Coloradia casanovai

Updated as per Heppner's Checklist: Part 4B 1996, December 6, 2005
Updated as per Lemaire's Hemileucinae 2002, December 6, 2005
Updated as per personal communication with Lauren Zarate via Ryan Saint-Laurent, September 7, 2014

Coloradia casanovai
kahl-er-AGH-dee-uhMkas-uh-NOH-vuh-eye
Beutelspacher, 1993

Coloradia casanovai male,
courtesy of Dr. Manuel A. Balcazar Lara

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY:

Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802
Family: Saturniidae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834
Subfamily: Hemileucinae, [1837] 1834
Genus: Coloradia, Blake, 1863

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FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Coloradia casanovai flies from March to July at moderate elevations.

Pinus oocarpa, P. pseudostrobus, P. montezumae and Pinus teocote are probably the preferred natural host plants. Other pine species will probably be accepted.

In September 2014, Ryan Saint-Laurent advised me of some beautiful images on the Project Noah website. I was able to obtain permission from photographer Lauren Zarate to post them to this page.

Coloradia casanovai female, San Cristobal de la Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
July 16, 2013, courtesy of Lauren Zarate, via Ryan Saint-Laurent.

Coloradia casanovai female (verso), San Cristobal de la Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
July 16, 2013, courtesy of Lauren Zarate, via Ryan Saint-Laurent.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Eclosions probably take place from noon until 4:00 pm. It is expected (unknown) that females scent just after dusk and pairs stay coupled for just about an hour. Females then begin their ovipositing flights.

In September 2014, Ryan Saint-Laurent advised me of some beautiful images on the Project Noah website. I was able to obtain permission from photographer Lauren Zarate to post them to this page.

Coloradia casanovai female, San Cristobal de la Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
July 16, 2013, courtesy of Lauren Zarate, via Ryan Saint-Laurent.

Coloradia casanovai female (verso), San Cristobal de la Casas, Chiapas, Mexico,
July 16, 2013, courtesy of Lauren Zarate, via Ryan Saint-Laurent.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Females probably fly as soon as copulation is over and lay clusters of 6-12 large eggs at the bases of pine needles. Eggs are probably green at first but turn bluish grey with a dark micropyle at maturity. Incubation can last up to three weeks.
Larvae are highly gregarious at first with several caterpillars often feeding on a single pine needle. Larvae become more solitary as they mature and descend tree trunks in the fall to spin loose cocoons just under the surface litter.

Larval Food Plants

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.

Pinus.......

Pine

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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.
Coloradia, the genus name, was possibly chosen for the state of Colorado where Coloradia pandora, the genus specimen type, is widespread.
The species name casanova is honourific for Casanova.