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Updated as per
Heppner's Atlas of Neotropical Lepidoptera Checklist: Part 4B, 1996, November 27, 2005
Lemaire's Ceratocampinae, November 29, 2005 Updated as per personal communication with Ezequiel Bustos and Carlos Mielke (E. i. magnifica, Buenos Aires), March 2008 Updated as per personal communication with Larry Valentine (Itanhandu, Minas Gerais, Brazil, January 2010); January 2010; March 28, 2013 Updated as per personal communication with Lorena Portillo (Buenos Aires, Argnetina); February 2010 Updated as per personal communication with Christopher Prevett (northeastern Uruguay); January 4, 2012 Updated as per Rio Grande do Sul: Arsenurinae and Ceratocampinae; April 25, 2013 Updated as per personal communication with Wolfgang Walz (Leopoldo, Minas Gerais, Brazil, February 2013); April 27, 2013 Updated as per personal communication with Martin Summers, via Danial Marlos (mature larva, Pueblo Garzon, Rocha, Uruguay, February 2014); March 25, 2014 |
TAXONOMY:Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 |
"WhatAWonderfulWorld" |
Males have forewings that are less falcate than those of E. i. cacicus. The female tends to be paler and more densely sprinkled with dark scales.
Eacles imperialis magnifica female, Martinez, Buenos Aires, Argentina,
October 2007, courtesy/copyright Ezequiel Bustos, id by Carlos Mielke.
Eacles imperialis magnifica female, Buenos Aires, Argentina, courtesy of Lorena Portillo.
Eacles imperialis magnifica female, Itanhandu, Minas Gerais, Brazil,
February 2009, courtesy of Larry Valentine.
Larval host families: "Anacardiaceae, Betulaceae, Burseraceae, Caprifoliaceae, Cochlospermaceae, Combretaceae, Cupressaceae, Ebenaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae: Caesalpinioideae, Fabaceae: Faboideae, Fagaceae, Hamamelidaceae, Juglandaceae, Lauraceae, Malvaceae, Moraceae, Myricaceae, Myrtaceae, Oleaceae, Pinaceae, Platanaceae, Rosaceae, Rubiaceae, Salicaceae, Sapindaceae, Ulmaceae."
Females are not as ornately decorted as the males of this species.
Eacles imperialis magnifica male, Uruguay,
December 1, 2010, courtesy of Pablo de Carmello Rou.
Under natural conditions, larvae are solitary in their feeding habits.
Females are sometimes so loaded with eggs that they will dump or unload some of them before flying. Lorena Portillo found a pair of Eacles imperialis in copula.
When they separated, the female began dumping eggs before she flew away. I am pretty sure this is subspecies magnifica, as females of subspecies opaca
tends to have more of an orangey-brown ground colour, and a wider and more concave forewing pm line.
Eacles imperialis female, dumping eggs,
Buenos Aires, Argentina, courtesy of Lorena Portillo.
Eacles imperialis female, depositing eggs,
Buenos Aires, Argentina, courtesy of Lorena Portillo.
Eacles imperialis magnifica courtesy/copyright of Uwe Kauz.
Eacles imperialis magnifica courtesy/copyright of Uwe Kauz.
Eacles imperialis magnifica courtesy of Manel Moreno.
Eacles imperialis magnifica/cacicus ??, Itanhandu, southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil,
green form, courtesy of Larry Valentine.
Eacles imperialis magnifica male, Itanhandu, Minas Gerais, Brazil,
October 16, 2008, courtesy of Larry Valentine,
id and digital repair (wingtips) by Bill Oehlke.
Larvae descend trees to pupate in underground chambers. Pupae should be stored under cool , but above freezing temperatures, and sprinkling with water a few times a week in June encourages July eclosions. The wild larvae that Larry Valentine has found in Itanhandu, Minas Gerais, Brazil, have been feedingon avacado and guava.
Avacado (LV) |
Avacado |
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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.
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", honoura contempory friend/collector/etc.
I do not know the source of the genus name "Eacles", but it may be a combination of
"Ea", the Greek word for gods and goddesses and the Greek suffix "cles", meaning 'glory of'.
The species name "imperialis" is probably for the majestic appearance and colouration of this moth.
The subspecies name "magnifica" means magnificent or honoured. There seems to be a trend to have named E. imperialis subspecies
after politial or military rankings/stature: cacicus (local leader/boss), decoris (decorated), magnifica (powerful, magnificent), nobilis (noble).