DISTRIBUTION:

Automeris beckeri (wingspan: males: 91-113; females: 105-120mm) flies in
southeastern Brazil: Rio de Janeiro, Parana (CM), Minas Gerais (LV) Santa Catarina (JK), Rio Grande do Sul (WW), Sao Paulo (MML); and
southeastern Paraguay: UD: Guaira, AltoParana, and (possibly (WO?) Caaguazu, Caazapa and Itapua). Bill Garthe sends the following image with dealer-marked location as Argentina: probably Misiones. I suspect this species also flies in Misiones, Argentina.

Automeris beckeri male, 98mm, Argentina,
February 2009, courtesy of Bill Garthe.

Ezequiel Osvaldo Núñez Bustos sent me a paper in August 2015 which includes Automeris beckeri in northeastern Argentina.

Lemaire only lists this species from southeastern Brazil.

Ground colour is grey-beige with a strongly preapical, thin, dark grey pm line, outwardly bordered with a thin grey-beige line, followed by dark grey subterminal region. The inner third of the basal area is mouse grey, followed by much lighter area, with stong angulation of the am line on the cubitus.

The hindwing is very distinct.

Automeris beckeri male, Mariana Pimentel, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil,
May 22, 2016, courtesy of Will Wolbachia.

Larry Valentine sends a series of beautiful images from Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Automeris beckeri male, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 23, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

Automeris beckeri male, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 23, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

Automeris beckeri male (verso), Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 23, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

Automeris beckeri male, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 23, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

Automeris beckeri male, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 23, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are at least two generations annually with peak flights in February and again in June-July in Paraguay. Lemaire lists flights in Brazil for August-September-October. Larry Valentine reports a late October-early November flight in southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil.

There have also been specimens taken in southeastern Brazil in May and December. There are probably three to five annual broods in Brazil.

Automeris beckeri male, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
November 4, 2010, courtesy of Larry Valentine.

Automeris beckeri larvae feed on Fagus, Prunus, Quercus, Sorocea ilicifolia and URTICACEAE.

Automeris beckeri male, Jargua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil,
November, 1990, courtesy of John Kamps.

Automeris beckeri female, Jargua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil,
November, 1990, courtesy of John Kamps.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Males use their more highly developed antennae to seek out females who release an airbourne pheromone into the night sky.

Activity occurs most frequently between 10:30 pm until shortly after midnight.

Automeris beckeri Paraguay, courtesy of Ulf Drechsel.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters of 6-40+ on hostplant twigs. Larvae have urticating spines and are gregarious, especially in the early instars.

Automeris beckeri final instar, Goncalves, Minas Gerais, Brazil,
February 17, 2016, 1900, courtesy of Rodrigo Penati, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.?

Lemaire mentions the larvae have yellow spriracles and brown heads, which I do not see in the image above, but he also mentions a blue-violet or purple flourescence, which is very prevalent on the spine tips.

Automeris beckeri??. final instar, Sapucai, Minas Gerais, Brazil,
May 15, 2016, courtesy of Lucas Marques.

Automeris beckeri??. final instar, Novo Friburgo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
April 7, 2019, courtesy of Rodrigo Freitas, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

Automeris beckeri??. final instar, Novo Friburgo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
April 7, 2019, courtesy of Rodrigo Freitas, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

Automeris beckeri??. final instar, Novo Friburgo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
April 7, 2019, courtesy of Rodrigo Freitas, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

I am not certain if the larvae above are Automeris beckeri. Lemaire mentions brown heads, and the only head I can see is dark green. I also do not see (distinctive) yellow spiracles, and the lateral lines seem different between the two sets of images. Conisistency appears in the light blue tipped spinage and the red thoraci and anal trunks of spinage. If these are not beckeri, by process of eliminationn they should be bilinea tamphilus, inornata or nebulosa.

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.

Fagus Prunus Psidium guajava Quercus Sorocea bomplandii ....... Sorocea ilicifolia Urtiga

Beech Cherry Goiabeira Oak Cincho Sorocea ilicifolia Urtiga

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