#arctiinae moth

[moths-daily]

Would you mind doing the Dasysphinx volatilis?

Moth Of The Day #278

Dasysphinx volatilis

From the arctiinae family. They can be found in Costa Rica.

Image sources: [1] [2]

[onenicebugperday]

Lichen moth, Barsine rubricostata, Erebidae

Photographed in Malaysia by dhfischer

[artifacts-and-arthropods]

Moths in Disguise: these are all just harmless moths that have developed the ability to mimic wasps, bees, and/or hornets

Top Row (left to right): Eusphecia pimplaeformis and Myrmecopsis polistes; Bottom Row: Pennisetia marginatum

Moths are exceptionally skilled when it comes to mimicry, and there are hundreds of moth species that rely on that tactic as a way to protect themselves from predators. Their disguises are numerous and varied, but hymenopteran mimicry is particularly common, especially among the moths that belong to subfamily Sesiidae and family Arctiinae.

Yellowjacket-Mimicking Moths: Pseudosphex sp. (top and bottom left) and Myrmecopsis polistes (bottom right)

Some of their disguises involve more than just a physical resemblance -- there are some moths that also engage in behavioral and/or acoustic mimicry, meaning that they can imitate the specific sounds and behaviors of their hymenopteran models. In some cases, these moths are so convincing that they can even fool the actual wasps/bees that they are mimicking.

Such a detailed and intricate disguise is unusual even among mimics, and researchers believe that it developed partly as a way to trick the wasps into treating the mimic like one of their own. Wasps tend to prey upon moths (and many other insects), but they are innately non-aggressive toward their own nest-mates, which are identified by sight -- so if the moth can convincingly impersonate its model, then it can avoid being eaten by predatory wasps.

Wasp-Mimicking Moths: Pseudosphex ichneumonea (top), Myrmecopsis sp. (bottom left), and Pseudosphex sp. (bottom right)

There are many moths that can also mimic hornets, bumblebees, and carpenter bees.

Hornet-Mimicking Moths: Eusphecia pimplaeformis (top left), Sesia apiformis (bottom left), Paranthrene simulans (top right), Pennisetia marginatum (middle right), and Sphecodoptera scribai (bottom left)

Bumblebee-Mimicking Moths: Hemaris tityus (top and bottom left) and Hemaris affinis (bottom right)

Moths are some of the most talented mimics in the natural world, as illustrated by their mastery of hymenopteran mimicry. But it's not just bees, hornets, and wasps -- there are many other forms of mimicry that can be found among moths, and the resemblance is often staggering.

Moths deserve far more credit than they receive, to be honest, because they are so incredibly interesting/diverse.

Sources & More Info:

Journal of Ecology and Evolution: A Hypothesis to Explain the Accuracy of Wasp Resemblances

Frontiers in Zoology: Southeast Asian clearwing moths buzz like their model bees

Royal Society Publishing: Moving like a model: mimicry of hymenopteran flight trajectories by clearwing moths of Southeast Asian rainforests

[birdblues]

Symphlebia

[rattyexplores]

Lydia Lichen Moth

Asura lydia

24/03/23 - NSW, Dapto

[ljsbugblog]

Donovan's Tiger Moth (Aloa marginata).

[coolbugs]

Bug of the Day

Big, beefy caterpillar boi on my porch screen earlier this week. Haploa sp.

[pogomcl]

Clouded Buff, Diacrisia sannio Canon 400D EF 100 2.8 f/2.9 1/80 iso: 200 Srbsko, Czech Republic 5/25/2012

[sinobug]

Entomological phone cases by John Horstman (itchydogimages, SINOBUG) for iPhone & Samsung models with slim, tough, and soft case options on REDBUBBLE…

Footman Moth (Ammatho cuneonotatus, Lithosiini, Arctiinae, Erebidae) Pu'er, Yunnan, China

Full store:

[mariposabonita]

Happy Valentine's Day

Clown Face Tiger Moth (Idalus sp.), family Erebidae, found in Mexico, Central and South America

photograph by @junglediamonds

[rbade-art]

[moths-daily]

could you do the regal tiger moth (chrysocale regalis)?

Moth Of The Day #220

Chrysocale regalis

From the arctiinae family. They can be found in Ecuador and Bolivia.

Image sources: [1] [2]

[birdblues]

Crotolaria Podborer

[rattyexplores]

Cocoon Creation of Cyana Moths

This lichen-feeding genus of moths have a very strange looking cocoon.

The cocoon is made with the larva’s setae (hair-like structures), with the pupa being suspended in the centre of the cocoon with silk.

These cocoons can be found across Southeast Asia (Hawes 2016), however they can also be found in parts of Australia, with Cyana meyricki being a common species here.

Cyana meyricki

Source and further reading

06/07/22

[ljsbugblog]

No common name (Amata nigriceps).

[libraryofmoths]

Moth of the Week

Banded Tussock Moth

Halysidota tessellaris

[Right | Left]

The banded tussock moth is a part of the family Erebidae, the tiger moth family. It was first described in 1797 by James Edward Smith. This species is also called the pale tiger moth, banded tussock moth, and tessellated halisidota. The common name “banded tussock” moth comes from the clumps of longer hairs that protrude amid the shorter ones on the caterpillars, called “tussocks.” The scientific name “tessellaris” refers to a tessellated pattern, or a pattern made of small stones similar to the pattern on this moth’s forewings.

Description This species has light brown, tan, or cream wings and upper body. The abdomen is a yellow-orange. The forewings have a pattern of beige bands with thin black outlines while the hindwings are blank. On the back of the thorax are two orange stripes with a teal stripe on either side. Adult males and females are identical in color and pattern.

Wingspan: 3.81 - 5.08 cm (1.5 - 2 in)

The caterpillars are covered in long hair that ranges from yellow-orange to dark gray. At the head and bottom of the caterpillars are especially long clumps of white, black, or orange hairs.

Caterpillar length: 3.5 cm (≈1.38 in)

Diet and Habitat Larvae of this moth feed on some species of alder, ash, apple, beech, birch, blueberry, boxelder, chestnut, chokecherry, elm, grape, hackberry, hazel, hickory, oak, sycamore, walnut, and willow. They eat the leaf tissue between leaf veins.

This moth lives in North America and ranges from southern Canada to Texas and central Florida. They inhabit wooded areas with different types of deciduous trees. Adults may be seen by lights at night.

Mating In the north, this species is univoltine with one generation and year while in the south, it is multivoltine with two or more generations on the south. In Missouri, a two generation a year habitat, adult moths are seen from early May until the end of August. They presumably mate during this time. Eggs are laid in masses on the undersides of host plant leaves. Caterpillars overwinter in cocoons made from their own hair.

Predators This moth and its larvae are preyed on by birds, salamanders, toads, bats (Eptesicus fuscus), and 9 different parasitoid wasps (Braconidae).

Caterpillars of this moth are covered in long hairs that are thought to cause stinging and rashes like other similar species. The larvae behave as if they are chemically protected, but they have not been tested for alkaloids according to Wikipedia. Adults are confirmed to have and use alkaloids like other moths in the Erebidae family. They gain these toxins from their diet as caterpillars which makes them unpalatable to predators.

Fun Fact Although some moths in the subfamily Arctiinae are called “tussock moths,” there is a different subfamily (Lymantriinae) also in the Erebidae that are called the “true tussock moths.” Lymantriinae moths used to be in their own family but are now grouped together with other subfamilies under the family Erebidae.

Adult banded tussock moths are visually very similar to adult sycamore tussock moths (Halysidota harrisii). Scientists even need to dissect the two in order to tell the difference.

(Source: Wikipedia, UMassAmherst, MarylandBiodiversityProject, MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION, BugGuide)