Eacles acuta
EE-uh-kleesMuh-KEW-tuh
Schaus, 1905

Eacles acuta male courtesy of Entomo Service

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

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 Family: Saturniidae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Subfamily: Ceratocampinae, Harris, 1841 Genus: Eacles, Hübner, [1819] Species: acuta, Schaus, 1905

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DISTRIBUTION:

Eacles acuta (wingspan: males: 78-89mm; females larger) flies in Guyana: Omai;
French Guiana: Saint-Jean-du-Maroni and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni; Belizon; Oyapock; Kaw and
Brazil RSL: Amapa: Serra do Navio, at 1300-1800m.

It should also be in Suriname.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

In Guyana, moths have been taken in May-September and December.

Natural hosts are unknown.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females have ciliate antennae and extend a scent gland, emitting pheromone, from the tip of the abdomen at night. Males fly in a zigzag pattern into the wind and use their more highly developed antennae (quadripectinate for basal two-thirds) to track the pheromone. The pair remains coupled until the following evening. Upon separation, the females begin their ovipositing flights. Male right, French Guiana, Carlot Didier.

Eacles acuta female, French Guiana, courtesy of Carlos G. C. Mielke. copyright

Eacles acuta female courtesy of Carlot Didier.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Yellow, translucent eggs are deposited singly or in small clusters of up to six. The larvae become visible through the egg shells a day or so before emerging.

Larvae are solitary in their feeding habits and have extensive thoracic scoli, especially pronounced in early instars. At maturity, larvae descend trees to pupate in underground chambers. Pupae should be stored under cool , but above freezing temperatures, and sprinkling with water a few times a week in spring encourages subsequent eclosions.

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.

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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 "Eacles", but it may be a combination of "Ea", the Greek word for gods and goddesses and the Greek suffix "cles", meaning 'glory of'.

The species name "acuta" is probably for the sharp (acute) angle at the apex of the male forewing.

Eacles acuta male, Bruno Penin, French Guiana Systematique, on my home computer only.