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E. calleta L5 Rearing Notes (10/22/16-10/30/16)

10/30/2016

Rearing notes for our fifth instar Calleta caterpillars (Eupackardia calleta) of F1 generation originally sourced from Arizona and reared indoors on Privet (Ligustrum)

Rearing Notes 10/22/16-10/30/16:

10/30:

Sadly, though not very surprisingly, all of our remaining Calleta caterpillars have died to disease; their bodies dissolved into brown fluid as our fifth instar shown above
It's extremely unfortunate since we started off with so many and they genuinely didn't seem like a hard species to rear, except the weather and host plant was not ideal; despite that many say Privet is a good alternative host plant, we found that the caterpillars had an extremely hard time clinging onto the glossy leaves no matter what instar they were, thus causing great stress among them and increasing risk of disease
Perhaps we might try this species again if offered next year but we'll wait and see though it probably won't be a priority with all the other new species we plan on trying

10/24:

Not going well -- the fifth instar and the fourth instars still inside continue to feed occasionally but look to be diseased
Of the three that were sleeved outside, two have vanished despite large holes on the leaves

10/23:

The fifth instar was yet again covered in brown fluid this morning and isn't doing very well, nor are most of the fourth instars
Moved the three healthiest fourth instars onto the Privet tree outdoors and sleeved them; the tree only has a few leaves on it which is why we didn't do this orginally

10/22:

Not sure what is wrong withe the fifth instar; it ate a small potion of leaf overnight but in the morning it was covered in brown fluid -- not sure if it secreted it or if it was a lot of plant sap or something else
The third instar is not doing so well and likely won't make it; some of the fourth instars still have trouble clingling onto the glossy privet leaves and eat very little

- Alan

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C. morosus Rearing Notes (10/23/16-10/30/16)

10/30/2016

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Rearing notes for our Indian Walking sticks (Carausius morosus). These are offspring of an adult we have been rearing since March 2016 and a wild caught brown form adult no longer with us.

Rearing Notes 10/23/16-10/30/16:

10/30:

Three eggs hatched

10/29:

Changed the Tayberry cuttings and transferred the 17 adults into a new tub to provide more space for the L4-6 nymphs
Perhaps some of the F1 adults have begun laying eggs since the average eggs/day this week went up from last week
One of the F1 adults is actually a yellowish, almost brownish green unlike the otehrs that are a bright, vibrant green
Count: L7: 16 (F1), 1 (F0); L1-6: ??; hatched eggs: 208 (97 new, 95 old); total eggs (last counted 10/29): 622; avg 3.29 eggs/day from 10/22-10/29

10/28:

Four of the new eggs hatched

10/27:

Nine of the new eggs hatched -- starting to wonder if egg hatching is triggered by humidity since it has been a rainy week; assuming C. morosus originates from a tropical region, then humidity/precipitation would be one of the main seasonal variables

10/25:

One of the new eggs hatched

10/24:

Strangely, now that the old eggs stopped hatching, the new eggs are hatching again -- two more today

10/23:

Some photos of our sixth instar and adult walking sticks; they readily switched from raspberry to tayberry which is no surprise at all since they are practically the same plant
One of the new eggs hatched again which is unusual

- Alan

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P. melane L3 Rearing Notes (10/22/16-10/29/16)

10/29/2016

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Rearing notes for a few Umber Skippers (Poanes melane) that were obtained as eggs laid by two wild caught females in captivity or found on various wild grasses in the Albany Eastside Permaculture Garden

Rearing notes 10/22/16-10/29/16:

10/29:

The head capsule is almost complete off, revealing a much larger white head capsule underneath
The body has become very yellowish, probably from not feeding for several days

10/28:

Now in apolysis for fourth; the head capsule is beginning to slide off

10/27:

The head capsule looks very small and tight now; it will be in apolysis for fourth soon

10/26:

As the body becomes larger, the legs seem even smaller than they are already in proportion to the rest of the body that it almost looks legless; this is probably to help to be more flat and therefore more cryptic on a straight grass blade

10/24:

Becoming more elongated

10/23:

Becoming greener now that its eaten a bit
Just like the Common Checkered Skipper (Pyrgus communis) we have reared, the pulse is very clear on the skin becomes it is so translucent; the back appears striped

10/22:

The first one to molt to third instar; it is still teneral in the image

- Brian

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E. achemon Rearing Notes (10/21/16-10/27/16)

10/27/2016

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Rearing notes for our Achemon Sphinxes (Eumorpha achemon). These were originally obtained as eggs obtained from a Utah breeder and reared indoors on grape (Vitis). They began pupating on 10/20/16.

Rearing Notes 10/21/16-10/27/16:

10/27:

The final prepupa pupated; we now have 15 pupae though several are somewhat deformed, one of which may not survive
Six pupae are female and nine are male which is a dissapointing ratio as we need even numbers of each sex in order to increase chance of pairings; if not, better more females than males because males can mate multiple times
Based on mass, female pupae are just slightly larger than male pupae, though sample size is extremely small and the badly deformed pupae that weighs just 2.3g* (due to hemolymph loss) lowers male average, though both distributions still show similar variability
*Update 11/8: this pupa has clearly died
Pupa mass (g):
- Female (N=6): 2.9, 3.1, 3.3, 3.5, 3.6, 4.4
  - Mean: 3.47
  - StDev: 0.52
  - Med: 3.4
- Male (N=9): 2.3, 2.7, 2.8, 3.2, 3.2, 3.3, 3.5, 3.7, 4.1
  - Mean: 3.20
  - StDev: 0.55
  - Med: 3.2

10/26:

One of the two remaining prepupae died; it was always extremely undersized so perhaps diseased

10/25:

One more attempted to pupate but failed to split the cuticle which is extremely unfortunate -- a perfectly good would to be pupa dead, and it was quite a large one as well

10/24:

One more pupated

10/23:

One more pupated

10/22:

Five more pupated; one looks slightly deformed for some reason

10/21:

Above are some photos one of the fully tanned pupae from yesterday; it is reddish brown with orange wing cases
Three more pupated; interestingly, one was bright green in the teneral state instead of yellow; perhaps it was the single caterpillar that was green form in fourth instar?

- Alan

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Modest Sphinx Pupae Arrive

10/24/2016

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Our Modest Sphinx pupa (Pachysphinx modesta) have arrived from New Jersey.

Today we had six Modest Sphinx pupae arrive from a New Jersey source, shown below. Three are female and three are male. The pupae came coated lightly with dirt as the breeder must have allowed the caterpillars to pupate in soil, but we tried to wipe them clean as best we could so we could see the details better. The pupae closely resemble our Smerinthus ophthalmica pupa, which belongs in the same subfamily, Smerinthinae (comparison shown below). The P. modesta are redder and much larger, with slightly wider wings, but almost every other feature are the same. The pupae shape is thick and less tapered than the other two Sphingidae subfamilies. Some of the P. modesta pupae had a few small deformities on the anterior dorsal side, possibly due to the bumpy soil surface. Also, one of the males leaked hemolymph at the cremaster, which was broken off (possibly during shipping), but it is alive and will hopefully survive*. The female and male pupae are not dimorphic as far as we could tell except for a slight size difference; females weighed 4.3, 4.5, and 4.9 while males weighed 3.3 4.3, and 4.4. However, inspection of the gonophore on the ventral posterior end makes it extremely easy to sex them. The females have semi-merged segments at the end with a single slit on the fourth abdominal segment after the wings, while the male segments are well defined with a pair of small kidney shaped spots on the fifth segment after the wings.

*Update 11/7: the male pupa with the broken cremaster is clearly dead now.

Regarding some background information on the species, Pachysphinx modesta is a very large sphinx moth in the Smerinthinae tribe ranging in much of North America except for the south western United States where it is replaced by P. occidentalis (Western Big Popolar Sphinx), though the two are sympatric in parts of their range. The wingspan of P. modesta is 76-120 mm (3 - 4 11/16 inches) according to Bugguide and BAMONA and are mostly gray except the hindwings, which have a crimson patch. Like other Smerinthinae and Saturniidae, the adults have vestigial feeding organs and are short lived. The caterpillars are like typical Smerinthinae larvae, being green and granulated with a triangular head capsule, but have less elongated bodies. They feed on poplar, aspen, and cottonwood (Populus) and willow (Salix).

This species is univoltine in the north so the pupae are in diapause, meaning we will have to overwinter them until next spring. It gets quite cold where they are originally sourced, so we will have to refrigerate them soon. For now, we just placed them in an airtight container with the rest of our Sphingid/Saturniid pupae. When they close next spring, we plan to pair them to obtain eggs and rear them on willow (Salix) just like we have reared our S. opthalmica caterpillars.

- Alan

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A. mylitta Rearing Notes (10/16/16-10/??/16)

10/24/2016

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Rearing notes for our Indian Tussah Moth (Antheraea mylitta) cocoons. They are unrelated wild F0 cocoons originally sourced from Chaibasa, India.

Rearing Notes 10/16/16-10/??/16:

10/24:

The pupa of the cocoon we first opened now has red veins on only one forewing, which is extremely unusual because pupal development should always be symmetrical

10/23:

Some photos of the naked pupae

10/22:

Pupa mass (g):
- Female: 8.6, 8.1, 6.5
- Male: 7.7, 6.7, 5.4

10/21:

Opened all cocoons except the heaviest in order to confirm development or death; we found six live pupae (3 female, 3 male) and three dead pupae(all male)
The six live pupae had the highest weight of the nine while the dead ones had the lowest
The original cocoon opened on 10/17 appears to be the most developed of the since live ones
Of the three dead pupae, two had very contracted abdomens and soft, squishy wing cases, and the other was moldy

10/20:

The naked pupa now weighs just 7.3g and the abdominal segments have elongated, usually a sign that the abdomen has already taken form and is almost finished developing
Under the light, the pupa seems to be hollow in the outer circumference, probably because the developing moth's body is smaller than the shape of the pupa's cuticle

10/19:

Put the cocoons into an airtight container with paper towels to increase the humidity

10/17:

Again, mass dropped significantly after just one day which is shocking because even dead pupae shouldn't loose mass so quickly, leading us to believe they are going to eclose and produce a final brood and were not diapausing to begin with - this makes sense because in their native India, they are normally bivoltine or trivoltine, with he first brood starting in June , meaning Octobor is a normal time for another brood
In order to confirm whether the pupae are developing and not dead, we cut open the cocoon with the most mass loss since 10/12, namely the cocoon that is currently 10.9g, to inspect the pupae
The pupae is a healthy reddish brown color and extremely plump, and thus appears to be alive, but there are no visible signs of development though they may appear within a week; also, it did never moved
Just some interesting observations on the pupae: it is female based on broken gonophores grooves, the head has a clear piece characteristic of Antheraea for detecting scotoperiod; the exuviae is enormous; the cocoon shell weighs 2.2g
Cocoon mass (g): 14.8 (-0.8), 12.2 (-0.5), 11.5 (-1.1), 10.9 (-1.4), 10.7 (-0.7), 10.6 (-0.5), 10.2 (-0.7), 9.4 (-0.8), 8.1 (0.3), 6.3 (-1.1)

10/16:

Strangely, there has been a significant decrease in mass in all 10 cocoons after just four days since arrival; we are very confused because this could only mean they are dead or developing, both of which are extremely unlikely because the death would have had to be quite some time ago and they can't be developing because they were said to be diapausing until June 2017
Mass (g): 15.2 (-0.4), 12.3 (-0.4), 11.9 (-0.7), 11.4 (-0.9), 10.9 (-0.5), 10.8 (-0.3), 10.5 (-0.4), 9.6 (-0.6), 8.2 (-0.2), 6.8 (-0.6)

- Alan

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E. imperialis Rearing Notes (9/28/16-10/23/16)

10/23/2016

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Rearing notes for our Imperial Moth caterpillars (Eacles imperialis). These were originally obtained as eggs from a New York breeder and reared indoors on pine (Pinus) cuttings.

Rearing Notes 9/28/16-10/23/16:

10/23:

Weighed all seven pupae and sexed them; four are female and three are male which is a good ratio; albeit sample size is extremely small, but female pupae are much heavier than male pupae have less variation in mass
Pupae move abdomen frequently when disturbed, a clear indicator of life
Pupa mass (g):
- Female: 4.7, 5.4, 5.6, 5.9
  - Mean: 5.40
  - StDev: 0.51
  - Med: 5.5
- Male: 3.0, 3.1, 4.8
  - Mean: 3.63
  - StDev: 1.01
  - Med: 3.1

10/20:

Unfortunately the supernumerary sixth isntar became lethargic and died today

10/13:

The final prepupa pupated and is female
Only remaining caterpillar is a supernumerary sixth instar

10/11:

Two more pupated; one female and one male

10/10:

The second oldest prepupa finally pupated today after 8 days in the prepupal stage
The cuticle is bright yellow and surprising firm already when teneral
This pupa is female and much larger than the first one that was male, at 5.5g to the male's 3.1g;

10/7:

All wandering caterpillars except the most recent have become immobile and stubby

10/6:

Another caterpillar entered the wandering stage
A fifth instar drowned, and another died

10/5:

The caterpillar that entered the wandering stage on 9/27 finally pupated after 8 days as a prepupa
The pupa is dark brown with very a rough cuticle; the rear end is blunt but pointy a cremaster; the ventral side of the abdomen has four spots where the prolegs used to be; it is very active when disturbed; the excuviae is enormous and not scrunched up like it usually is; it is a male based on gonophore

10/4:

Two more entered the wandering stage; one dropped to 8.1g, the other at 9.3g

10/3:

Another caterpillar entered the wanderings state and dropped to 8.3g
The prepupa that began wandering yesterday has dropped to 9.6g which is still very massive compared to the others

10/2:

Another caterpillar had runny stool, dropping to 10.1g which is much larger than the first one and turning a burgundy color; we placed it into a tub with paper towels in a dark cabinet like the first one

10/1:

A few final photos of our largest remaining fifth instars before they become prepupas
The prepupa is taking on a greenish hue and the cuticle is become softer and looser
L5 Mass (g), N=10: 2.6, 2.7, 3.3, 4.0, 9.2, 10.0, 10.0, 11.1, 11.7, 12.8
- Mean: 7.74 (-0.37)
- StDev: 4.09 (-0.03)
- Max: 12.8 (-0.20)
- Med: 9.6 (-0.10)
- Min: 2.6 (+0.50)

9/30:

Prepupa very stiff and slightly fainter in color; weighs 4.7g
L5 Mass (g), N=9: 2.1, 2.6, 3.8, 9.6, 9.7, 9.8, 10.9, 11.5, 13.0
- Mean: 8.11 (+0.14)
- StDev: 4.12 (+0.10)
- Max: 13.0 (+0.2)
- Med: 9.7 (-0.1)
- Min: 2.1 (+0.2)

9/29:

The prepupa has became immobile and dropped to 4.9g
L5 Mass (g), N=9: 1.9, 2.7, 3.9, 9.1, 9.8, 9.8, 10.5, 11.2, 12.8
- Mean: 7.97 (+1.29)
- StDev: 4.02 (+0.09)
- Max: 12.8 (+0.9)
- Med: 9.8 (+1.4)
- Min: 1.9 (+0.4)

9/28:

The prepupa has stopped wandering and has become stubby and firm; it weighs only 5.2g now
L5 Mass (g), n=9: 1.5, 2.5, 3.1, 3.7, 8.4, 9.2, 9.8, 10.0, 11.9
- Mean: 6.68 (-0.51)
- StDev: 3.93 (+0.45)
- Max: 11.9 (+0.3)
- Med: 8.4 (+0.3)
- Min: 1.5 (+0.4)
Count: prepupa: 1; L5: 10; L4: 2; dead: 24 (7 desiccated, 2 missing, 3 disease, 1 squashed, 6 unknown, 1 overheated, 3 drowned, 1 mismolted)

- Alan

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P. communis Rearing Notes (10/16/16-10/23/16)

10/23/2016

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The fourth installment of rearing notes for wild caught Common Checkered Skippers (Pyrgus communis) that we found as eggs or caterpillars on wild, introduced mallow (Malva).

Rearing notes 10/16/16-10/23/16:

10/23:

The fourth instar is in apolysis for fifth

10/22:

The fifth instar has started turning pink

10/21:

The fifth instar looks just about done growing; the younger one is still very yellow

10/19:

10/18:

Fourth instar has molted to fifth

10/17:

The younger of the two remaining caterpillars is very yellowish and not green like the other three we have reared

10/16:

The fifth instar has pupated inside its cocoon
The fourth instar is in apolysis for fifth

- Brian

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C. morosus Rearing Notes (10/15/16-10/22/16)

10/22/2016

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Rearing notes for our Indian Walking sticks (Carausius morosus). These are offspring of an adult we have been rearing since March 2016 and a wild caught brown form adult no longer with us.

Rearing Notes 10/15/16-10/22/16:

10/22:

Now that the walking sticks are so large, they are consuming the raspberry cuttings at a far faster rate; since the raspberry around here has become senescent, we added some cuttings of tayberry (Rubus fruticosus x Rubus idaeus), a cross between blackberry and raspberry, instead
Measured length and mass of the seven adults and there is little correlation between the two measurements since they are of different ages; the F0 adult is the shortest (7.6 cm) but weighs the most (1.2g) because it's abdomen is full of eggs while some of the longest ones weigh very little because they just ecdysed
Based on the low egg count this week, the F1 adults have not begun laying yet
Surprisingly, one of the new eggs hatched today despite not a single one hatching since 10/6
L7 length (cm): 8.4, 8.2, 8.2, 8.1, 8.1, 7.9, 7.6 (F0)
L7 mass (g): 0.6, 0.9, 0.6, 1.0, 0.6, 0.8, 1.2 (F0)
Count: L7: 6 (F1), 1 (F0), L6: 24, L5: 25, L4: 9, L3: 24, L2: 29, L1: 39; hatched eggs: 192 (97 new, 95 old); total eggs (last counted 10/22): 599 (478 new, 121 old); avg 2.38 eggs/day from 10/14-10/22; dead/missing: 35

10/21:

Six of the old eggs hatched

10/20:

One of the old eggs hatched

10/19:

Two of the old eggs hatched

10/18:

Six of the old eggs hatched

10/17:

One of the old eggs hatched

10/16:

Another ecdysed into adult; exuviae can be sen hanging from branch
One of the old eggs hatched

10/15:

Another ecdysed into adult and measures ~3.125 inches
Three of the old eggs hatched

- Alan

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Comparing Our Saturniidae/Sphingidae Pupae and Saturniidae Cocoons

10/22/2016

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Since we have accumulated many different Saturniidae and Sphingidae pupae and Saturniidae cocoons this fall, we decided to compare them.

♀Antheraea mylitta (Saturniinae), ♂Antheraea polyphemus (Saturniinae), ♂Samia ricini (Saturniinae), ♀Eacles imperialis (Ceratocampinae), ♀Smerinthus ophthalmica (Smerinthinae), and ♀Eumorpha achemon (Macroglossinae)

Antheraea mylitta, Antheraea polyphemus, Actias luna, Samia ricini, and Hyalophora cecropia

Since we have begun to accumulate quite a lot of different Saturniidae and Sphingidae pupae lately, we decided to compare some of them side by side. Above are ventral, lateral, and dorsal views of seven different pupae, the five on the left being Satuniidae and the two on the right Sphingidae. From left to right: ♀Antheraea mylitta (Saturniinae), ♂Antheraea polyphemus (Saturniinae), ♂Samia ricini (Saturniinae), ♀Eacles imperialis (Ceratocampinae), ♀Smerinthus ophthalmica (Smerinthinae), and ♀Eumorpha achemon (Macroglossinae). The two Antheraeas are extremely similar in proportion (except for the antennae size due to sex differences) and have the clear piece on the head, but mylitta is at least two times larger and redder in color. The S. ricini pupa, though distantly related as it is in the Attacini tribe, actually looks very similar to them except it is slimmer and smaller with longer forewings and is golden brown in color, The E. imperialis pupa, being in the Ceratocampinae, looks markedly different from those three, and actually bears quite a resemblance to the S. ophthalimca pupa. Both a much slimmer and tapered on the abdomen, with long cremasters. The E. imperialis pupa wing cases are the most perpendicular at the bases and is quite uniform in width in the center. The S. ophthalmica pupa and other Smerinthinae pupae are not very typical Sphingidae, resembling Saturniidae pupa more since it lacks a proboscis and not excessively elongated and pointy. On the other hand, the E. achemon pupa, being in the Macroglossinae, is a more typical looking Sphingidae pupa, being very elongated, especially at the thorax, with long wings, legs, and proboscis, and a pointy abdomen. Too bad we don't have a Shinginae representative which would be like the E. achemon pupa but with a non-fused proboscis. Also, despite that we have them, we did not include Hyalophora cecropia and Hyles lineata pupa in this line up here because we didn't want to cut the H. cecropia cocoons and the H. lineata are not quite ready to pupate yet. However, the H. cecropia pupa would probably resemble the S. ricini pupa and the H. lineata pupa would resemble the E. achemon pupa as they are the closest evolutionarily. Update (10/24/16): H.lineata pupa comparison here, Pachysphinx modesta here.

While we were at it, we also decided to compare some of our Saturniidae cocoons. Below are five different species, the three on the left being in the Saturniinae tribe and the two on the right in the Attacini tribe. From left to right: Antheraea mylitta, Antheraea polyphemus, Actias luna, Samia ricini, and Hyalophora cecropia. All are unopened except the A. luna cocoon since it was from a brood reared in 2013; the rest are unopen and were obtained or reared this year. Despite the close relation between the two Antheraeas, their cocoons are surprisingly different. The mylitta is huge and perfectly smooth and ovular, made of extremely tough and thick beige colored silk. There also is a long silk stalk at the top for hanging to branches. In comparison, polyphemus is less perfectly shaped and flatter, with a tough but thinner shell. There is not stalk since they are either affixed to the tree or in the leaf litter. The A. luna cocoon resembles the A. polyphemus cocoon very much but is brown and the shell is much thinner, shinier, and smoother. The S. ricini cocoon is far less compact and the silk is softer and white. The shape is sort of irregular, being flat and tapered at the ends. The H. cecropia cocoon is also tapered at the ends -- very much so at the top, but the silk is very course and thick, though not as compact a the Antheraeas'. It is the largest cocoon by far and is like a bag, with a little escape hole at the top for when the moth ecloses. Between the three Saturniinaes and two Attacini cocoons the former have more or less ovular cocoons while the Attacini cocoon are more irregular shaped, but are usually tapered at the ends with a escape hole at the top.

- Alan

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