Smerinthus cerisyi
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Smerinthus cerisyi |
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| Smerinthus cerisyi | ||||||||||||
| Kirby , 1837 |
Smerinthus cerisyi is a butterfly ( moth ) fromthe swarm family (Sphingidae).
features
butterfly
The moths have a fore wing length of 25 to 40 millimeters. They have the classic coloring for butterflies of the genus Smerinthus , but are extremely variable. Therefore, numerous forms have been described by science. The variability relates in particular to the degree of undulation of the outer edge of the forewing and the coloring of the forewings. Individuals from the prairie provinces in Canada tend to be much darker than usual. The species is easily distinguishable from Smerinthus jamaicensis in that it has the dark brown crescent moon at the tip of the forewings, the broad, dark brown smear parallel to the body between postmedial and ante-medial band and the pale, light discal line vertical to the forewing margin is missing.
Smerinthus cerisyi has a round or diamond-shaped, dark point in the middle of the blue eye-spot on the hind wings, whereas the eye-spot in Smerinthus saliceti is divided by black bands that extend to the edge of the eye-spot. The basic color of Smerinthus saliceti is also usually lighter than that of Smerinthus cerisyi . On the basis of these two differences, however, the two types cannot always be differentiated with sufficient certainty. An unambiguous determination is possible by analyzing the hemolymph or genital morphological examination. In the males of Smerinthus saliceti the sacculus is well developed, whereas in Smerinthus cerisyi it is stunted.
Caterpillar
The caterpillars have the same build and appearance as those of Smerinthus jamaicensis . In the last stage, in Smerinthus jamaicensis, a fine white longitudinal line sometimes appears subdorsally from the anterior edge of the thorax to the third abdominal segment , which in Smerinthus cerisyi runs much further towards the end of the abdomen. In addition, in Smerinthus cerisyi the first five lateral stripes on the body only extend to the subdorsal line and end at the beginning of the following segment and do not extend backwards to the back of the following segment as in Smerinthus jamaicensis . The coarsely structured anal horn in Smerinthus cerisyi is also colored red instead of blue.
Doll
The pupa has the same shape as that of Smerinthus jamaicensis , but is always very dark brown to black in color and has a matt and somewhat rougher surface.
Occurrence
The species is common in the United States of New England, the Great Lakes region, the upper midwest, and across the west from the Canadian border to the Mexican border. In Canada, the species is distributed from Newfoundland and the provinces of the Atlantic coast west via Quebec, Ontario and north via the Prairie Provinces north to at least Fort Smith (Northwest Territories), Dawson (Yukon) and Skagway in southeastern Alaska.
The animals colonize deciduous forests and island-like remnants of wetlands in the east of their range and in the entire west of Canada. In the western United States, the species is usually found around rivers.
Way of life
The adults do not eat. They fly to artificial light sources at night.
Flight and caterpillar times
In Saskatchewan, the flight time of the moths is documented between May 17 and July 19, so that it suggests that the species occurs in one generation per year in the north of its range. The flight times further south are significantly longer, although it is assumed here that only one generation is trained per year.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars feed almost exclusively on various representatives of the willow family (Salicaceae).
development
The females lay their eggs one by one on the leaves of the host plants. The caterpillars are loners. As with the other species of the genus Smerinthus , pupation takes place in a shallow chamber in the ground.
supporting documents
Individual evidence
- ↑ WP Stephen: hemolymph protein and Their Use in Taxonomic Studies. 1958, pp. 395-400.
- ^ WP Stephen, AL Steinhauer: Sexual and developmental differences in insect blood proteins. In: Physiological Zoology , Vol. 30, No. 2, April 1957, pp. 114-120.
- ↑ 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 , pp. 117f.
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 .
