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Hypercompe sp.
This Tiger Moth laid a batch of eggs on a wall under a light on 28 June 2018 (picture 1). They were all pearl-colored (pictures 1 & 2). Four days later (2 July 2018, the eggs changed to a metallic bronze color (picture 3). They remained this color for 12 more days. On 13 July 2018, all but 1 of the eggs abrubtly changed to a metallic silver color (picture 4) and hatched simultaneously on 14 July 2018 (pictures 5 & 6). The one egg which did not change to silver did not hatch. The larvae remained together, producing silk to help hold them in mass. The silk is visible in the last picture. The following day, I removed them all and took them to a field full of different kinds of plants and grasses. This is supposed to be a generalized feeder and hopefully they will survive. Family Erebidae, Arctiinae.
Semi-rural residential area, San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, 2,200 meters.
This specimen looks similar to the "Many Spotted Tiger Moth" Hypercompe permaculata (https://bugguide.net/node/view/1274229). See a previous spotting of this species: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/250....
8 Comments
Thank you so much Mark, Gilma, Christine, Sukanya, Daniele, Ashley and Melinda!
That is so awesome! Great Spotting!!!
Your spotting has been nominated for the Spotting of the Week. The winner will be chosen by the Project Noah Rangers based on a combination of factors including: uniqueness of the shot, status of the organism (for example, rare or endangered), quality of the information provided in the habitat and description sections. There is a subjective element, of course; the spotting with the highest number of Ranger votes is chosen. Congratulations on being nominated!
Another fantastic series with great documentation Lauren!
What a fantastic series....you know I was reminded of the pearl shops in Hyderabad (India)...they have pearls in all these colours....fingers crossed for the caterpillars.
Amazing series!
Lovely series Lauren, thanks for sharing.
Wow excellent spotting Lauren.