DISTRIBUTION:

Arsenura ponderosa yungasensis (wingspan: males: mm; females: mm) (forewing length: males: 90-97mm; females: 102mm) flies in
Bolivia:
Bolivia: North Yungas, 100 km NE La Paz, -16.2, -67.6, 2009-11-01;
Bolivia: La Paz: Nor Yungas, Inca Huara; Mirror; at elevations from 1000-1800m.

The male of A. p. yungasensis is darker brown than the nominate subspecies. A. p. guianensis, the largest member of this genus, tends to be orangey-brown.

The male forewing of A. p. yungasensis is very slightly concave with an apex that is not or only slightly produced. The male forewing of A. p. ponderosa is very slightly convex to straight, and the apex is not at all produced. The male forewing of A. p. guianensis is slightly produced, and then the outer margin is straight to the anal angle without any crenulations. Both yungasensis and the nominate subspecies show slight extensions at wing veins, giving the outer margin a crenulated expression.

The diffuse pm line from the costa to the transverse line is slightly convex in males of both yungasensis and the nominate subspecies, but very straight in A. p. guianensis.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Arsenura ponderosa yungasensis is on the wing in October-November in Bolivia. There are probably additional flight months.

Larvae feed on ?

Arsenura ponderosa female, Bolivia,
courtesy of Thibaud Decaens.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Males use their antennae to seek out females which scent at night.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

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.

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.

I do not know the source of the genus name "Arsenura" chosen by Duncan in 1841.

The species/subspecies names ponderosa yungasensis are probably indicative of a species with a specimen type location in Yungas, Bolivia, similar in appearance to A. ponderosa.

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