Cautethia grotei
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Preparation of Cautethia grotei |
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| Cautethia grotei | ||||||||||||
| Edwards , 1882 |
Cautethia grotei is a butterfly ( moth ) from the family of moth (Sphingidae). The species is the only one of its kind thatoccursin Florida and cannot be confused there with any other hawk species. Due to the morphology of the male genitalia, the species is well separated from the closely related Cautethia spuria and Cautethia yucatana .
features
The moths have a fore wing length of 13 to 18 millimeters. The forewings are patterned brown-gray. The wings of the females are noticeably darker and have a more distinctive pattern than those of the males. The pattern of these is extremely variable and ranges from completely missing to clearly defined dark oblique disc bands. The hind wings are brightly orange-yellow, the outer edge is brown. The brown margin is narrower in C. grotei than in C. spuria . In this species the rest of the hind wing is more yellow than orange in color.
In the last stage, the caterpillars have the typical build of the species. They have a pale lime-green to blue-green base color. The body may not be speckled with brown dots at all, or it may be speckled with little or very strong marks. The spiracles are orange and white. A faint, white subdorsal line runs along the entire body. Another white longitudinal line runs below the spiracles and is sometimes very faintly visible in front, but very strong on the rearmost three or four segments. There are two white stripes on the face. These are wider in animals that are heavily speckled with brown.
The doll is matt and has a slightly rough surface. The wing sheaths are almost black, the brown abdomen is patterned black at the segment gaps. The Kremaster is black and has a rough surface. It is broad at the base and ends in a double point.
Occurrence
The species is distributed almost everywhere in the Greater Antilles and southern Florida. They are common in the Florida Keys and the islands south of Florida. To the north, the permanent distribution on the more temperature-favored west coast extends at least to Honeymoon Island , Siesta Key and Sanibel . However, wanderers are said to fly to New England . The species inhabits the undergrowth of tree islands (hammocks) in Florida.
Way of life
The imagines flying from dusk, throughout the night regularly flowers. They were at Asystasia gangetica , Pink Catharanthe ( Vinca rosea ) and lantana ( Lantana camara demonstrated). The moths are also attracted by artificial light sources.
Flight and caterpillar times
The moths fly year-round, but appear to be more common in Florida in late spring. Since all stages of development can be found at any time and the pupil rest lasts between three weeks and two months, an assignment to individual generations is impossible.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars were to Erithalis fruticosa and Chiococca , both from the family Rubiaceae detected (Rubiaceae).
development
The females lay their tiny eggs one by one on the underside of the leaves of the host plants. The caterpillars are solitary and spend their entire development sitting on the underside of the leaves on the midrib. The pupation takes place in a chamber just below the surface.
supporting documents
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i James P. Tuttle: The Hawkmoths of North America, A Natural History Study of the Sphingidae of the United States and Canada. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation, Washington, DC 2007, ISBN 978-0-9796633-0-7 .
literature
- James P. Tuttle: The Hawkmoths of North America, A Natural History Study of the Sphingidae of the United States and Canada. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation, Washington, DC 2007, ISBN 978-0-9796633-0-7 .
