DISTRIBUTION:

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax (wingspan: males: 128-172mm; females: 138-157mm) flies in damp tropical woods in
Panama: Chiriqui and Ile de Barro Colorado;
Mexico: Veracruz; Chiapas; (Puebla (HM)) and in
southern Belize: Cayo, Stann Creek, Toledo;
Guatemala: Huehuetenango: Municipio Santa Cruz Barillas; (Izabal (JM));
Honduras: Atlantida, Copán, Cortés, Yoro; and
Costa Rica: Cartago, Heredia (TDS), Puntarenas, San Jose, Alajuela, Guanacaste, Limon (IB).

Jean Michel Maes reports it in
southern Nicaragua: Rio San Juan and Zelaya.

Visit Rhescyntis hippodamia norax male (recto and verso), Mount Totumas Cloud Forest Farm, courtesy of Jeffrey Dietrich.

Visit Rhesyntis hippodamia norax, Barranca de Patla, Puebla, Mexico, July 2007, courtesy of Hubert Mayer.

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax female, La Selva Research Station, Heredia, Costa Rica,
January 1987, courtesy of Tom D. Schultz.

This subspecies differs from nominate hippodamia by its geography, slightly narrower and more angular wings and the third dark marking in cell M1.

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax, Mexico, courtesy of Manuel Balcazar-Lara.

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax male, La Selva, Heredia, Costa Rica,
June 23, 2011, courtesy of Lary E. Reeves.

The hindwing postmedian line in norax does not make as great an obtuse angle as it does in the nominate subspecies where it approaches/exceeds 135 degrees, but the easiest marker is the somewhat obscure but always present third dark mark at M1.

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax, Costa Rica, courtesy of Dan Janzen.

HABITAT

Records exist for altitudes from 600m to 1200m.

Rhescyntis hippodamia male, Kiri Lodge, Orosi, Cartago, Costa Rica,
4000 feet, May 6, 2008, courtesy/copyright Leroy Simon.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are probably at least two generations annually with peak flights in January, March-April and then again in July-August or when rains start. Hubert Mayer confirms a July flight in Puebla, Mexico.

Rhescyntis hippodamia larvae feed on Virola bicuhyba, Virola koschnyi, Virola ucuuba and Ligustrum.

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax female, Costa Rica, courtesy of Carlos Mielke. copyright

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Rhescyntis hippodamia norax males use their antennae to seek out females which scent at night.

Most activity at lights takes place form 11:00 pm until 3:00 am.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Mature larvae descend tree trunks to pupate in subterranean chambers. The larva depicted to the right (lateral and dorsal views) is feeding on Virola koschnyi in Costa Rica.

Hopefully the decimation of the tropical rainforests will not reach the point where many plants and animals become extinct.

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.

Virola bicuhyba ....... Virola koschnyi Virola ucuuba Ligustrum.

Sangre Sangre Sangre Privet

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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 'Rhescyntis' chosen by Hubner in 1819.

The species name 'hippodamia' is from Greek mythology. Hippodamia, the daughter of Oenomaus, wished to marry Pelops, so she persuaded Myrtilus, son of Hermes, to help Pelops win the chariot race against her father, according to Apollodorus.

The subspecies name, 'norax', is from Greek mythology. Norax was a Prince of Iberia (in Spain) who led his people to colonise the island of Sardinia (near Italia). He was a son of Hermes and Erytheia.