DISTRIBUTION:

Periga falcata (wingspan: males: 58-75mm; females: 64-83mm); (forewing length: males: 30-38mm; females 34-36mm) flies in
southeastern Brazil: Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Parana, and probably southeastern Minas Gerais (LV); and
possibly in Uruguay: Montevideo.

Ulf Drechsel reports them in Paraguay: Canindeyu and Alto Parana.

Males are usually grey (sometimes purplish-grey or orange-rusty-brown) with a light sprinkling of black scales. The forewing pm line is usually narrow and inwardly bordered in yellowish-white.

Thus far specimens have been taken at elevations from 160m to 920m. Its general larger size and more often greyish ground colour should help distinguish it from Periga circumstans where the two species are sympatric.

This species belongs to the Periga falcata Subgroup which consists of the following species:

Periga falcata Periga camacana Periga spatulata Periga falcbahiana Periga falcleopoldina Periga falcparaguayensis Periga santaleopoldina Periga falpotensis Periga spatulatoides Periga insidiosa Periga insidiosoides Periga inornata Periga paraleopoldina Periga lamercedia Periga Periga sanmartiniana Periga prattorum Periga Periga Periga Periga

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in February, April-May-June-July, and again in October-November, suggesting three or four broods annually.

Larvae feed on Diospyros kaki and Joannesia princeps.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

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

Periga falcata female, copyright Carlos Mielke

Unknown Periga female, possibly falcata, from Ilhabela, Sao Paulo, Brazil,
April 19, 2018, courtesy of Sergio Messias Leal.

I note the female Periga directly above seems devoid of the pale yellow to whitish-yellow lines and markings that are usually found along and outside the subterminal line on all wings. I favour falcata, but it could be one of the newer species (very close to falcbahiana) which have not been reported in Sao Paulo as yet. In some cases, regarding the new er species, females have not yet been described.

Periga falcata female, copyright DanielHerbin

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage.

Periga falcata larvae are 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.

Diospyros kaki Joannesia princeps.......

Japanese persimmon Cutiera or Anda-Acu

Return to Periga Index

Return to Main Saturniidae 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 "Periga" chosen by Walker in 1855.

The reason for the species name "falcata" is unknown to me as the male depicted in Lemaire's Hemileucinae 2002 does not show a pointed forewing apex. Perhaps the photographed specimens were worn.

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