Agapema

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Agapema
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family : Peacock moth (Saturniidae)
Subfamily : Saturniinae
Genre : Agapema
Scientific name
Agapema
Neumoegen & Dyar , 1894

Agapema is a genus of butterflies from the family of the peacock moth (Saturniidae). The Natural History Museum's Global Lepidoptera Names Indexlists four species in this genus. The genus is closely related to the night peacock butterfly ( Saturnia ), but clearly differentiated from it. The moths of the two genera look very similar, but the pre-imaginal stages and the way of life differ significantly.

features

The medium-sized moths have black, gray, brown, and white wings. On both pairs of wings there are clear white postmedial and antemedial bands, as well as a clear discal eye spot . Both males and females have double-pinnate antennae , with those of the males having longer pinnate bristles. The adults look similar to those of the closely related genus Saturnia , but the pre- imaginal stages of the two genera differ greatly.

The body of the caterpillars is densely covered with hair-like bristles ( Setae ), which at first glance resemble those of the mother hen (Lasiocampidae). They lack the stinging hairs that are developed in the genus Saturnia . In addition, the caterpillars have a longer body than that of the genus Saturnia . The cocoon in which pupation takes place is lighter in color and less dense than that of Saturnia .

Occurrence and way of life

The genus Agapema has its distribution from the arid southwest of the United States of America south to central Mexico.

All species of the genus are nocturnal, which also distinguishes them from the genus Saturnia , whose species are either diurnal or crepuscular. As far as is known, the caterpillars of all species feed on the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae), each species specializing in a certain type of plant. According to the current state of research, one generation occurs every year.

Taxonomy and systematics

The genus Agapema is closely related to the genus Saturnia , but can be clearly distinguished from it. Within the genus, however, the number of species and subspecies is viewed differently by authors, so that the specified number of species fluctuates. The Natural History Museum's Global Lepidoptera Names Index lists the following species in the genus:

supporting documents

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b The Global Lepidoptera Names Index - Agapema  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.nhm.ac.uk  
  2. ↑ a b c d e P. M. Tuskes, JP Tuttle, MM Collins: The Wild Silkmoths of North America. A Natural History of the Saturniidae of the United States and Canada . Ed .: George C. Eickwort. 1st edition. Cornell University Press, Ithaca / London 1996, ISBN 0-8014-3130-1 , pp. 169 f . (English).

literature

  • PM Tuskes, JP Tuttle, MM Collins: The Wild Silkmoths of North America. A Natural History of the Saturniidae of the United States and Canada . Ed .: George C. Eickwort. 1st edition. Cornell University Press, Ithaca / London 1996, ISBN 0-8014-3130-1 (English).

Web links