A female promethea silkmoth (Callosamia promethea) eclosed from one the cocoons spun earlier this summer. Stock originated as eggs from New York, June 2018. Completely unexpectedly, a female eclosed from one of the five cocoons spun from the larvae we reared earlier this summer. We had assumed the pupae were all in diapause since this species appears to be univoltine based on reported sightings in this area. The larvae were reared outdoors in the last instar, so they would have experienced normal photoperiod and temperature changes. But alas, we have learned by now based on other species we've reared in Ithaca that more often than not things tend to eclose as long as it's warm enough and most species really aren't completely univoltine (i.e. not obligate diapausers) even if the reported sightings suggest so. What is noteworthy and reassuring is that this individual came out of the last cocoon that was spun out of the five, so perhaps this one was an exception and the remaining four are in fact diapausing (since you would expect the moths to eclose in order of when their cocoons were spun). In that case, then this would indicate a small partial second brood and a population with both obligate and facultative diapausers? Or maybe this all just a mistake and this individual really wasn't supposed to eclose but was confused from the indoor conditions during the first three larval instars. The moth had already worn itself down quite a bit by the time these photos were taken since it was trapped in the small plastic box that we were keeping the cocoons (since we didn't expect any eclosions). We doubt we would be able to call in male with this individual since there probably aren't many wild males in flight this late in the season. Update: to date, none of the other four cocoons eclosed – they are likely all in diapause as we had originally assumed (or [hopefully not], dead!). As for the female that eclosed, no pairing was obtained. ![]() Alan Liang Alan Liang is a student at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York pursuing an undergraduate degree in entomology. He is co-owner and a main contributor of the Liang Insects blog and photographs.
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Timeline 2017–present
Ithaca, New York This timeline is a series of daily posts recording our observations and experiences with various insects (primarily Lepidoptera) around the Cornell University campus in Ithaca, New York, starting from the time we moved here in 2017. As this is a personal blog, we try to keep collections/rearings for university research and course work to a minimum, and mainly focus on just the species we catch and raise for our own fun and interest. Posts prior to this time can be viewed at Timeline 2012-2017: Albany, California, though there is occasionally some crossover when we have returned home during breaks or reared stock derived from home (see Albany, California Updates). Archives (232)
July 2020 (1) August 2019 (2) July 2019 (35) June 2019 (46) May 2019 (20) March 2019 (1) January 2019 (1) November 2018* October 2018* September 2018 (1)* August 2018 (9)* July 2018 (11)* June 2018 (22*) May 2018 (18)* April 2018 (2)* January 2018 (6) December 2017 (5) November 2017 (1) October 2017 (5) September 2017 (26) August 2017 (19) *Currently, a significant portion of 2018 posts are missing. The notes/photos for this time period are saved on our personal files but the posts were never built due to a busy schedule that year. We are still actively building these posts when we have the time. Authors
![]() ![]() Full Species List
(Alphabetical by scientific name) Note: - Not every species we encounter is necessarily presented on this site, rather a selection of those that were of particular interest to us and that we felt were worth documenting. - We can't guarantee that all species have been identified accurately, particularly taxa we are not as familiar with. Lepidoptera Actias luna Agraulis vanillae Allancastria cerisyi Amphion floridensis Ancyloxypha numintor Antheraea polyphemus Battus philenor hirsuta Callosamia promethea Colias eurytheme Citheronia regalis Cupido comyntas Danaus plexippus Darapsa myron Diadema inscriptum Epargyreus clarus Erynnis baptisiae Estigmene acrea Euchaetes egle Eumorpha pandorus Hemaris diffinis Hyalophora cecropia Limenitis archippus Liminitis arthemis arthemis Limenitis arthemis astyanax Manduca sexta Orgyia leucostigma Pachysphinx modesta Paonias myops Papilio cresphontes Papilio eurymedon Papilio glaucus Papilio polyxenes asterius Papilio rutulus Papilio troilus Papilio zelicaon Pyrgus communis Samia ricini Smerinthus ophthalmica Speyeria cybele Sphecodina abbottii Vanessa atalanta Vanessa cardui Vanessa virginiensis Lepidoptera Hybrids Papilio polyxenes asterius × Papilio zelicaon Orthoptera Conocephalus sp. Dissosteira carolina Melanoplus femurrubrum Neoconocephalus ensiger Neoxabea bipunctata Phasmatodea Carausius morosus Diapheromera femorata Mantodea Mantis religiosa Albany, California Updates |