DISTRIBUTION:

Lemaireodirphia transversaria (wingspan: males: 74mm; females: mm // forewing length: males: 38mm; females: ) flies in
Mexico: Oaxaca; at elevations near 2200m.

As of end of 2012, this species is known from a single male specimen taken in 2004 by Bernhard Wenczel.

Known only from a single specimen thus far, this member of the genus seems relatively small with an almost uniform, strong, red-brown ground colour and prominent white scalling over and around the veins just interior to a weak and diffuse, slightly darker brown pm line. This pm line is almost straight, only slightly angled just outside the darker reddish-brown, circular cell spot.

Visit Lemaireodirphia Comparison Chart.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Larvae possibly feed on Platanus lindeniana, Prunus, Pyrus malus, Robinia pseudoacacia and Salix chilensis. It wouold also be good to try Fagus, Quercus and Rosa.

This species is on the wing in July. There are probably additional flight months.

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.

Lemaireodirphia albida larvae are highly gregarious and have the urticating spines typical of larvae from the Subfamily Hemileucinae.

Larval Food Plants

It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the anticipated foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Platanus lindeniana Prunus Pyrus malus Robinia pseudoacacia..... Salix chilensis

Plane Cherry Apple Black locust/False acacia Willow

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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.

Some of the early describers/namers chose genus and species names indicating some character of the insect, but more often, they simply chose names from Greek or Roman mythology or history.

Those species names which end in "ensis" indicate a specimen locale, and those which end in "i", pronounced "eye", honour a contempory friend/collector/etc.

The genus name "Lemaireodirphia" is both honourific of Claude Lemaire and indicative of a great similarity to moths in the genus Dirphia.

The species name "transversaria" is indicative of a bright white pmline, more strongly accentuated with white along the wing veins. The pm line is more pre-apical than in L. guerreroiana, and the line is not as strongly angled outside the cell.

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