Citheronia johnsoni
Updated as per Heppner's Atlas of Neotropical Lepidoptera Checklist: Part 4B, 1996, December 2, 2005
Lemaire's Ceratocampinae, December 2, 2005
Updated as per Rio Grande do Sul: Arsenurinae and Ceratocampinae; April 25, 2013
Updated as per personal communication with Ryan Saint Laurent, November 4, 2013

Citheronia johnsoni
sih-ther-OH-nee-uhMJOHN-son-eye
Schaus, 1928

Citheronia johnsoni, male, Santa Cruz do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
courtesy of "The Smithsonian Insect Collection (USNM) courtesy of Ryan St. Laurent".

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: Ceratocampinae, Harris, 1841
was Citheroniinae: Neumoegen & Dyar, 1894
Genus: Citheronia, Hübner, 1819
Species: johnsoni, Schaus, 1928

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DISTRIBUTION:

Citheronia johnsoni (wingspan: males: 67-84mm; females: 108-115mm // forewing length: males: females: ) flies in
southeastern Brazil: Rio Grande do Sul (Santa Cruz do Sul) and Porto Alegre.

The thorax is completely yellow and there are nine yellow internervular spots all in a complete row on the forewing.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in November-December. Larval hosts are unknown.

Citheronia johnsoni, female, Claude Lemaire (on my home computer only).

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Moths eclose from subterranean pupae.

Females call in the males with an airbourne pheromone and most activity occurs in the early morning hours from 1:00 to 3:00 am.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Pupation is underground in a small cell.

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.

Return to Citheronia Index

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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.

The source of the genus name "Citheronia" is probably Mount Citheron (Greek mythology), an untamed wilderness, exempt from the laws of civilization. The goddesses go naked there and are free from any of the pressures of society.

The species name "johnsoni" is honourific for Johnson.

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Citheronia johnsoni, male, Claude Lemaire (on my home computer only).

Citheronia johnsoni (doubtful id) male, Brazil, on my home computer only.