Samia (genus)

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Samia
Samia cynthia

Samia cynthia

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family : Peacock moth (Saturniidae)
Subfamily : Saturniinae
Genre : Samia
Scientific name
Samia
Leach , 1815
Samia tetrica
Samia ricini caterpillar

Samia (Syn. Philosamia ) is a genus of butterflies from the family of the peacock moth (Saturniidae). The Natural History Museum's Global Lepidoptera Names Indexlists 10 species in this genus. The genus is sometimes in literature about the sericulture Philosamia called. Samia cynthia and the related species of the genus Samia were bred for commercial silk breeding in China for a long time.

features

The large moths have relatively small bodies. The front wings are clay yellow to olive brown. At the base of the forewing, they have a white band that is strongly angled towards the body and has a black border on the outside. The band extends to the disk area and ends in an elongated moon spot. This is transparent and thinly white bordered on its edge directed towards the wing leading edge. Behind it the stain is filled in with a broad clay yellow color. The moon spot separates a white discal band adjoining it on the outside into two parts curved slightly towards the body, which are bordered black on the inside and red-violet on the outside. The moths, caterpillars and cocoons are similar to those of the closely related genus Attacus .

Taxonomy and systematics

The number of species that the genus includes is debatable. There are authors who assume that only Samia cynthia can be granted species status. The Natural History Museum's Global Lepidoptera Names Index lists the following species of the genus:

Occurrence and way of life

The genus was originally spread in Asia. The very adaptable animals were also introduced for silk breeding in Europe and North and South America, where escaped animals have now formed stable populations in the wild, such as in France, Italy, Uruguay and the United States of America.

supporting documents

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b The Global Lepidoptera Names Index - Samia  ( 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 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. 184 (English).
  3. ^ Josef J. de Freina, Thomas J. Witt: Noctuoidea, Sphingoidea, Geometroidea, Bombycoidea . In: The Bombyces and Sphinges of the Western Palaearctic . 1st edition. tape 1 . EFW Edition Research & Science, Munich 1987, ISBN 3-926285-00-1 , p. 399 f .

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

Commons : Samia  - collection of images, videos and audio files