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Updated from Lemaire's Hemileucinae, 2002, October 13, 2005;
January 12, 2007 Updated as per communication from Jean Michel Maes (Nicaragua), March 2007 Updated as per http://www.inbio.ac.cr/bims/k02/p05/c029/o0119/f00885.htm IB, April 2008 Updated as per personal communication with Jose Monzon (Izabal, Firmeza, Guatemala, May 2008); May 2009 Updated as per personal communication with Norm Smith (Las Cuevas, Cayo, Belize); November 2009 Updated as per personal communication with Robert Lehman (La Muralla National Park, Olancho, Honduras, 82-92mm); December 2009 |
TAXONOMY:Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 |
"Someone to Watch Over Me" |
Based on recent DNA barcoding analysis and the publication of many new determinations/names by Brechlin and Meister, 2011, all of the data above
must be reassessed. B & M recognize A. b. banus from Mexico (Global Mirror indicates to Guanacaste, Costa Rica); they designate specimens from Nicaragua to Heredia, Costa Rica, as A. b. banumediata;
they elevate A. b. argentifera to full species status from Cartago, Costa Rica; Panama; western Colombia and northwestern Ecuador;
and they make no change to A. b. proxima from southwestern Ecuador.
Since the ICZN does not allow for two subspecies of the same species to be sympatric, their submissions would indicate the range of nominate banus would not extend
into Nicaragua, so it is a surprise that Global Mirror reports barcoding for A. b. banus in Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
I have images and data from Guatemala and Honduras that leave me confused. Those specimens should be nominate banus or banus banumediata.
Jurgen Vanhoudt reports that Automeris proxima denuda, previously synonymized with Automeris banus banus, now has full species status as Automeris denuda, with a specimen type from Panama and a range extension northward into Costa Rica. This is based on DNA barcoding analysis.
Automeris banus banus, Oaxaca, Mexico, July 2006, courtesy of Kelly Price.
Visit Automeris banus male, Firmeza, Izabal, Guatemala, May, 2008, courtesy of Jose Monzon.
Visit Automeris banus faded males, La Muralla National Park, Olancho, Honduras, courtesy of Robert Lehman.
Natural hosts include Attalea cohune and Calyptrogyne ghiesbreghtiana. Larvae also feed on Gleditsia, Pyrus, Rhus and Robinia.
In Europe, Bernhard Wenczel reports Fagus silvatica, Quercus robur and Quercus thurneri x pseudothurneri are used with some success.
Automeris banus male, Xico, Veracruz, Mexico,
April 20, 2006, courtesy of James Buddenhagen,
tentative id by Bill Oehlke.
Females extend a scent gland from the tip of the abdomen. Males use highly developed antennae to track the airbourne pheromone to locate the females.Soft moths expand wings in this position. Once the wings have stiffened, typical resting position is with the wings parallel to the resting surface, with the forewings completely covering the hindwings. |
Eggs are deposited in large clusters or rows, sometimes of forty or more.Larvae are highly gregarious, almost inseparable in the first instar. Image by Dan Janzen. |
Heads become red in the second instar.Yellow "racing stripe" is quite wide compared to the lateral line of other Automeris species. |
Urticating spines offer the
Automeris banus larvae
much protection.The preponderance of spines is on the first two and last two abdominal segments. |
Automeris banus, Costa Rica, fourth instar, courtesy of Franz Ziereis copyright.
Attalea cohune | Cohune palm/Rain tree/American oil palm |
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Automeris banus banus male, 86mm, Oaxaca, Mexico,
on my home computer only.