Anisota leucostygma
an-nih-SOH-tuhmmloo-koh-STIG-muh
(Boisduval, 1872)

Anisota leucostygma male courtesy of Kirby Wolfe copyright.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 Family Saturniidae Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Subfamily: Ceratocampinae, Harris 1841 Genus: Anisota, Hübner, 1820 ("1816") Species: leucostygma, (Boisduval, 1872)

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DISTRIBUTION:

Anisota leucostygma (forewing length: males: 21-23mm; females: larger) flies in Mexico: Oaxaca, and Guatemala.

The female was described about 150 years ago, and Kirby Wolfe and Richard Peigler have only recently described (2004) the male and larvae.

Information on this page is from a SHILAP publication sent to me by Kirby Wolfe.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Moths are on the wing in September and probably again in February-March under natural conditions. Lab reared stock from early September deposition emerged in November, but larvae and pupae had been exposed to much artificial light.

Anisota leucostygma larvae have been fed upon various oak, Quercus, species. They have accepted tender leaves of Quercus lobata (California white Oak) and Quercus dumosa (California Scrub Oak) in the laboratory.

Anisota leucostygma female courtesy of Kirby Wolfe copyright.

Females are often lighter than the one depicted above.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Males are much smaller than females and use their more highly developed antennae to seek out their mates during the day.

Female Anisota leucostygma have simple antennae. They oviposit at night.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Translucent yellow eggs are deposited in single layer masses on host foliage or twigs.

Early instar larvae are gregarious but divide into smaller groupings as they progress.

Larvae become more solitary as they move into final instar.

Pupation is under the soil.

Anisota leucostygma larvae courtesy of Kirby Wolfe copyright.

Larval Food Plants

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae and/or from personal communication. It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Quercus lobata....... Quercus dumosa

California white Oak California Scrub Oak

The pronunciation of scientific names is troublesome for many. The "suggestion" at the top of the page is merely a suggestion. It is based on commonly accepted English pronunciation of Greek names and/or some fairly well accepted "rules" for latinized scientific names.

The suggested pronunciations, on this page and on other pages, are primarily put forward to assist those who hear with internal ears as they read.

There are many collectors from different countries whose intonations and accents would be different.

The species name "leucostygma" is for the white mark in the forewing cell.

I do not know the source of the genus name "Anisota".

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