Imbrasia ertli
Rebel, 1904

Imbrasia ertli composited by Bill Oehlke from Rolf Oberprieler's The Emperor Moths of Namibia. 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: Saturniinae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Tribe: Bunaeini, Packard, 1902 Genus: Imbrasia, Hübner, [1819] 1816

MIDI MUSIC Wind Beneath My Wings copyright C. Odenkirk MIDI CITY ON.OFF <bgsound src="wings.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION: The Diverse Emperor, Imbrasia ertli, (wingspan 11-13 cm) flies in Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and south-eastern Zaire (Congo), just reaching into north-eastern Namibia. Larvae are reported as an important human food in the Bas Congo province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In the Bas Congo province, this moth is much appreciated for its gregarious larvae. The moth is on the wing from October to February.

Female moths deposit eggs in groups on the leaves of Ricinodendron heudelotii, Petersianthus macrocarpus (African stinkwood), Funtumia africana (False rubber tree) or Holarrhena floribunda.

Frass found below the trees is a good indicator caterpillars are present. The larvae move and feed in groups where the individual larvae maintain close contact. Initially larvae have long hairs, but in the final instar, when they are collected, most of the hairs are lost.

These caterpillars also descend the tree trunks to between 1 and 2m above ground level when shedding their skins.

Normally, harvesters gather the entire colony to roast, boil or sun dry the prize for later use.

Imbrasia ertli, Congo, gathered for human consumption, called "chini".
Image courtesy of Bruce G. Marcot, Ph.D., research wildlife ecologist, at EPOW

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

There are two generations of Imbrasia ertli annually with adults on the wing from October until February.

Larvae feed on Julbernardia and Brachystegia and on Acacia.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

Imbrasia ertli females have finer antennae and much more rounded forewings than males which have distinctly angled hind wings. Females scent at night when both sexes are active and attracted to lights.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited in large clusters on tips of foodplant stems. Larvae are gregarious in all instars and descend foodplant at maturity (90 mm) to pupate in the soil. The black larvae with their red heads and rear ends are covered with dense, long, white hairs. Image from Rolf Oberprieler's The Emperor Moths of Namibia.

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae. 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.

Acacia Brachystegia spiciformis Caloncoba welwitschii Crossopteryx febrifuga Hyparrhenia will diplandra Julbernardia globifera Millettia laurentii Petersianthus macrocarpus Pteridium centrali-africanum.......

Acacia Msasa Mbubu Mukwati/Ngungo Hyparrhenia will diplandra Munondo Ntungila/Singa-Singa Bolinzo Misili

Use your browser "Back" button to return to the previous page.