DISTRIBUTION:

The Agapema dyari moth (wingspan: 55-75 mm) flies in southwestern Texas, southeastern New Mexico and Mexico: Chihuahua. Some texts treat dyari as a subspecies of anona.

Agapema anona dyari, New Mexico, September 2005, courtesy of Michael van Buskirk.

Mike writes, "These adults were from cocoons collected in Chaves County, New Mexico, along Highway 380 West of Roswell. The hostplant is a thorny desert shrub -- Microrhamnus ericoides, and it grows in colonies in the flats. Many of the shrubs have colonies of empty, dead, or parasitized cocoons. It is a little challenging to find live ones, since the percentage of empty or dead ones is much higher.

Agapema anona dyari males, courtesy of Michael van Buskirk.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in September, October and November. Larvae feed gregariously on javelina bush (Microrhamnus ericoides).

Habitat: Lincoln National Forest, near Alamogordo, New Mexico,
courtesy of Joel Szymczyk

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Moths generally eclose in late morning and remain still for the first day. Pairing is brief (one hour or less) and usually between 10:00 pm and 1:00 am. The males are slightly smaller than the females and the forewings of the males tend to more acutely angled. Both sexes come in to lights.

Agapema dyari female, courtesy of Joel Szymczyk, Otero County, New Mexico.

Agapema anona dyari pair, courtesy of Joel Szymczyk.

Agapema dyari pair, Fort Davis, Jeff Davis County, Texas,
September, 2020, courtesy of Derek Bridgehouse.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in large clusters (30-60) on the tips of host plant stems and overwinter. Gregarious larvae begin feeding in late March or early April in large groups which become progressively smaller as larvae develop. Mature larvae attain lengths of 45-55 mm. Image courtesy of Jim Tuttle.

Double-walled cocoons are usually spun up by early June and are not too difficult to find. Many are parasitized, however, and sturdiness of the cocoon often results in the structure remaining affixed to host plant branches for several years. Image courtesy of Joel Szymczak.

Listed below are the primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae and/or on various internet sites. 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.

Microrhamnus ericoides.......

Javelina bush

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