Pseudodirphia regia
soo-doh-DIRF-ee-uhmmREE-jee-uh
(Draudt, 1930) Dirphia

Pseudodirphia regia male courtesy of Dan Janzen.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 Family: Saturniidae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Subfamily: Hemileucinae, Grote & Robinson, 1866 Tribe: Hemileucini, Grote & Robinson, 1866 Genus: Pseudodirphia, Bouvier, 1928

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DISTRIBUTION:

Pseudodirphia regia (wingspan: males: 72-93mm; females: 106-131mm) flies in
Costa Rica: Cartago (CL), Alajuela, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose (IB);
Nicaragua: Jinotega, Zelaya, Rio San Juan (probably replaced by P. regia madriziana in Nicaragua);
Honduras: Atlantida (CL), Olancho (RC), probably Yoro;
Panama: Chiriqui;
Colombia: Valle, Choco, and possibly Cauca and Nariono;
and Ecuador: Esmeraldas, Imbabura and Pichincha;
at low to medium altitude (90-1600m) (probably replaced by P. weberorum in western Ecuador);

Pseudodirphia regia male, Lita, Ecuador, March 29, 2009, courtesy of Horst Kach.

Pseudodirphia regia male, Ecuador,
courtesy of Eric van Schayck.

Pseudodirphia regia male, Ecuador,
courtesy of Eric van Schayck.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

This moth probably broods continuously in three to four month cycles. Specimens have been taken in all months. Natural larval hosts are unknown, but Robinia is a likely choice and has been used with success by Kirby Wolfe.

Pseudodirphia regia female courtesy of Dan Janzen.

Pseudodirphia regia female, Ecuador,
courtesy of Eric van Schayck.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Pseudodirphia regia male, courtesy of Kirby Wolfe.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters or rings. Larvae are gregarious and are well equipped with urticating spines. A light, single-walled cocoon is spun among leaf litter.

Pseudodirphia regia second instars on Fagus silvatica, courtesy of Uwe Kauz.

Pseudodirphia regia third instars on Fagus silvatica, courtesy of Uwe Kauz.

Pseudodirphia regia larva, courtesy of Kirby Wolfe.

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.

Fagus silvatica ........ Robinia

Beech Locust

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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.

Pseudodirphia was chosen as the genus name as these moths are very similar to those in the Dirphia genus.

The species name, regia, means royal.

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