DISTRIBUTION:

The Hylesia acuta moth (wingspan: males: 39-53mm; females: 53-66mm) flies in
Mexico: Jalisco, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Hidalgo, Veracruz, Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Chiapas;
Belize: Cayo;
Guatemala: Quetzaltenango, Retalbeuleu, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, El Peten; and
Nicaragua: Masaya;
at elevations from sea level to almost 2000m. I suspect it also flies in Honduras: ? Cortes, ? Atlantida.

This moth is the same as Hylesia petena.

In the male, the falcate, apically produced forewings are distinctive. Other markings are reduced. Ground colour is purplish-pink. The female has the same ground colour, perhaps a bit darker, and the dark forewing postmedian line and submarginal band are fused.

HABITAT:

This species flies in diverse biotypes from sea level to 2000m.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Larvae feed on Bursera simaruba in the wild and accept Schinus terebinthifolius in the lab.

Hylesia acuta female, Veracruz, Mexico, courtesy of Kirby Wolfe.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

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

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage. Eggshells are eaten as the sole food source for the firt week.

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

Larvae and adult moths may be dangerous to humans.

Kirby Wolfe discovered an aggregate pouch of forty-six cocoons/pupae. Larvae apparently leave the silken-wool nest to feed at night and return for safety during the day and to spin cocoons. The nest is greatly reinforced just prior to spinup and escape exits are spun into the nest.

Hylesia acuta larva, Veracruz, Mexico, courtesy of Kirby Wolfe.

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.

Bursera simaruba Schinus terebinthifolius.....

Gumbo-limbo Brazil peppertree

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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.

I do not know the origin of the genus name Hylesia.

The species name acuta is probably descriptive of the angle of the forewing apex in the male moth.

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