DISTRIBUTION:

Hemileuca hera (wingspan 71-93mm, females larger than males), flies in the Great Basin area from southwestern Saskatchewan west to southeastern British Columbia; south to western Colorado, central Utah, and central Nevada. Subspecies marcata is in southern Oregon and northern California, while subspecies magnifica occurs in northeastern Arizona, northern New Mexico, and southern Colorado.

The moth inhabits Great Basin sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper woodland, and subalpine sagebrush meadows and has been taken at elevations as high as 10,000 feet.

Hemileuca hera magnifica male, San Luis, Castilla County, Colorado,
77mm, August 12, 1994, courtesy/copyright Charles Bordelon and Ed Knudson.

Hemileuca hera magnifica habitat, Hwy 159, Mesita exit, two blocks,
Costilla county, Colorado, courtesy of Russell Witkop.

Derek Bridgehouse sends the following image of subspecies/form/variant marcata, purchased from Bill Houtz.

Hemileuca hera marcata male, Klamath Falls, Oregon,
August 21, 1980, courtesy of Derek Bridgehouse,
slight digital repair by Bill Oehlke.

"Identification: Wings are white with black markings including a black crescent-shaped cell spot on each wing. Subspecies/form marcata (Neumoegen, 1891 Pseudohazis Hera var. Marcata) (southern Oregon and northern California) has the black markings much reduced as per Derek Bridgehouse image, above. Subspecies magnifica (Rotger, 1948 Pseudohazis hera magnifica) (northeastern Arizona, northern New Mexico, southern Colorado) is larger than the others and has darker, heavier markings."

Hemileuca hera magnifica male courtesy of Todd Huffman

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

This species flies from July to September, but at high elevations and northern latitudes, the cocoons overwinter and adults emerge in the spring.

Larvae feed on Basin big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) and sand sagebrush (A. filifolia).

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING: Eclosions take place early in the morning and females call from 9:00-10:30 of the same day. Pairing with the slightly smaller males is very brief, usually less than an hour. Females make their ovipositing flights in the early afternoon, sometimes flying as late as 6:00 pm. To the left, a freshly emerged male has climbed to the top of his cloth emergence cage and will now hang and inflate his wings. Image courtesy of Russell Witkop.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS AND PUPAE:

Females lay eggs in bands around twigs of the host plant. Eggs overwinter and hatch in April or May; the young caterpillars feed together and become solitary as they progress. Russell Witkop sent me these images of second and third instar larvae on July 16, 2003.

Images courtesy of Russell Witkop.

Listed below are 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.

Artemisia tridentata....... Artemesia filifolia

Basin big sagebrush Sand sagebrush

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