Hi All,
As of August 16, Rothschildia lebeau forbesi cocoons are available from Texas. The forbesi are expected to eclose in the fall, late September to November. The forbesi are $5.50, and there is one shipping and handling fee of $9.00 no matter how many cocons you order.
If you wish to place an order, please specify quantities desired (discounts on twenty or more cocoons), and please provide complete shipping address and indicate payment method: personal check or Paypal.
I have been so busy tending larvae and identifying Sphingidae and Catocala with postings to appropriate pages that I have little time to work on Saturniidae. I hope to have considerable more time for WLSS once most of the harvesting is done by mid September. I have some modesta and rubicunda which are currently in pupation tubs. As of this posting (August 17) I have harvested about sixty luna cocoons and about the same number of cecropia cocoons. I think I will have a very good luna crop and possibly high numbers of columbia and polyphemus.
I had begun to harvest the first luna and cecropia cocoons, August 8-9. As of September 1, almost all luna, cecropia, columbia cocoons have been harvested with a small number of each species still feeding as of September 5. I began to harvest the first polyphemus cocoons in late August, and as of this posting (September 7) have harvested about 20 polyphemus cocoons. I expect many to spin up within the next two weeks, hopefully before we get hit with any hard frosts.
I like to give all larvae a chance to pupate inside cocoons before doing any shipping. I harvested Pachysphinx modesta and Dryocampa rubicunda pupae earlier.
I hope to have a pricelist for all species available within Canada posted by September 16, but will begin taking tentative requests from Canadian WLSS members now.
I expect prices to be within the following ranges:
Actias luna: $5.15/cocoon; $5.00 each if you order 10-25 cocoons; $4.75 if you order 50-99 cocoons; $4.50 if you order 100 or more cocoons.
Antheraea polyphemus: $5.50 each (tenttive price, depends upon actual harvest).
Dryocampa rubicunda: $3.50 each very small numbers available on first come first served basis.
Pachysphinx modesta (Sphingidae): $4.50 each; $4.25 each if you order ten or more.
Hyalophora cecropia: $6.75 each (might have to be rationed, depends on demand and how many successfully pupate inside cocoons.
Hyalophora colombia colombia: $6.75 each (might have to be rationed, depends on demand and how many successfully pupate inside cocoons.
I will not begin to advertize Canadian stock to non-WLSS members in Canada until Canadian WLSS members have first had a chance to place their orders. Shipping and handling costs to Canadian destinations will depend upon destination address and size and weight of order. There will be 5% GST charged on all Canadian orders. I am happy to accept personal checks for Canadian orders. I can also accept Paypal, but with Paypal there would be an additional 4% Paypal transaction fee as that is what Paypal deducts from the amount I receive from you for their services.
I hope to have prices posted with a complete list of species available for shipping within US by October 1. Prices may be different for US customers as stock to US destinations would be coming from breeders in US. There are usually many additional species available within US, but I won't likely know exactly what will be available until some time in late September-early October as larvae are often still feeding up until those late dates.
Overseas WLSS members will be able to order stock from either Canada or US with payment in advance by Paypal to oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Overseas customers are to understand that shipping costs depend upon destination and size of package, and I cannot guarantee you will receive your package. All risks with potential customs problems are assumed by customers. I have not had problems with some countries (no problems yet with stock to United Kingdom/England), but there have been issues with packages sent to Germany, Italy, France, Spain.
If you send payment, I can only guarantee that cocoons will be shipped. I cannot guarantee you will receive them, so purcahses are at buyer's risk. There would be no refund for refused entry at your customs. Sorry.
++++++++++++++++++++
Scott Packham writes, "Here is a photo of one of my male F1 H. cercropia x H. gloveri hybrids. They had a very nice burgundy rose coloration to them. As I mentioned to you earlier, I did have one successful F1 pairing which produced viable eggs, and the caterpillars are now entering the 5th instar. The female was not that fecund to begin with, and I have experienced a higher than usual mortality rate, but, God willing, I'm hoping to get a few to the adult stage."
I will shortly add this hybrid image to the hybrid page for future reference. It is also useful to know what the genders were in the original hybrid pairing?? Hope Scott remembers.
++++++++++++++++++++
Ryan Saint Laurent alerted me that an image of a live Dacunju jucunda was posted on a Flickr page. I was granted permission to post the image by photographer Nigel Voaden. It is first time a live specimen of this species is displayed on WLSS. Nigel sent me this second image of the male.
Dacunju jucunda male,
Serra do Mar, Atlantic Forest, Regua, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden via Ryan Saint Laurent.
Nudaurelia macrops male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January 13, 2014, courtesy of Nigel Voaden.
Nudaurelia macrops male (verso), Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January 13, 2014, courtesy of Nigel Voaden.
Pseudobunaea seydeli male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
December 1, 2013, courtesy of Nigel Voaden,
slight digital repair by Bill Oehlke.
I continue to work on Nigel's images and have found what I believe to be the first depiction anywhere of a female Urota zambiensis.
Urota zambiensis male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January, 31, 2014,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden,
id and digital repair by Bill Oehlke.
Urota zambiensis female, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January, 26, 2014,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden,
id and digital repair by Bill Oehlke.
Adafroptilum incanum male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.
Cirina forda orientalis male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January 10, 2013, courtesy of Nigel Voaden, subspecies designation by Bill Oehlke.
Cirina forda orientalis male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January 7, 2013, courtesy of Nigel Voaden, subspecies designation by Bill Oehlke.
Nudaurelia rubra male, Sakania, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
January 27, 2014, courtesy Nigel Voaden.
For the first time a live male Holocerina rougeoti is displayed on WLSS.
Holocerina rougeoti male, Republic of Central Africa,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden, digital repair by Bill Oehlke
Tagoropsis hanningtoni male, Sakania, Katanga,
Democratic Republic of the Congo,
December 18, 2012,
courtesy of Nigel Voaden,
tentative id by Bill Oehlke.
The female with same location also seems a good match for hanningtoni.
On September 6, Ryan Saint-Laurent alerted me to photos by Lauren Zarate, on the Project Noah website. It is first time a female (and a live one at that) Coloradia casanovai is depicted on WLSS. Additional images of the female, including a verso image are on the casanovai file.
Coloradia casanovai female, San Cristobal de la Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
July 16, 2013, courtesy of Lauren Zarate, via Ryan Saint-Laurent.
I have been extremely busy with processing of some of the items above as well as with my own rearing. I should not have to move any more larvae now, but still have to bring in and wash sleeves and hang them to dry before putting up in storage boxes.
I am also working on completing checklists for all countries in Africa and am pecking away at Catocala and Sphingidae pages as images are arriving, almost daily.
Family visits, church activities, gardening and home maintenance chores will slow a bit now that fall is approaching, but I still have some firewood to split and move into the shed.
Once I have completed the above, I should have more time to devote to updates to WLSS, and I hope to have pictoral checklists for all countries done by end of 2015, and also hope to have files for all new Saturniidae species described in 2012-2014 done by end of 2015.
I have also been working on comparison charts for many of the look-alike species.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Sphingidae Express
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Catocala Capers
I am beginning to receive many Catocala submissions from both the western states and eastern states.
****************************
|
 Support this website and visit other insect sites by clicking flashing butterfly links to left or right. |
|
Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Please note: I reside in Canada at the following address and payment for Saturniidae livestock (eggs, cocoons, pupae) and/or sleeves must be sent to me only at this address:
Bill Oehlke
Box 476
155 Peardon Road
Montague, Prince Edward Island, C0A 1R0
Canada
Postage from USA to Canada is $1.15 (2014 rate) so please use that amount on your envelope with your payment.
If you are in US and order cocoons or pupae from me this fall or winter, you will probably see a New Jersey return address on the shipping box. Do not send payment to the New Jersey address; send it to name and address above please.
This website has been created and is maintained by Bill Oehlke without government or institutional financial assistance. All expenses, ie., text reference support material, webspace rental from Bizland and 1&1, computer repairs/replacements, backups systems, software for image adjustments (Adobe Photoshop; L-View), ftp software, anti-virus protection, scanner, etc. are my own. The one-time-life-time membership fee that is charged at the time of the registration covers most of those expenses.
I very much appreciate all the many images that have been sent to me, or of which I have been granted permission to copy and post from other websites. All images on this site remain the property of respective photographers.
If you would like to contribute to the maintenace of this website by sending a contribution to
Bill Oehlke
Box 476
155 Peardon Road
Montague, Prince Edward Island, C0A1R0
Canada
your donation would be much appreciated and would be used for
1) paying for webspace rental;
2) paying for computer maintenance and software upgrades;
3) purchases of additional text reference material (journals and books) in an effort to stay current with new species;
4) helping to pay my daughter's tuition (She has now completed her B.A. (two years ago) and B. Ed. (this spring) and is certified to teach)
and has been working full time as of October-November with contract until end of school term in June.
I also hope to expand the North American Catocala site as well as the Sphingidae of the Americas site, to worldwide sites, and that will require additional funds for reference materials, etc. Both of those site are linked from your WLSS homepage.
If you are mailing a check from USA, please use $1.15 postage (2014 rate). Donations can also be made through Paypal via the button below.
Donations are not required to maintain your standing as a WLSS member, nor do they gain you any preferencial treatment with regard to livestock and/or supplies (sleeves), compared to other WLSS members. All WLSS members get first crack at my annual offerings and get an approximate discount of 10% as compared to non-members.
I do usually ask donors if they have any special requests for information on WLSS, and I try to accomodate when appropriate or within my ability to do so.