DISTRIBUTION:

Paradirphia frankae (wingspan: males: 67mm; females: probably larger // forewing length: males: 33-35mm; females: mm) flies in
Mexico: Chiapas: Cascada el Corralito, on the road between Ocosingo and San Cristobal at elevations near 1298m, possibly to at least 2200m.

In earlier descriptions this moth was treated as a pink form of Paradirphia semirosea ab roseana, an extreme pink phase.

In September of 2014, I was alerted by Ryan Saint-Laurent, to a number of interesting images of Saturniidae being posted by Lauren Zarate from San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico. I feel the moth above from San Cristobal is a pretty good match for the recently (2010) described P. frankae, described from nearby Cascada el Corralito at lower elevation (1298m).

The inward projecting white teeth on the pm line and the outward projecting white teeth on the am line, coupled with the pinkish-orange basal and postmedian areas of the forewing are quite suggestive of Brechlin & Meister's 2010 image of P. frankae. The Brechlin and Meister imgae shows a dark median field with a reddish cell area. The image from San Cristobal shows a more extensive showing of grey, especially in the cell. Perhaps Lauren's image is of an undescribed species.

Lauren collects regularly at a black light, and that could also be influencing the colours in her images. Hopefully she will have more images in the future.

Paradirphia semirosea/frankae male, San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
May 3, 2013, 2200m, courtesy of Lauren Zarate,
tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

Paradirphia frankae/leoni?? male, San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico,
courtesy of Bernhard Wenczel and Victor Suter.

It is very difficult to distinguish frankae from leoni. I do think frankae probably flies at lower elevations and has more of a pinkish tinge to the wings. I favour leoni for the Brenhard/Victor images on this page, but I am not at all certain. Probably DNA barcoding analysis is required for a more conclusive determination. There are also other very similar species in Mexico.

The female below is more in line with the more pinkish tinge I would expect from frankae, but I think it originates from the same broodstock as the male. Perhaps there is just as much or even more variation within species than there is between species.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in June and probably in other months.

Larval hosts are unknown.

Paradirphia frankae HT male (verso), 67mm, Cascada el Corralito, Chiapas, Mexico,
June 10, 2010, 1298m, on my home computer only.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

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

Males fly in the very early evening and females are usually observed between 8:00 and 10:00pm.

Paradirphia frankae/leoni?? female, San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico,
courtesy of Bernhard Wenczel and Victor Suter.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage.

Paradirphia leoni larvae are probably highly gregarious and are expected to have the urticating spines typical of larvae from the Subfamily Hemileucinae.

Paradirphia frankae/leoni?? sixth instar, San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico,
courtesy of Bernhard Wenczel and Victor Suter.

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.

Return to Paradirphia Index

Return to Main Saturniidae Index

Goto South America Checklists

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", honoura contempory friend/collector/etc.

The genus name, Paradirphia, designated by Michener, 1949, probably results from close affiliation with the genus Dirphia.

The species name "frankae" is honourific for Franka Meister.

This page is designed and maintained by Bill Oehlke as part of the World's Largest Saturniidae Site.