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The Polyphemus moth (Antheraea polyphemus) is a member of the Saturniidae family, or giant silk moths. It is a tan colored moth, with an average wingspan of 6 inches (15 cm). The most notable feature of the moth is its large, purplish eyespots on its two hindwings. The eye spots are where it gets its name – from the Greek myth of the Cyclops Polyphemus. The caterpillar of the Polyphemus moth can eat 86,000 times its weight at emergence in a little less than two months. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2304x1481, 267 KB) Summary Antheraea polyphemus adult female taken by Shawn Hanrahan at the Texas A&M Insect Collection in College Station, Texas Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects...
Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ...
Animalia redirects here. ...
Subphyla and Classes Subphylum Trilobitomorpha Trilobita - trilobites (extinct) Subphylum Chelicerata Arachnida - spiders,scorpions, etc. ...
Orders See taxonomy Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species—more than all other animal groups combined. ...
Superfamilies Butterflies Hesperioidea Papilionoidea Moths Acanthopteroctetoidea Alucitoidea Axioidea Bombycoidea Calliduloidea Choreutoidea Cossoidea Drepanoidea Epermenioidea Eriocranioidea Galacticoidea Gelechioidea Geometroidea Gracillarioidea Hedyloidea Hepialoidea Heterobathmioidea Hyblaeoidea Immoidea Incurvarioidea Lasiocampoidea Lophocoronoidea Micropterigoidea Mimallonoidea Mnesarchaeoidea Neopseustoidea Nepticuloidea Noctuoidea Palaephatoidea Pterophoroidea Pyraloidea Schreckensteinioidea Sesioidea Simaethistoidea Thyridoidea Tineoidea Tischerioidea Tortricoidea Urodoidea Whalleyanoidea Yponomeutoidea Zygaenoidea The order Lepidoptera...
Subfamilies Arsenurinae Ceratocampinae Hemileucinae Agliinae Ludiinae Salassinae Saturniinae The Saturniidae, collectively known as saturniids, are among the largest and most spectacular of the lepidoptera, with an estimated 1,200 to 1,500 different species existing worldwide. ...
In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ...
Subfamilies Arsenurinae Ceratocampinae Hemileucinae Agliinae Ludiinae Salassinae Saturniinae The Saturniidae, collectively known as saturniids, are among the largest and most spectacular of the lepidoptera, with an estimated 1,200 to 1,500 different species existing worldwide. ...
A centimetre (American spelling centimeter, symbol cm) is a unit of length that is equal to one hundredth of a metre, the current SI base unit of length. ...
An ocellus (plural: ocelli) is a type of photoreceptor organ in animals. ...
Hindwings are the second (caudal) pair of insect wings. ...
Odysseus and his men blinding the cyclop Polyphemus (detail of a proto-attic amphora, c. ...
Life cycle
The life cycle of the moth is much like that of any other saturniidae species. It lays flat, light brown eggs on the leaves of a number of host plants, including: - Betula, (birch)
- Salix, (willow)
- Quercus, (oak)
- Acer, (maple)
- Carya, (hickory)
- Fagus, (beech)
- Gleditsia triacanthos, (honey locust)
- Juglans, (walnut)
- Pyrus, (pear and quince)
- Prunus, (plum, peach, apricot, cherry, etc.)
- Sassafras
- Citrus, (orange, grapefruits, lemons, limes, etc.)
- Ulmus americana, (American elm)
When the eggs hatch small yellow caterpillars emerge. As the caterpillars age, they molt 5 times. Each instar is slightly different, but on their sixth and final instar they become a bright green color with silver spots on their side. They feed heavily on their host plant and can grow up to 3-4 inches long. They then spin cocoons of brown silk, usually wrapped in leaves of the host plant. There are generally two broods throughout the United States, one that hatches in early spring and one that hatches in late summer. The moths eclose and then must pump their wings with fluid (hemolymph) to extend them. The females emit pheromones, which the male can detect through its large, plumose antennae. Males can fly for miles in order to reach a female. After the moths mate, the female spends the majority of the remainder of her life laying eggs, while the male may mate several more times. Adults of this family of moths have vestigial mouths, meaning their mouthparts have been reduced. Because of this, they do not eat and only live as adults for less than one week. Species many species see text and classification Birch is the name of any tree of the genus Betula, in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. ...
Species About 350, including: Salix alba - White Willow Salix amygdaloides - Peachleaf Willow Salix arbuscula - Mountain Willow Salix aurita - Eared Willow Salix babylonica - Peking Willow Salix caprea- Goat Willow Salix caroliniana - Coastal Plain Willow Salix cinerea - Grey Sallow Salix fragilis - Crack Willow Salix herbacea - Dwarf Willow Salix lanata - Woolly Willow Salix...
This article is about oaks (Quercus desert-oak is unrelated, and instead belongs to the genus Allocasuarina. ...
Acer can refer to one of the following: For the company named Acer, see Acer (company). ...
Carya is a genus of about 25 species of deciduous trees, including the hickory and pecan. ...
Species Fagus crenata - Japanese Beech Fagus engleriana - Chinese Beech Fagus grandifolia - American Beech Fagus hayatae - Taiwan Beech Fagus japonica - Japanese Blue Beech Fagus longipetiolata - South Chinese Beech Fagus lucida - Shining Beech Fagus mexicana - Mexican Beech or Haya Fagus orientalis - Oriental Beech Fagus sylvatica - European Beech Beech (Fagus) is a genus...
This article or section should be merged with Honey locust Gleditsia triacanthos or honey locust is a deciduous tree, of the legume family, native to North America. ...
This article is about the walnut tree. ...
Species Pyrus calleryana P. pyrifolia et al Pears are trees of the genus Pyrus and the edible fruit of that tree. ...
Species Prunus alabamensis Prunus alleghaniensis Prunus americana Prunus andersonii Prunus angustifolia Prunus armeniaca Prunus avium Prunus caroliniana Prunus cerasifera Prunus cerasus Prunus domestica Prunus dulcis Prunus emarginata Prunus fasciculata Prunus fremontii Prunus fruticosa Prunus geniculata Prunus glandulosa Prunus gracilis Prunus grayana Prunus havardii Prunus hortulana Prunus ilicifolia Prunus japonica Prunus...
This article is about the Sassafras tree. ...
Species & major hybrids Species Citrus aurantifolia - Key lime Citrus maxima - Pomelo Citrus medica - Citron Citrus reticulata - Mandarin & Tangerine Major hybrids Citrus ×sinensis - Sweet Orange Citrus ×aurantium - Bitter Orange Citrus ×paradisi - Grapefruit Citrus ×limon - Lemon Citrus ×limonia - Rangpur lime Citrus ×latifolia - Persian lime See also main text for other hybrids Citrus...
Binomial name Ulmus americana L. The American Elm Ulmus americana is a species of elm native to eastern North America, occurring from Nova Scotia west to southeast Saskatchewan, and south to Florida and central Texas. ...
An instar is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each molt. ...
Cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha) pupa Chrysalis redirects here: for other meanings see Chrysalis (disambiguation). ...
Silk dresses Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. ...
Hemolymph (or haemolymph) is the blood analogue used by all arthropods and most mollusks that have an open circulatory system. ...
Fanning honeybee exposes Nasonov gland (white-at tip of abdomen) releasing pheromone to entice swarm into an empty hive A pheromone is any chemical produced by a living organism that transmits a message to other members of the same species. ...
For other uses, see Antenna. ...
A vestigial organ is an organ whose original function has been lost during evolution. ...
Sexual dimorphism Differentiating between sexes of this species is very easy. The most obvious difference is the plumose antennae. Males will have a very bushy antenna while females will have a moderately less bushy antenna. Another difference is that the females will be slightly larger in the abdomen due to carrying eggs. There is a surprising amount of variation within this species. Color patterns can range from a reddish-cinnamon to a dark brown but are almost always a shade of brown. For other uses, see Antenna. ...
Pictures Polyphemus eggs Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (918x498, 35 KB) Antheraea polyphemus eggs taken by Shawn Hanrahan. ...
| 1st instar caterpillar. Reared on Post Oak. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1157x713, 90 KB) Antheraea polyphemus 1st instar taken by Shawn Hanrahan. ...
An instar is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each molt. ...
Binomial name Quercus stellata Wangenh. ...
| 1st instar caterpillar. Reared on Post Oak. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1542x940, 121 KB) Antheraea polyphemus 1st instar taken by Shawn Hanrahan. ...
| Polyphemus caterpillar Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x683, 243 KB) Species Antheraea polyphemus Family Saturniidae Summary Description: jpeg image, Polyphemus moth caterpillar, Antheraea polyphemus Source: Own work Author: Bruce Marlin Date Created: 08/24/2002 Location: Winfield IL USA Other versions: none Licensing File links The following pages...
| Polyphemus moth adult female Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2304x1481, 267 KB) Summary Antheraea polyphemus adult female taken by Shawn Hanrahan at the Texas A&M Insect Collection in College Station, Texas Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects...
| Polyphemus moth adult male Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2304x1728, 300 KB) Summary Antheraea polyphemus adult male taken by Shawn Hanrahan at the Insect Collection at the Texas A&M University in College Station. ...
| Polyphemus moth adult variation Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2304x1728, 393 KB) Summary Hyalophora cecropia adult female taken by Shawn Hanrahan at the Insect Collection at the Texas A&M University in College Station. ...
| Polyphemus moth adult female Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1408x1056, 329 KB) Female Antheraea polyphemus, taken by RebelAt, Rosslyn, Virginia, across from Rosslyn Metro station, August 1st, 2006. ...
| Polyphemus moth adults mating Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1280x960, 393 KB) Polyphemus moths mating on an ornamental grass (Calamagrostis acutiflora Stricta). Photo taken by Michael Ney outside Annapolis, MD. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
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Threats Pests of the moths have become a huge problem. Parasitic insects such as some species of wasps and flies lay their eggs in or on the young caterpillars. The eggs then hatch into larvae which consume the insides of the caterpillars. Once the caterpillars pupate, the larvae themselves pupate, killing the polyphemus pupa. Squirrels have also been known to consume the pupae of polyphemus moths, decreasing the population greatly. Pruning of trees and leaving outdoor lights on at night can also be detrimental to the polyphemus moths. Polyphemus moths are located from coast to coast in the US and are found throughout most of Canada. A parasite is an organism that spends a significant portion of its life in or on the living tissue of a host organism and which causes harm to the host without immediately killing it. ...
Orders See taxonomy Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species—more than all other animal groups combined. ...
Suborder Apocrita See text for explanation. ...
Suborders Nematocera (includes Eudiptera) Brachycera Wikispecies has information related to: Diptera True flies are insects of the Order Diptera (Greek: di = two, and pteron = wing), possessing a single pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax. ...
Genera Many, see the article Sciuridae. ...
External links
References Brands, S. J.. Antheraea polyphemus. Systema Naturae 2000. Retrieved on September 30, 2005. September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
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