DISTRIBUTION:

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are probably two Citheronia mexicana broods annually with moths on the wing in May and then again in September.

Larvae feed on Prunus persica.

Citheronia mexicana female, by Claude Lemaire.

Regarding the female below, Ryan Saint Laurent comments, "This individual could really be either C. mexicana or C. pseudomexicana. Regardless, this would be the first time a female of either species is depicted on WLSS.
Locale: Fortin de los Flores, Veracruz, Mexico; WS: 117 mm"

Citheronia pseudomexicana/mexicana?? female, Fortin de los Flores, Veracruz, Mexico,
117mm, Cornell University Collection, courtesy of Ryan Saint Laurent.

Compared to the Claude Lemaire image of the female Citheronia mexicana that I have on this file on my home computer, I feel the female from the Cornell University Collection is more likely C. pseudomexicana, primarily based on the shape of the outer margin of the forewing. In both species, the outer margin is quite convex, but in mexicana, the overall line from the apex to the anal angle is more oblique. In the female pseudomexicana the forewing seems fuller and more "squarish" near the anal angle. The size is more in line with an average pseudomexicana rather than a large mexicana. Bill Oehlke

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.

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae. 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.

Carya Juglans.....

Hickory Walnut

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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 "mexicana" is for its range in Mexico.