DISTRIBUTION:

Hylesia canitia (wingspan: males: 35-44mm; females: 48-63mm) flies in
French Guiana: Kaw, Cayenne, Regina, Saint-Jean-du-Maroni, Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, Mines, Belizon, Nancibo;
Guyana: Mazaruni-Potaro;
Surinam: ;
Venezuela: Bolivar, Amazonas;
Colombia: Santander del Sur;
Ecuador: Napo, Morona-Santiago and probably Pastaza and (nr canitia Zamora Chinchipe (LR));
Peru: Huanuco, Loreto, Junin (400-1800m);
Bolivia: La Paz; and
Brazil: Amazonas, probably Para and northern Mato Grosso (JVB); at altitudes of near sea level to 1800m.

The thorax is dark brown interspersed with greyish hairs; the abdomen is brown, interspersed with yellow hairs. The rounded forewing is slightly elongated, sometimes slightly apically produced. The ground colour is purplish brown and the very slightly S-shaped postmedian line is brown, outwardly traced with greyish-white. The prominent, rounded cell spot is dark brown. The antemedian line is brown and angulate. The subterminal line is very faint.

Hylesia canitia female, Cristalino Jungle Lodge, Mato Grosso, Brazil,
August 5, 2007, courtesy of Johan van t Bosch, tentative id by Bill Oehlke.

Lemaire does not list H. canitia from Mato Grosso, Brazil, but I have placed the specimen from the Cristalino Jungle Lodge, northern Mato Grosso, in that category, based on features it has in common with many other Hylesia that also match canitia, but few Hylesia other than canitia have the very angulate am line. Hylesia nigricans and Hylesia paulex, known so far only from southeastern Brazil, are also possibilities.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

In French Guiana the moth is encountered pretty much throughout the year and probably broods continuously.

Larval hosts are unknown.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females extend a scent gland from the tip of the abdomen, and the night-flying males pick up and track the airbourne pheromone plume with their well-developed antennae.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are probably deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage.

Hylesia canitia larvae are probably highly gregarious and have the urticating spines typical of larvae from the Subfamily Hemileucinae.

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.

I do not know the origin of the genus name Hylesia.

The species name canitia is from Latin, meaning whitish grey, refering to the scaling near the outer margins.

Hylesia canitia female, Nancibo, French Guiana, Philippe Collet,
French Guiana Systematique, on my home computer only, copyright Rene Lahousse.