DISTRIBUTION:

Scolesa nebulosa (wingspan: males: 51-58-62mm; females: 69mm) flies in
south and central Brazil: Pernambuco; Minas Gerais; Mato Grosso; Mato Grosso do Sul (RSL); ? Ceara (SB); ? Rio Grande do Norte (FO).

Scolesa nebulosa male, 62mm, Corumba, Mato Grosso do Sul,
Cornell University Collection, via Ryan Saint Laurent.

Males are small and greyish with a faint discal spot. The postmedian line is also faint and wavy.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are probably three broods annually (possibly) in February and then (possibly) again in July and in October. The image below, if correctly identified, indicates a March flight as well.

Larval hosts are unknown.

Scolesa nebulosa/hypoxantha male, Tiangua, Ceara, Brazil,
March 14, 2018, courtesy of Sylvia Barrosa, tentative id by Bill Oehlke,
could be hypoxantha or something undescribed.

Due to strong presence of mouse-grey and dark grey hairs on thorax and upper abdominal segments, I think the moth directly above is most likely Scolesa hypoxantha or somtehing undescribed. I think Scolesa nebulosa is a consistently more orangey-brown moth, especially in the median field.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Scolesa nebulosa moths emerge from subterrranean pupae. Females probably call from 10:30 pm until 12:30 am and then make their ovipositing flights over the next several nights.

Scolesa nebulosa female, Claude Lemaire

I am not sure if the image below is a female S. hypoxantha from Montevideo, in northeastern Uruguay: Montevideo, but it could also be a pale or faded example of Scolesa nebulosa; or it could be a species as yet undescribed.

Scolesa hypoxantha/nebulosa?? female, 67mm, Montevideo, Uruguay,
Cornell University Collection, via Ryan Saint Laurent.

The digital image of the female above has had significant digital repair by Bill Oehlke. I reconstructed a broken right forewing tip and then copied and flipped the "restored" right forewing to the left side where the forewing was completely missing. I am not sure of the tracking of the diffuse pm line as it approaches the apex, but I am expecting it to be similar to that of the male.

The outer margin of the hindwings seems less convex than I would expect and the hindwing apex seems squarer than I would expect for either nebulosa or hypoxantha. The location is also well beyond the stated range for either species.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Eggs are translucent and development can be seen through eggshells.

Newly emerged larvae are particularly well adorned with thoracic "horns".

Mature larvae leave the foodplant to pupate in subterranean chambers.

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.

Return to Scolesa 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.

I do not know the meaning of or reason for the genus name "Scolesa".

The species name "nebulosa" is probably from the Latin meaning misty or foggy or cloudy, and might ?? refer to the indistinct pm line.