NEORIS OF THE WORLD

Neoris is "a cold-tolerant genus of one to four species endemic to the eastern Palaearctic, with 'one' species penetrating westwards as far as Turkey. Closely related to Caligula Moore (1862), Perisomena Walker (1855) and Saturnia Schrank (1802). Included in the latter by some authors."

Stefan Naumann (September 2006) indicates, "There is some uncertainness with all those taxa combined formerly under Neoris. Anyway, if not included in Saturnia (which is the actual taxonomic situation, following Nässig 1994) they would have to be classified with its older synonym Perisomena Walker, 1855. There were described several species, subspecies, forms and aberrations under Neoris, and, again following Nässig 1994, shadulla would be a separate species."

Stefan also offered some unpublished opinions. We will wait for his publications.

Larvae feed on "many trees and shrubs, but with a preference for the Rosaceae and Oleaceae."

Neoris huttoni naessigi larva.

Moths fly in the fall and diapause is in the egg stage.

Listing of Neoris

P codyi (Peigler, 1996) Pakistan, Northwest Frontier Province, Ghizar Mountains, Yasin
P huttoni huttoni Moore, 1862 Mussoorie, Uttar radesh, northern India
P huttoni galerope (Püngeler, 1900) Kopet-Dagh near Aschabad, Turkmenistan
P huttoni naessigi De Freina, 1992 30Km SE Ovacik, upper Munzur Valley, Erzincan Province, Turkey
P huttoni shadulla = haraldi Moore, 1872, Shadulla, Yarkand River, East Turkestan, Xinjiang Province, China

(Taxonomic note. The various subspecies of N. huttoni given here are regarded by some authors as being specifically distinct, with subsp. galeropa listed as a subspecies of N. shadulla.)

P Neoris schencki Staudinger, 1881 Uzbekistan (SW Gissar Mts.); same as galerope ?
P Neoris stoliczkana R. Felder, [1874] Kirgizstan (N Kirgizsky Mt. rng.); same as huttoni shadulla ?, more likely a good species!

Many pictures and much information in this section and linked Neoris species sections are from Tony Pittaway's site.

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"In my mind (unpublished) there are 4 species in the subgenus Perisomena, genus Saturnia: caecigena Kupido 1825; huttoni Moore 1862; stoliczkana Felder & Felder, 1874 (also your specimen); and codyi Peigler, 1996; all others I would classify as synonyms of either caecigena or stoliczkana at current knowledge (also unpublished)." SN