DISTRIBUTION:

The Copaxa herbuloti moth (forewing length: males: 42mm; females: 44-52mm) flies in Peru: Pasco at elevations of 2600m.

This species is similar to sapatoza but has more slender forewings which are very pronounced at the apex. The hyaline crescents are much larger on the forewings than on the hindwings and are less outwardly concave.

Copaxa herbuloti female, courtesy of Jose Boettger copyright.

Copaxa herbuloti female, courtesy of Jose Boettger copyright.

Bernhard Wenczel writes, March 27, 2007, "Having a tiny window of spare time I've checked some Copaxa sp. on your site. I found a mistake in the C. herbuloti text. You've copied the old Lemaire information about this species. Since he had only one single specimen to study, he wrote it was distributed within the Andean slopes in Piura state - according to the label beneath the bug. It was caught in Huancabamba by someone with the name "Boettger". Does that ring? Exactly! That was José Boettger's great-grand-father.... There in Piura indeed exists a small city called Huancabamba, so it appears on the map Claude Lemaire consulted at the time he described C. herbuloti. But Pp's Great-Grand-Pa didn't live in Huancabamba, Piura, but in a tiny nest in Puno state - called Huancabamba as well. We noticed this error by Lemaire when I caught the first two known females in the environnement of Oxapampa, the neighbour city of little Huancabamba. It's pretty unlikely Pp's Great-Grand-Pa travelled seventy years ago across the whole country just for mothing, while around his own home there are plenty of insects. Furthermore all recent reports for C. herbuloti come only from Oxapampa. There's not a single reason to assume the first researched specimen came from Piura, but there are many to suppose this information was an error, because South American maps are/were incomplete.

"Concluding I reassure, we caught herbuloti females just after sunset (5:30 - 7:00 p.m.). They always walked or flew a few centimeters over the ground to the light source but never arrived completely on the lightened sheet. Normally they were hidden under leaves close by. The males were caught by calling females before noon (inf. K.Wolfe)."

Visit Copaxa sapatoza Group Comparison Chart.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Thus far Copaxa herbuloti has only been taken in April-May, but there may be additional flights. Males are diurnal, and females that respond to lights perhaps get "dazzled" before they make it to the light source.

Kirby Wolfe has reared this species on Persea americana, Avocado, which may or may not be a natural host. Not all larvae accept it, and none of the males emerged correctly.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Male Copaxa herbuloti moths use highly developed antennae to locate females before noon by tracking the airbourne pheromone plume. The female releases this scent into the air via an organ extended from the tip of the abdomen.

Copaxa herbuloti female, Peru, courtesy of Bernhard Wenczel.

male, dorsal, copyright Kirby Wolfe.

male, ventral, copyright Kirby Wolfe, eastern central Peru, cloud forested mountaintops

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

female copyright Kirby Wolfe

larva copyright Kirby Wolfe, eastern central Peru, cloud forested mountaintops

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.

Persea americana .....

Avocado

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