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Sematurinae

Sematurinae is a subfamily of moths in the family Sematuridae represented by at least 29 species in the Neotropics.

Taxonomy, classification and identification

Sematurinae has three principal genera, and possibly another two. The hindwing of Coronidia is distinguished by an iridescent blue band, but Homidiana characteristically has pink, orange or yellow markings, especially in females (Minet and Scoble, 1999). The genus Mania is large, brown and tailed, resembling to some extent the genus Lyssa. The approximately twelve other sematurid species in the genera Anurapteryx and Lonchotura are placed here for now (making about 41 species) but may not belong in this subfamily; one species, Anurapteryx crenulata reaches the subtropics of Arizona (Minet and Scoble, 1999). The relationships within Sematuridae clearly need deeper investigation.

  • Note: the name Nothus is preoccupied by a genus of Coleoptera (Minet and Scoble, 1999). The genus name Sematura was also in use for this genus, but it was younger (being published in 1825) than Hübner's name Mania from 1821; a petition to conserve the junior name was rejected by the ICZN in Opinion 2352 (2015), so Hübner's name is officially now the valid name for the genus.

Behaviour

The adult moths of Sematurinae are either day or night flying, depending on the genus and have the wings outspread at rest and the genus Sematura displays impressive eyespots at the hindwing tails.

Biology

The biology of Sematurinae is poorly known. The larva of Homidiana was illustrated by Westwood (1879) who incorrectly placed it among Coronidia, and was described by Anton Hermann Fassl (1910). From 1995 to 1998, caterpillars were found in Costa Rica. Sematurine eggs have been described by Joël Minet and Malcolm J. Scoble (1999:302), and are upright, high, with vertical and finer transverse ribs. The caterpillars of Homidiana subpicta have rows of black spines either side of the dorsal midline and five pairs of prolegs. The larva of Coronidia orithea lacks such spines, and is well camouflaged like a lichen-covered twig and has realistic-looking false eyes making it resemble a predatory spider. The larvae of Mania were reared in Costa Rica in 2001 and are a bit similar to those of Coronidia being well camouflaged but bearing small projections rather than long spines one the dorsal surface. Like some Uraniidae, pupation occurs on the ground among debris. The pupa of Homidiana has a long projecting proboscis "sheath" with eight hooklets at the cremaster tip (Minet and Scoble, 1999).

Larval host plants

The caterpillar of Coronidia orithea is so far only known to feed on mistletoes (Viscaceae: Phoradendron quadrangulare). Homidiana subpicta feeds on a more diverse range of plants, including the families Araliaceae (Oreopanax), Gesneriaceae, Piperaceae (Piper), Primulaceae (Ardisia, Myrsine), Solanaceae (Solanum), Onagraceae (Ludwigia) and Theophrastaceae (Clavija). "Sematura luna" reared in 2001 whose well-camouflaged larva is reported to feed on the legume Pentaclethra macroloba (Mimosoideae) and on Syzygium longifolium (Myrtaceae).

Provisional list of species (based on LepIndex)

References

  • Fassl, A.H. (1910). Die Raupe einer Uranide. Z. wiss. InsektBiol, 6(10): 355.
  • Minet, J. and Scoble, M. J. (1999) [1998] The Drepanoid/Geometroid Assemblage. Pp. 301–320 in Kristensen, N.P. (Ed.), 1999 [1998]. Lepidoptera, Moths and Butterflies. Volume 1, Evolution, Systematics, and Biogeography. Handbook of Zoology, vol. IV, Arthropoda: Insecta, Part 35: 491 pp. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin and New York.
  • Westwood, J.O. 1879. Observations on the Uraniidae, a family of Lepidopterous Insects, with a Synopsis of the Family and a Monograph of Coronidia, one of the genera of which it is composed. Transactions of the Zoological Society, 10(12): 1–35, 3 plates.

Other sources

  • NHM Lepindex
  • Dyer, L.A. and G.L. Gentry. 2002. Caterpillars and parasitoids of a tropical lowland wet forest, caterpillars.org, Accessed, March 2007.

External links