DISTRIBUTION:

Hirpida gaujoni (forewing length: males: 31-37mm; females: 39-40mm) flies in
Ecuador: Sucumbios, Napo, Morona-Santiago, Zamora Chinchipe (LR), Loja;
and Peru: (probably Puno (WO??); Colombia: Boyaca (2900m), Tolima (3200m); and
possibly Bolivia: La Paz: Chapare.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in January, March-April, June, September and December, suggesting three broods annually with peak flights in December-January and in June. Larvae hosts are unknown.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Females extend a scent gland from the tip of the abdomen, and the night-flying males pickup and track the airbourne pheromone plume with their well-developed antennae.

Females seem most active between 10:30 and 11:00 pm, males from 11:00 pm until 1:00 am.

Hirpida gaujoni female, courtesy of Bernhard Wenczel.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in clusters on hostplant foliage.

Hirpida gaujoni larvae are highly gregarious and have the urticating spines typical of larvae from the Subfamily Hemileucinae.

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.

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