Eupackardia calleta Eggs Arrive and Hatch

We had calleta (Eupackardia calleta) eggs arrive and hatch today. Stock origin from Arizona.

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Well, here goes try number two. The calleta eggs came and a dozen of them began hatching right away - thankfully not in shipment. Last year we tried rearing calletas in the fall, and it did not end well. The weather was cold and the privet was of poor quality and variety - the very tough and glossy Ligustrum lucidum. Unsurprisingly, there was high mortality and they died in the fourth and fifth instar.

This year, we are trying them now in summer, when the weather is nice and the privet is relatively better. We are also using Ligustrum ovaifolium which is thinner, softer, and slightly less glossy than lucidum. We actually thought about the host for awhile - calletas, being endemic to Central America and parts of Arizona and Texas, don't naturally take many of the plants we have. However, rearers report success on privet (Ligustrum) and lilac (Syringa) due to their association with the species' native host ash (Fraxinus). Prunus is also reported as utilizable, though probably only certain varieties. We ended up choosing privet because we just thought it would be safest as they are basically guaranteed to take it. However, as with most thing given privet as a substitute in captivity, they will probably be small on it. No worries though, as we're mainly concerned about getting through to cocoon though, not size. 

So, when we offered the little newborns privet, many immediately began nibbling on it. However, after getting the dozen or so larvae on, many kept falling off the leaves due their glossiness. This was the same problem we had last year that caused incredibly high mortality in the early instars and was still somewhat of a problem in the late instars as well. The larvae's prolegs must not be adapted to gripped on this nonnative host. After repeatedly putting the falling larvae back on the cutting, they finally seemed to settle down, though it is likely by tomorrow many will be off it. 

The larvae look just how we remember them, being relatively small for Saturniidae, at about 4 mm. They are black with yellow bands and spots, and small hairy black tubercles and small black heads. Unlike Samia, Callosamia, and Hyalophora, these don't really seem gregarious, maybe just loosely at best.

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Authors
Alan Liang
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