Chinese moon moth | |
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Adult male | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Saturniidae |
Genus: | Actias |
Species: | A. ningpoana |
Binomial name | |
Actias ningpoana C. Felder & R. Felder, 1862 |
Actias ningpoana, the Chinese moon moth, is a species of moth in the family Saturniidae. The species was first described by father-and-son entomologists Cajetan and Rudolf Felder in 1862. It is quite large, and has long, curved, hindwing tails. There are many congeners across Asia; the Luna moth (A. luna) of eastern Canada and the United States is a close relative.
Taxonomy
The taxon ningpoana Felder & Felder had been regarded as a subspecies of Actias selene until recently and was elevated to species level in Ylla et al. (2005).
Range
- China (Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Henan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Fujian, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Hainan, Sichuan, Yunnan) (Zhu & Wang, 1996)
- Russia (far east) (Zolotuhin & Chuvilin, 2009)
- India- Western Ghats
Life cycle
Larva
Usually very fleshy with clumps of raised bristles.
Pupa
The pupa develops in a silken cocoon or in the soil.
Adult
Lacking functional mouthparts, the adult lifespan is measured in days. They have small heads, densely hairy bodies, and can have a wingspan ranging from 13 to 15 centimeters.
Host plants
In Hong Kong, A. ningpoana has been reared on camphor (Cinnamomum camphora) (Hill et al., 1982 as Arctias selene), sweetgum (Liquidambar formosana) (Barretto, 2004), Hibiscus, Chinese tallow (Sapium sebiferum) and willow (Salix babylonica) (Yiu, 2006)
References
- Savela, Markku. "Actias ningpoana C. & R. Felder, 1862". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
- Ylla, J., R. S. Peigler & A. Y. Kawahara (2005). "Cladistic analysis of moon moths using morphology, molecules, and behaviour: Actias Leach, 1815; Argema Wallengren, 1858; Graellsia Grote, 1896 (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae)". SHILAP Revista de Lepidopterología. 33: 299-317.
- Zhu, H. F. & L. Y. Wang, 1996. Fauna Sinica Insecta 5 Lepidoptera: Bombycidae, Saturniidae, Thyrididae. Beijing: Sciences Press. x + 302 pp. ISBN 7-03-004551-3
- Zolotuhin, V. V. & A. V. Chuvilin, 2009. On the species compound of the genus Actias Leach, 1815 (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) of Russia. Eversmannia 19:21-31 Archived 2012-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
- Hill, D. S., P. Hore & I. W. B. Thornton, 1982. Insects of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. xxv + 502 pp. ISBN 962-209-008-7
- Barretto, G. D'A., 2004. Check list of plants at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden. Hong Kong: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden Corporation. xxviii + 232 pp. ISBN 962-8869-04-3 Archived 2012-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
- Yiu, V., 2006. Insecta Hongkongica. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Lepidopterists' Society & Hong Kong Discovery. 656 pp.
Taxon identifiers | |
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Actias ningpoana |
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