Gynanisa jama (male), Tanzania, courtesy of Eric van Schayck.

DISTRIBUTION:

The Gynanisa jama moth (wingspan: males: approximately 110mm; females: approximately 125mm) flies in southern and eastern parts of Tanzania (TB), and in northern Zambia (TB).

Thierry Bouyer indicates it may also fly in Malawi and writes, "G. minettii is a synonym with G. jama. The habitus of the type of minettii fits very well with jama and its locality is in southern Tanzania."

Gynanisa jama female, Livingstone Mountains, Tanzania,
courtesy of Andreas Riekert; id by Thierry Bouyer

Thierry indicates the above moth is either a female G. jama or a female G. westwoodi.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

These moths probably fly in November-December.

Gynanisa jama larvae feed upon Acacia and Mopane.

Gynanisa jama, Tanzania, courtesy of David Bygott.

Gynanisa jama, Tanzania, courtesy of David Bygott.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Eclosion is from a subterranean pupa. Males fly around midnight, the calling time of females.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Gynanisa jama from Acacia tortilis woodland, Tanzania, courtesy of David Bygott.

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.

I do not know the source of Gynanisa, but it probaly comes from some combination of the following: "gyn" is a Latin prefix for woman. The Arabic "Anisa" (ah-NEE-sah) means "friendly, congenial." The Hindi "Anisha" means "end of night." Since "maja" is a common Hindi word, as are ata and jama, two other species in the genus, I suspect there is a link in their choices even though the species were determined in 1936 (maja), 1911 (ata) and 1915 (jama). The females of this species call around midnight, technically the end of the night, the beginning of a new day.

I do not know the origin of the species name jama.

Listed below are the 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.

Acacia Colophospermum mopane.....

Acacia Mopane

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