DISTRIBUTION:

Hyperchiria nausica (forewing length: males: 23-30mm; females: 35-46mm; wingspan: males: 41-68mm; females: 69-88mm) flies in
Suriname: ;
French Guiana: Camopi, Roura, Saint-Jean-du-Maroni, Saul, Kaw, Camp Changement;
possibly Guyana: ;
Venezuela: (more likely carabobensis and or meridaensis) Bolivar, Amazonas, Miranda, Distrito Federal, Aragua, Carabobo, Zulia;
Colombia: (more likely columbiana) Valle, Choco, Caqueta, Nariono and probably Amazonas and Putamayo;
Ecuador: (more likely parallela) Pichincha, (more likely parda) Tungurahua, Canar, (more likely nausioccidentalis) Napo, Morona-Santiago and Pastaza;
Peru: Cajamarca, San Martin, Huanuco, Junin, Amazonas (LTR), Cusco, Madre de Dios, Puno;
Bolivia: La Paz; and
possibly north central Brazil: Para;
in South America.

Hyperchiria nausica male, 62mm, French Guiana,
Entomo Satsphingia Jahrgang 3, Heft 5, on my home computer only

Hyperchiria nausica male, French Guiana,
courtesy of Alex Cahurel

The forewing is elongate with a produced but truncated apex. There is a deep excavation under the apex and the outer margin then becomes convex.

Ground colour is dull brown with a yellowish suffusion, especially outside the difuse median band. There are often small white dots in the upper half of the median area. This species has been taken at elevations ranging from 55m to 1700m.

Hyperchiria nausica male, courtesy of Hubert Mayer copyright.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Mexico: May-July, September
Panama: December-January, May
Honduras: March, April, June August (RL)
Venezuela: May, September-October, December
Bolivia: November-December-January, March

There seems to be two-three broods annualy as weather permits.

Larvae of nausica eat Anacardium, Fagus, Laburnum and Robinia pseudoacacia.

Female courtesy of Dan Janzen.

Hyperchiria nausica female, French Guiana,
courtesy of Alex Cahurel

Hyperchiria nausica female, copyright Kirby Wolfe

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING: Males use well-developed antennae to seek out females which scent at night. Hyperchiria nausica male, French Guiana, courtesy of Carlot Didier.

EGGS, LARVAE, COCOONS, AND PUPAE:

Typical of species in the Genus Hyperchiria and the Subfamily Hemileucinae, the larvae are armed with urticating spines.

Hyperchiria nausica larva, copyright Kirby Wolfe

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.

Anacardium Fagus Laburnum Robinia pseudoacacia.....

Cashew Beech Bean tree Black locust/False acacia

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