Hylesia mymex
Dyar, 1913

Hylesia mymex (male), Chile, courtesy of Eric van Schayck.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 Family: Saturniidae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Subfamily: Hemileucinae, Grote & Robinson, 1866 Tribe: Hemileucinae, Grote & Robinson, 1866 Genus: Hylesia, Hubner, [1820]

MIDI MUSIC "Someone to Watch Over Me" copyright C. Odenkirk MIDI CITY ON.OFF <bgsound src="watch.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION:

Hylesia mymex (wingspan: males: 36-47mm; females: 52-59mm) flies from
Colombia: Valle; to
Costa Rica: Cartago.

Lemaire records it from
Ecuador: Pichincha, Canar, Tungurahua, Napo, Morona-Santiago and probably Pastaza;
Peru: San Martin, Huanuco, Pasco, Cusco; and
Bolivia: Cochabamba. The species can also probably be found in Panama, and, if the above image is correct, from Chile and possibly Northwestern Argentina.

Specimens have been taken at elevations from 500m to 1800m.

The thorax is black. The abdomen is black with some yellow-orange hairs and a greyish brown tuft. The forewing is elongated with a rounded, slightly produced apex. Ground colour is a dull olive grey. The am line is weak with an inner angle on the cubitus. The pm line is thin but distinct. It varies from straight to concave and even convex in some specimens. The discal spot is weak, consisting of a thin streak.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Larval hosts are unknown.

This species probably broods continuously on a three month cycle.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females extend a scent gland from the tip of the abdomen, and the night-flying males pickup and track the airbourne pheromone plume with their well-developed antennae.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage.

Hylesia mymex larvae are highly gregarious and have the urticating spines typical of larvae from the Subfamily Hemileucinae.

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.

Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page.

Return to Hylesia Index

Goto Mexico and Central American Saturniidae Directory

Goto South American Saturniidae Directory

Goto Main Saturniidae Index