Loepa microocellata male, China, courtesy of Anatolij Kulak.
Hi All,
This newsletter covers updates from October 16, 2008 to November 15, 2008.
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WLSS service provider, 1 & 1 Webhosting, will be doing an upgrade which can take up to an hour and will occur on October 22, 2008, sometime between 12 am and 6 am Central Time. You will not be able to access website at that particular time.
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I head for a visit to New Jersey on October 23 and will return on October 30. I will try to confirm all orders before I leave.
I also have many images to post. Hope to get caught up before departure.
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I had a very nice visit to New Jersey, overnighting in Scarborough, Maine, courtesy of Rand Raabe on the way down. I also got to meet briefly with Jim Anderschat and his wife in nearby South Portland, Maine.
It was great to see my parents and again experience Mom's spaghetti sauce and chicken dinner in Pottersville, New Jersey, where I was also treated to some homemade apple crisp, a lemon chiffon pie and lots of cookies.
We had a feak snowsquall that resulted in a power outage lasting close to eighteen hours. Many New Jersey homes were without power. A Coleman propane stove (found by Mom, set up by Dad) cooked our meals, an indoor kerosene heater kept up warm, and candle light let us resume the annual pinochle marathon where good luck and skillful play kept the crown on my head. A good supply of large plastic bottles of water (unused for many years) also kept the toilets flushed. Dad remembered where they had been stored in the cellar many years ealier. The storm provided a bit of an adventure.
I had nice visits with my sisters and their families and overnighted in southern Massachusetts with my youngest sister and her family where I played soccer with baby Lucas and watched Olivia and Joshua at soccer and swim practices, respectively.
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Antheraea polyphemus cocoons wanted! My usual sources of Antheraea polyphemus cocoons are not providing them (short) this year. Please advise if you can sell to me overwintering polyphemus cocoons in bulk at wholesale prices. I am looking for hundreds of them.
Pretty much all the polyphemus I reared in Canada were sold in Canada or were shipped overseas. Now I need cocoons for the US orders. Your shipment would go to my US shipping partner in New Hampshire for redistribution.
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The following species are expected to be available this fall. Prices (anticipated) quoted are in US dollars. I won't know for sure what I will have until mid October when the US crop is done being harvested. I am looking for a source of Citheronia regalis pupae and of Callosamia angulifera cocoons. I am also looking for quality overwintering livestock of any North American species not listed below. I buy in bulk at wholesale prices with you shipping to my US shipping partner in New Hampshire. She inspects, repacks and ships to US and overseas destinations from New Hampshire.
Actias luna $4.00; definitely
Automeris io $4.00; definitely
Callosamia promethea $4.00; definitely
Hyalophora cecropia $6.00; definitely
Hyalophora columbia $6.00; definitely, might be already all spoken for
Hyalophora euryalus $7.20; definitely
Samia cynthia $4.50; definitely
Butterflies anticipated:
Eurytides marcellus $4.50, zebra swallowtail, yes
Papilio polyxenes asterius $4.50, black swallowtail, yes
Pterourus glaucus $4.25, tiger swallowtail, yes
Pterourus troilus $4.25, spicebush swallowtail, yes
Some species, especially the butterflies, are still in larva stage and although a good harvest of pupae is expected, there are things that can still go wrong.
I expect shipping of some orders to begin on Monday, October 20.
I have already advised Canadian WLSS members of what was available from PEI and most of those orders have been shipped.
Please send now, by email, with your name and complete shipping address in body of email, your tentative order (species and quantities). Do not send money until I have confirmed your order. I will begin sending email confirmations in mid October when I know for sure what is available. Any additions will be posted in the newsletter. There will be an $8.00 shipping and handling fee for most US destinations.
Shipping and handling will be higher for orders going overseas. Several big supply houses in Europe have contacted me. I wish to first serve WLSS members so let me know as soon as possible what you would like me to reserve for you.
Sleeves are available in three sizes:
four feet long with 67 inch circumference: $4.40 U.S./sleeve; $4.00 members
six feet long with 67 inch circumferenc: $6.00 U.S./sleeve; $5.40 members
67 inch long with 7.5 feet circumference: $7.50 U.S./sleeve; $6.80 members
Shipping and handling on sleeves depends on sizes, quantities and location.
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Gift/Friend WLSS Memberships: You may purchase a gift WLSS membership (Christmas is coming) for a friend at $25.00 (Paypal accepted). You may also advise a friend that he/she can contact me directly by email and register for WLSS membership at $25.00 by citing your name as a reference.
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It is heartwrenching to see the news coverage of the devastion in the Gulf States from the recent hurricanes. I hope all that have been affected are coping. One half of all new registrations for the months of October, November and December 2008 will be donated to humanitarian aid.
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Harry D. King has sent beautiful images of set specimens of Rothschildia lebeau forbesi and Saturnia (Calosaturnia) walterorum. harry has also sent an image of a spread Citheronia regalis. Images have been posted to respective species files.
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Robert Vuattoux has sent a small but nice image of a freshly emerged female Bunaea aslauga from Madagascar. He has also sent an image of an Eupackardia calleta fifth instar.
Robert has recently sent images of larva and female of Actias sinensis x Actias felicis hybridization.
Robert writes he will have "cheap and fresh Epiphora bauhiniae cocoons from Sénégal, Africa. (I shall going in Sénégal very soon). Robert can be contacted by email at Robert Vuattoux.
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Anatolij Kulak has sent a beautiful image of a live male Loepa microocellata from China. This is the first depiction of a live L. microocellata on WLSS.
Loepa microocellata male, China, courtesy of Anatolij Kulak.
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Jean-Louis Albert has sent very nice images (recto and verso) of set specimens of Holocerina angulata female, Imbrasia obscura male and Pseudobunaea alinda female, all from Franceville, Gabon. I think my identifications are correct, but I will ask for confirmations.
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Jerome Teva Paire has sent a beautiful image of a live Nudaurelia dione male from northwestern Angola.
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Horst Kach has sent images, recto and verso, of a female Caio championi from San Francisco, Esmeraldas Province, Ecuador. He indicates this species is rare in coastal Ecuador. He has also sent images of eggs and instars 1-4 which he is rearing on Ceiba (chorisia).
Images are linked from the championi page.
Horst has also sent Arsenura mossi male recto and verso from Hollin, Napo, Ecuador; Arsenura ponderosa ponderosa male recto and verso from Hollin; Rhescyntis descimoni male recto and verso, from Hollin; Rhescyntis hermes male, recto and verso from Rio Landayacu, Pastaza, Ecuador.
Non-member Ilayne Correa has sent very nice images of a male Hemileuca nevadensis from Santee, San Diego County, California. By chance, Ilayne had taken a photo of a caterpillar, also a nevadensis many weeks earlier.
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Kelly Price has sent very nice images of set specimens of Saturnia (Rinaca) lesoudieri female from Vietnam; Loepa visayana male from Leyte, Philippines; Loepa miranda male, Loepa diversiocellata male, all from Fan Si Pan, Sapa, Vietnam; Rothschildia cincta guerreronis male and Rothschildia orizaba male, both Guerrero, Mexico; Coloradia euphrosyne male; Paradirphia lasiocampina male; all from Guerrero, Mexico at elevation of 2280m; Actias sinensis females from Dak Nong, Vietnam; Actias selene brevijuxta male from Philippines; Actias selene ssp ?? from Vietnam; Automeris excreta males from states of Hidalgo and Guerrero, Mexico, Automeris metzli male from Guerrero, Mexico, Automeris cecrops cecrops male from Guerrero, Mexico, Automeris iris iris male from Hidalgo, Mexico, Automeris boudinotiana male from Hidalgo, Mexico (significant southerly range extension), Coloradia euphrosyne male (possibly casanovai which is supposedly limited to Chiapas, Mexico) from Hidalgo, Mexico.
Thanks goes to Kirby Wolfe for identifying Kelly's images of Copaxa multifenestrata from Hidalgo, Mexico.
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Reinhard Foerster is feeding the following larva on a shrub, locally know as graniuba. I believe the caterpillar is that of Molippa cruenta.
Molippa cruenta fifth instar, feeding on local shrub (graniuba),
Misiones Province, Argentina, courtesy of Reinhard Foerster.
Reinhard sends images (larva and tattered adult) of what I am pretty sure is Adeloneivaia fallax from Misiones, Argentina. This would represent a range extension into Argentina.
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Ryan St. Laurent has sent beautiful images of freshly emerged male Hemileuca maia male from Louisiana. I have posted images form lnk on maia page and also on Louisiana page. It is great to get images from many different locales, showing local differences as well as regional differences.
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Sighting Reports
I am very interested in receiving sighting reports (date and specific location, including county/parish and state and/or province) for Saturniidae and Sphingidae throughout the year. The reports will be posted in newsletters and will also be used to update the state files and flight times.
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If you are thinking of creating a website, I heartily recommend 1 & 1 webhosting.
Website hosting: |
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Although I am behind with some of the images that need to be posted, I expect to get caught up in the next couple of weeks. I am interested in the possibility of expanding moth coverage to include others families, possibly Arctiidae, Geometridae, Noctuidae, etc., but probably will not venture into those areas (very limited knowledge on my part), unless there are several members with interest and good camera skills who can send data and images. I get many image submissions for caterpillar identifications, especially for Arctiidae and Noctuidae larva so it would be nice to have coverage for those families.
If anyone has extensive coverage of non-North American butterflies and can send images and data, I will also consider building web coverage sites. I can work on these sites during the winter months.
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Sphingidae Express
Chris Marino has sent great images of Pachylia ficus larva from Pompano Beach, Broward County, Florida.
Donna Peters has sent great images of Erinnyis ello larva from Brevard County, Florida.
Harry King has sent great recto and verso images of Eumorpha pandorus adult from his Michigan collection.
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Arctiidae Art
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Catocala Capers
Many states now have checklists and there is state by state links table on new Catocala of North America homepage.
Corrections, additions of data and or images would be appreciated.
Harry D. King has sent recto and verso images of Catocala crataegi from Ingham County, Michigan.
Many thanks to Larry Gall who continues to help with identifications of the troublesome species.
I hope to get the Maine Catocala page completed, featuring links to many images of the species Steve Nanz has provided.
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Caterpillars Too!, a North American butterfly website:
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A new Coleoptera (Beetles) page is being created.
This page will be resricted to those members of WLSS who have an interest in Coleoptera (Beetles) and who are willing to have their email addresses posted there for correspondence, limited to the Coleoptera family.
This list will not be available through any search engines and will not be linked by me from any of my websites. Instead, those members who register (no charge) will be directed to an unlisted URL.
Members whose names appear on this list have agreed to use the contact information solely for the purpose of furthering their interests in Coleoptera.
Members have also agreed that they will neither post this list/page nor divulge its contents nor share its contents with others.
To have your name and email contact information posted on the Coleoptera page, send email to Bill Oehlke, indicating you agree to terms above.
N.B. This is note a Coleoptera site, just a listing of contact info for WLSS members with an interest in Coleoptera.
There are also quite a few members interested in Sphingidae, so I will post special Sphingidae page under same conditions. I am also considering an African Sphingidae section if there is sufficient interest and those who can supply high quality images.
A Catocala page will also be posted.
If you wish to have your name, location, interests and email posted on the Coleoptera, Sphingidae or Catocala contacts page, please let me know.
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