DISTRIBUTION:

Megaceresa pulchra (wingspan: males: 47-60mm; females: 55-69mm) flies in
central Brazil: Federal District; Goias; Mato Grosso; Minas Gerais; Parana (CM/RSL); ? Sao Paulo; and
Paraguay: Concepcion; Laguna Blanca, San Pedro; Caaguazu (UD/PYBIO/Sergio Rios).

Megaceresa pulchra male, 58mm, Caaguazu, Paraguay, courtesy of Sergio Rios.

This is a smaller, paler moth with a white hindwing (male only), purplish along the costa, basal area and outer margin. There are black markings (streaks) on the side of the abdomen.

Megaceresa pulchra male, Concepcion Department, Paraguay,
August 2009, Ulf Drecshel via Paul Smith.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Megaceresa pulchra flies from mid September-March (Eurides Furtado) probably as a bivoltine species.

Paul Smith reports a May flight in San Pedro, Paraguay, and an August flight in Concepcion, Paraguay. Larvae feed upon Calliandra parviflora and Anadenanthera falcata.

I am not completely confident of the identifications of the specimens from Paraguay depicted on this page. They may be M. pulchra, but lines forewing lines and colouration seem different from the specimen image provided by Eurides Furtado.

Megaceresa pulchra male, Laguna Blanca, San Pedro, Paraguay,
May 19, 2010, courtesy of Paul Smith.

Megaceresa pulchra pair, Reserva Vale da Solidão, 14o22’S 56o07’W,
Mato Grosso, Brazil, courtesy of Eurides Furtado copyright

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Adult Megaceresa pulchra moths emerge from subterranean pupae, and males are slightly smaller than females.

Megaceresa pulchra female, northern Parana,
Cornell University Collection, courtesy of Ryan Saint Laurent

Megaceresa pulchra male, Laguna Blanca, San Pedro, Paraguay,
May 19, 2010, courtesy of Paul Smith.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Night-flying females lay translucent eggs on host plant leaves. The developing larvae can be seen through the egg shells.

Larvae pupate underground in small chambers.

Megaceresa pulchra larva, Eurides Furtado

Care of larvae and pupae should be as for any Neotropical species. Megaceresa pulchra larva, Eurides Furtado

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.

Anadenanthera falcata........ Calliandra parviflora

Anadenanthera falcata Calliandra parviflora

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Return to Megaceresa Index

Megaceresa pulchra male, Claude Lemaire

Megaceresa pulchra female, Claude Lemaire

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 source of the genus name "Megaceresa", but it might ?? mean great or large cherry and may refer to the pinkish-red colour of this moth.

The species name "pulchra" comes from the Latin word for beautiful.