thought to be a non-diapausing brood and are expected to hatch in late August early September. Stock is from Alabama.
Specify quantity desired and send your complete shipping address by email for a price quote.
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Darapsa choerilus began pupating on August 5; Sphinx drupiferarum began leaving foliage on August 5; Paonias excaecatus began leaving foliage on August 6; Sphinx poecila are still feeding on blueberry, and Sphinx kalmiae are still feeding on lilac as of August 8.
Dryocampa rubicunda eggs (June 10 female), taken before the Malay Falls trip, began pupating on August 5 and some of the earliest Antheraea polyphemus (June 12 female), feeding on pin cherry, spun cocoons on August 3.
I want to remind any of you in US who are rearing that I need your Arizona egg orders by July 22 if you have not already sent them to me. We never know for sure what will get shipped, but all the Arizona species listed are again expected. Pay after receipt of eggs.
I am very interested in purchasing overwintering cocoons/pupae from your Arizona rearings and am particularly interested in cocoons of Antheraea oculea, Automeris cecrops pamina ($12.00/$16.00/$20.00 for one/two/three dozen eggs respectively) Eupackardia calleta $12.00/$17.00/$22.00; Hyalophora columbia gloveri and Rothschildia cincta ($13.00/$18.00/$24.00).
There are also a couple of Anisota species listed. Please check food plants to make sure you have what is needed.
I am also interested in purchasing overwintering pupae of Citheronia splendens sinaloensis and Eacles oslari ($13.00, $19.00 $25.00 for one/two/three dozen eggs respectively). Please note: Always treat eggs of the large Ceratocampinae as per the Regalis Do's and Don'ts suggestions in Bill's Articles section of website.
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Vadim Zolotuhin of Russia has just sent me images of male HT and female PT of Actias artemis yakushimaensis from Yakushima Island of Japan. This subspecies was not previously depicted on WLSS. Vadim indicates he will be able to supply additional images of species not currently depicted on WLSS.
I have recently posted the following species/subspecies:
Salassa belinda HT male, recto and verso,
Salassa belinda aeos HT male,
Caligula japonica ryukyuensis PT male and female,
Archaeoattucus edwardsii malayanus HT male, (I need to check status on this subspecies)
Actias gnoma miyatai PT male and female,
Antheraea yamamai yoshimotoi PT male,
Antheraea yamamai superba PT male.
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Marc Fischer of Nederland has sent an image of Automeris incarnata larvae being reared on oak, new host plant.
Marc also sends an image of final instar of Loepa sikkima javanica, first time depicted on WLSS.
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Edna Bottorff surprised me with an image of a fifth instar Hyalophora columbia glveri larva that she encountered in western Josephine County in southwestern Oregon. This represents a more westerly range for gloveri than previously thought.
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Ronald Brechlin and Frank Meister have launched a new publication called ENTOMO-SATSPHINGIA.
Dr. Brechlin writes, "We were/are very
busy ... We (Frank [Meister] and I) have launched a new journal dealing
mainly with saturniids and sphingids, including interesting rearings. In
the future other moth families will also be covered. It is written mainly
in German (with English abstracts [some in Spanish too]), and some
publications are in English.
"So it would be really great if you could put an advertisment for this
journal on your website! Our aim is to publish (1-) 2 issue(s) per year;
and 2 issues are finished already - Entomo-Satsphingia 1/1 (April
2008) and Entomo-Satsphingia 2/1 (March 2009).
The contact link for subscription orders of the journal Entomo-Satsphingia is:
Frank Meister.
The price for the first issue (1/1-2008 [42 pages]) is 16 Euro and for
the 2nd subscription (2/1-2009 [61 pages]) is 19.50 Euro.
The following new taxa have been described in the first 2 editions:
Issue 1/1 (6.4. 2008):
Dirphia albescens Brechlin & Meister, 2008 (formerly known as
[unpublished] Dirphia "naumanni" - on your website as well!)
Janiodes cuscoensis Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Meroleuca catamarcensis Meister & Brechlin, 2008
Molippa bertrandoides Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Paradirphia rudloffi Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Pseudodirphia frickei Meister & Brechlin, 2008
Ptiloscola burmeisteri Meister & Brechlin, 2008
Further more in this subscription there is a rearing report of Caio
harrietae (Forbes, 1944) and a sphingid description of
Polyptychus chinensis shaanxiensis Brechlin, 2008
Issue 2/1 (20.3. 2009):
Actias parasinensis Brechlin, 2009
Antheraea (Antheraea) angustomarginata Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Copaxa novocineracea Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Dysdaemonia australoboreas Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Janiodes napoensis Brechlin, Meister & Kaech, 2009
Salassa bhutanensis Brechlin, 2009
Further more in this issue there is a rearing report of Actias
rhodopneuma Röber, 1925, in addition a publication dealing with the
rediscovery of the Brahmaeid moth Calliprogonos miraculosa Mell, 1937
and descriptions of 4 new sphingids from the Philippines:
Cypa luzonica Brechlin, 2009:
Degmaptera cadioui Brechlin & Kitching, 2009
Sataspes leyteana Brechlin & Kitching, 2009
Automeris chaconoides Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Janiodes oxapampensis Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Meroleuca raineri Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Molippa wenczeli Meister & Brechlin, 2008
Pseudodirphia marxi Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Pseudodirphia singeri Meister & Brechlin, 2008
Pseudodirphia weritzi Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Ptiloscola paraguayensis Brechlin, Meister & Drechsel, 2008
Ptiloscola wolfei Brechlin & Meister, 2008
Antheraea (Antheraea) kalangensis Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Antheraea (Antheraea) paukpelengensis Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Antheraea (Antheraea) rubicunda Brechlin, 2009
Dysdaemonia undulensis Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Janiodes pichinchensis Brechlin, Meister & Kaech, 2009
(see your discussion with Horst and Frank some months ago;) later I
was getting aware that at this time I had aleady [nearly] finished these
descriptions and following we had invited Horst to become a coauthor of
these ones)
Salassa lemaii chiangmaiensis Brechlin & Meister, 2009
Sataspes negrosiana Brechlin & Kitching, 2009"
I will shortly be updating the genus checklists to include the recently described species, and I will also create species files for the additions.
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Visit Egg availability and prices 2009
Polyphemus, luna, promethea and cecropia eggs are still available.
Sepulcralis eggs were shipped June 17 to US destinations only.
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Sphingidae Express
Edna Bottorff continues to have success rearing Sphinx sequoiae. Live adults, egg and instars 1-4 are now depicted.
Those Sphingidae west of the continental divide, previously thought to be H. diffinis are now determined to be the recently elevated speciesm, Hemaris thetis. It is my understanding that the moths described as H. senta also belong to H. thetis as thetis was described (Boisduval, 1855) before senta was described [Strecker, 1878]. Subsequently thetis was synonymized with diffinis, but based on paper by Christian Schmidt Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 63(2), 2009, 100-109. Hemaris thetis (Boisduval, 1855) (Sphingidae) H. thetis in now recognized as a distict species, based on DNA and genitalia analysis.
In some places just East of the Divide (Colorado, Alberta) overlap of ranges of H. thetis and H. diffinis is known and precise determinations, by photographs only, will be next to impossible.
Thanks to Edna Bottorff and Ryan St. Laurent for alerting me of this change. It will be a little while before I get the changes made on the Sphingidae of the Americas website.
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Arctiidae Art
Kirby Wolfe indicates he will be sending me many electronic images of Arctiidae from Costa Rica. I will shortly begin construction of a worldwide Arctiidae site. Those who wish to contribute images of adults and/or larvae or any other stages are welcome to do so. All images that I use remain the property of respective photographers.
Horst Kach indicates he wil be sending images for Ecuador. It probably will be late fall before I am able to work on this site in earnest as there is just too much to do right now.
I do not have very much knowledge about this family. Anyone with an abiding interest and some expertise with classification, who would be willing to help with identifications is asked to please contact me by email.
This is a very large family. I probably will not have time to actively persue images and information, but I will make a concerted effort to organize and post what is sent to me.
There are some interesting/beautiful Arctiids here on Prince Edward Island, and I did rear some Lophocampa maculata here this summer.
If you begin to send images, please always indicate as much data as possible with the images: precise location, date, flight season, wingspan, foodplant, extended range, if you know it, etc.
Idalus critheus San Jose, Costa Rica, December 3, 2008, Kirby Wolfe.
Catocala Capers
I am starting to receive Catocala images from the southern states, but it will probably be a while before I get around to posting them.
Aubrey Scott recently sent me images of Catocala vidua and Catocala sordida from Georgia.
I anm working on a thumbnail checklist for Georgia and should have it posted by the weekend of August 9.
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Caterpillars Too!, a North American butterfly website:
Sam Jaffe larvae and pupae images will be posted shortly.
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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.
N.B. This is note a Coleoptera site, just a listing of contact info for WLSS members with an interest in Coleoptera.
Two new names have been added to the Coleoptera page as of January 16, 2009.
There are also quite a few members interested in Sphingidae, so I will post special Sphingidae page under same conditions. I am also considering an African Sphingidae section if there is sufficient interest and those who can supply high quality images.
A Catocala page will also be posted.
If you wish to have your name, location, interests and email posted on the Coleoptera, Sphingidae or Catocala contacts page, please let me know.
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