Updated October 16, 2005 Updated as per Entomo-Satsphingia 2 (1): 56 – 61 (März 2009), (australoboreas), Ron Brechlin, July 2009

Dysdaemonia australoboreas
diz-day-MOH-nee-uh mmaw-strail-oh-BOR-ee-as
Brechlin & Meister, 2009

Dysdaemonia australoboreas male, Montenegro, Amazonas, Peru, 118mm,
from Entomo-Satsphingia 2 (1): 56 – 61 (März 2009), courtesy of Ron Brechlin.

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

DISTRIBUTION:

Dysdaemonia australoboreas (forewing length: males: 69-73mm; females: 67-72 mm) flies in
Peru: Amazonas: Montenegro (900m) and Bagua Chica (600 m), Madre de Dios: Rio Carbon: Camicana Chico (1200m), Junin: Satipo: Calabaza (2000 m) and Rio Perene (Shima) (350m) and Satipo: San Martin de Pangoa (1400-1600m); and
northern Bolivia: N. Yungas (1000-1800m).

John Kamps sends the following image, indicated as a paratype from Peru.

Dysdaemonia australoboreas, Bagua Chica, Montenegro, Dept. Amazonas, Peru,
600m, Nov/2006 leg. R. Marx, courtesy of John Kamps.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Specimens have been taken in January-February, May-June-July-August and November-December. Larvae probably feed upon Red silk cotton tree (Bombax ceiba), White silk cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra) and Chorisia

Dysdaemonia australoboreas female, Peru, 128mm,
from Entomo-Satsphingia 2 (1): 56 – 61 (März 2009), courtesy of Ron Brechlin.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Males use their antennae to locate females at night by tracking her airbourne pheromone plume.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the suspected foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Bombax ceiba Ceiba pentandra..... Chorisia

Red silk cotton tree White silk cotton tree Chorisia

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 "Dysdaemonia" chosen by Hubner in 1819. It could be a combination meaning 'bad spirit'.

The species name "australoboreas" is chosen for the similarity to D. boreas.

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Dysdaemonia