DISTRIBUTION:

The Eacles imperialis nobilis moth (wingspan: males: 92-100mm; females: 98-102mm) flies in Texas, Louisiana and Alabama. Some regard nobilis as a suffused morph of nominate imperialis.

Eacles imperialis female, form nobilis, Baldwin County, Alabama,
May 20 2008, courtesy of Dirk Bayer.

We are pretty sure that this colour morph came from the same female whose other offspring eclosed as typical E. imperialis imperialis.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Larvae probably feed on Quercus or any of the other foodplants of nominate imperialis.

Females are not as ornately decorated as the males of this species.

Eacles imperialis nobilis female courtesy of Vernon Antoine Brou Jr.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females mate around 10:00 P.M., and the pair remains coupled until the following evening. Upon separation, the females begin their ovipositing flights.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Yellow, translucent eggs are deposited singly or in small clusters of up to six. The larvae become visible through the egg shells a day or so before emerging.

Larvae are solitary in their feeding habits. 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.

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.

Quercus......

Oak

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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", honour a 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 "nobilis" means noble 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).