CITHERONIA OF THE WORLD

Citheronia lobesis courtesy of Bernhard Jost.

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

The Citheronia are characterized by large moths having heavy, elongated bodies and forewings that are somewhat Sphingiform. Moths are typically orange to brown with yellow or white markings. Males have antennae which are quadripectinate for the basal two thirds while antennae of the females are filiform.

Citheronia eggs are relatively large, deposited in small groups of two to six on foliage, and usually a translucent yellow which allows for observation of the developing larvae within the shell. Incubation typically lasts seven to nine days.

Larvae, which pass through five instars, growing to lengths exceeding 150 mm, are particularly well equipped with dorsal scoli ("horns"), especially pronounced in the early instars.

Citheronia regalis caterpillar, copyright protected, courtesy of Bob Jensen

Mature larvae descend tree trunks to pupate in subterranean chambers. Pupae are generally spinose with a long cremaster. Diapause is in the pupal stage. Most of the tropical species have two broods anually with moths on the wing in January-February and then again in June-July.

The Citheronia belong to the Subfamily Ceratocampinae, formerly Citheroniinae, of the Family Saturniidae.

P indicates a photograph is available. The first country listed is the type locality.

Click on hypertext to access files. Range may exceed that listed.

Listing of Citheronia Hubner [1819]:

P andina Lemaire, 1971, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia
P armata armata W. Rothschild, 1907 Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia Citheronula is proper classification
P aroa Schaus, 1896, Venezuela, French Guiana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil; ??Guyana, Suriname
consobrina, W. Rothschild, 1907, Peru, is a synonym of aroa
mogya, Schaus, 1920, Brazil, is a synonym of aroa
mexicana var. brasiliensis, Bouvier, 1927, Brazil, is a synonym of aroa
P azteca azteca Schaus, 1896, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala
P azteca albescens Lemaire, 1973 Mexico: Yucatan; Belize
P beledonon Dyar, 1912 Mexico
f. colimae Draudt, 1930, Mexico, is a synonym for beledonon
hamifera var. nayaritensis Bouvier, 1931, Mexico, is a synonym for beledonon
P bellavista bellavista Draudt, 1930, w. Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, w. Venezuela, w. Ecuador
P bellavista cinerea Lemaire, 1982, southwestern Ecuador
P brissotii brissotii (Boisduval, 1868), southeastern Brazil
form brissotii catharina (Draudt, 1930), Brazil, is a synonym for brissotii brissotii.
P brissotii meridionalis Bouvier, 1927, Argentina
brissotii f. argentina (Draudt, 1930), Argentina, is a synonym for brissotii meridionalis.
benjamini (Schaus, 1933), Argentina, is a synonym for brissotii meridionalis.
N chrisbrechlinae Brechlin & Meister, 2012, Guatemala: Alta Verapaz
P collaris W. Rothschild, 1907 Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador; probably El Salvador and Honduras. Citheronioides is proper classification
P equatorialis Bouvier, 1927, western Ecuador, western Colombia
P guayaquila Schaus, 1927, southwestern Ecuador, northwestern Peru
P hamifera hamifera W. Rothschild, 1907, Trinidad, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Argentina; ?? Suriname, Bolivia
fuscalis W. Rothschild, 1907, Peru, is a synonym for hamifera hamifera.
brissotii f. guayanensis (Bouvier, 1927), Guyana, is a synonym for hamifera hamifera.
P hamifera bodoquena Travassos & Rego-Barris, 1966, Brazil, eastern Bolivia
P johnsoni Schaus, 1928, Brazil: Rio Grande do Sul
P laocoon (Cramer, 1777) ?, Brazil, French Guiana, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina
anassa (Hubner, 1819), is a synonym for laocoon.
princeps (Walker, 1855), Brazil, is a synonym for laocoon.
cacicus (Walker, 1855), Brazil, is a synonym for laocoon.
ixion (Boisduval, 1868), Brazil, is a synonym for laocoon.
N lichyi Lemaire, 1971, Venezuela
P lobesis lobesis W. Rothschild, 1907, Costa Rica, Panama, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Colombia; ?? Trinidad, Ecuador.
marion (Dyar, 1914), Panama, is a synonym for lobesis lobesis.
claveryi (Bouvier, 1924), Ecuador, is a synonym for lobesis lobesis.
P lobesis centraliamericana Bouvier, 1927 Honduras, Nicaragua
P lobesis jordani Draudt, 1930 Mexico
P maureillei Wolfe and Herbin, 2002 south-central Bolivia
P mexicana Grote & Robinson, 1866 Mexico, Belize
P phoronea (Cramer, 1779), Suriname, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil; ??Guyana
P principalis (Walker, 1855), S.E. Brazil, ? Peru properly classified as Procitheronia
P pseudomexicana Lemaire, 1974 Mexico, Guatemala, Belize
P regalis (Fabricius, 1793), eastern U.S.
P sepulcralis Grote & Robinson, 1865, eastern U.S.
P splendens queretana Vazquez, 1944 Mexico
P splendens splendens (Druce, 1886) Mexico
P splendens sinaloensis C. C. Hoffmann, 1942, Mexico-Arizona
P vogleri (Weyenbergh, 1881), Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil
leona Druce, 1890, Uruguay, is a synonym for vogleri
P volcan Lemaire, 1982 Panama, Costa Rica

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

Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page.

Support this website and visit other insect sites by clicking flashing butterfly links to left or right.