DISTRIBUTION:

Dirphia brevifurca (wingspan: males: 63-77mm; females; 82-92mm) flies in
Ecuador: Sucumbios, Orellana, Morona-Santiago and possibly Napo;
Peru: Loreto, Pasco: San Juan de Cacazu (TK), Junin, Cusco, Madre de Dios, Puno; and
Bolivia: La Paz, Cochabamba; on the eastern slopes of the Andes at low to moderate elevation of 600-1600m.

Dirphia brevifurca male, Yasuni, Orellana, Ecuador,
February 18, 1996, courtesy of Horst Kach.

Dirphia brevifurca male (verso), Yasuni, Orellana, Ecuador,
February 18, 1996, courtesy of Horst Kach.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in January-February, May-July, and again in October-November (LC), suggesting at least three broods annually. Toni Kasiske reports an October flight in Pasco, Peru. Native larval hosts are unknown, but Tony Kasiske has had success rearing them on brambles.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Males use highly developed antennae to locate females at night by tracking her airbourne pheromone plume. Dirphia brevifurca male, Wild Sumaco Lodge, Napo, Ecuador, November 15, 2012, courtesy of Les Catchick, id by Bill Oehlke. Dirphia brevifurca female, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, October 7, 2017, 800m, courtesy of Tony Kasiske, id by Bill Oehlke. EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE: Eggs are laid in large clusters and larvae feed gregariously. Typical of the Subfamily Hemileucinae, Dirphia species all have urticating spines. Dirphia brevifurca hatchlings, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca second instars, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca third instars, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca fourth instars, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca second instars, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca fifth instar, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca fifth instar, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, 800m, courtesy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca pupa, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, October 7, 2017, 800m, courtersy of Toni Kasiske. Dirphia brevifurca pupa, San Juan de Cacazu, Pasco, Peru, October 7, 2017, 800m, courtersy of Toni Kasiske. 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. Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page. The following links may not be active. Return to Main Saturniidae Index Return to Dirphia Index 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. Some of the early describers/namers chose genus and species names indicating some character of the insect, but more often, they simply chose names from Greek or Roman mythology or history. Those species names which end in "ensis" indicate a specimen locale, and those which end in "i", pronounced "eye", honour a contempory friend/collector/etc. I do not know the source of the genus name "Dirphia" chosen by Hubner in 1819. The species name "brevifurca", comes from the Latin combination for 'short' and 'fork'.