DISTRIBUTION:

The Titaea lemoulti moth (wingspan: males: 107-144mm; females: 142-153mm) flies in tropical rain forest (150 - 1500 m) in the Guyano-Amazonian region:
French Guiana: Saint-Jean-du-Maroni, Cayenne, Kourou, Kaw;
Brazil: Para, Amazonas, Mato Grosso;
Venezuela: Tachira and possibly Apure, Bolivar and Amazonas;
Colombia: Meta, Caqueta;
Ecuador: Napo (occasional, most abundant June-August (LR)); Wildsumaco Lodge 1480m, February 28, 2011 (PO), Sucumbios, Morona-Santiago, probably Pastaza, Tungurahua and Orellana;
Peru: Amazonas (LTR), Loreto, Puno, Ucayali (VI), (Huanuco: Tingo Maria, 930m (HM)), probably San Martin, Junin, Pasco, Cusco.

I suspect it also flies in the southern half of Guyana and Suriname.

There is a single, small narrow hyaline spot within the dark brown markings of the forewing. The deep fawn ground colour is constant. The outer margins are scalloped.

Titaea lemoulti Misahualli, Prov. Napo, eastern Ecuador,
450 m, January, courtesy of Horst Kach.

Titaea lemoulti male, Misahualli, Napo Province, eastern Ecuador,
450 m, May 1, 2005 courtesy of Horst Kach.

Titaea lemoulti male (verso), Misahualli, Napo Province, eastern Ecuador,
450 m, May 1, 2005 courtesy of Horst Kach.

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.

The genus name "Titaea" comes from the Greek Titaea, who is the mother of the Titans.

The species name "lemoulti" is to honour L. Lemoult, a contemporary worker/collector.

Titaea lemoulti male, courtesy of Hubert Mayer copyright.

Titaea lemoulti male, Tingo Maria, Huanuco, Peru,
930m, February, 2007, courtesy of Hubert Mayer copyright.

Titaea lemoulti (corrected from Titaea tamerlan amazonensis by Bill Oehlke), courtesy of Entomo Service

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are likely three broods each year with Titaea lemoulti moths on the wing in January-February, in June-July and again in September (JVB), October-November (VI). Hubert Mayer reports a February flight in Tingo Maria, Huanuco, Peru.

Titaea lemoulti larvae feed on Brachychiton populneus and Chorisia speciosa and will likely accept Bombacopsis quinatum.

Titaea lemoulti male, Atalaya, Ucayali Peru,
November 1, 2008, 350m, courtesy of Vladimir Izersky.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING: