Attributes of Hemileuca maia
Eastern buckmoth
Hemileuca maia (Drury, 1773)
Family: Saturniidae
Subfamily: Hemileucinae
Identification: Females are larger than males. Male abdomen is black with a red tip, female abdomen is black. Upperside is black with an off-white median band and a small eyespot on each wing.
Wing Span: 2 - 3 inches (5 - 7.5 cm).
Life History: Adults emerge in the morning and mating takes place in early afternoon. In the late afternoon, females lay groups of eggs in rings around twigs of the host. The eggs overwinter, and when they hatch the next spring the young caterpillars feed in groups. Caterpillars wander about and make their cocoons in leaf litter on the ground or a few inches underground in soft soil.
Flight: One brood from September-December.
Caterpillar Hosts: Various oaks including scrub oak (Quercus ilicifolia), live oak (Q. virginiana), blackjack oak (Q. marilandica), and dwarf chestnut oak (Q. prinoides).
Adult Food: Adults do not feed.
Habitat: Scrub oak-pine sand barrens, oak woods, and oak trees in cities.
Range: Maine west to eastern Kansas; south to northern Florida, the Gulf states, and eastern Texas.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Taxonomy Notes:
Images of Hemileuca maia
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The map below displays all verified sighting records in the BAMONA database for this species. Each record is indicated with a yellow dot. The orange dots on the map provide access to information about the 400 most recently verified sightings of this species. In some instances, there are several records at the same location. Use the table view to access these records.
Instructions: Click on the map and move your mouse to pan.
Zoom by using the plus [+] and minus [-] on the left side of the map.
To change which map layers are displayed, click on the plus sign [+] on the right side of the map.
The fifty most recently verified sightings are below. See more recently verified sightings of all species.
| Observation Date | Submitter | Region |
Verified Date |
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May 15, 2013 | Ladec | Volusia County, Florida, United States | May 19, 2013 | Details |
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May 14, 2013 | clayrun | Ascension Parish, Louisiana, United States | May 16, 2013 | Details |
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April 18, 2013 | candipanda9870 | Ellis County, Texas, United States | April 23, 2013 | Details |
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April 21, 2013 | TexasLady75 | Texas, Sabine County, United States | April 22, 2013 | Details |
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April 22, 2013 | Amber977 | Louisiana, United States | April 22, 2013 | Details |
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July 31, 2003 | sidzoe | Pike County, Pennsylvania, United States | February 20, 2013 | Details |
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January 21, 2013 | Dale Halbritter | Marion County, Florida, United States | February 08, 2013 | Details |
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November 03, 2012 | bhough | Surry County, North Carolina, United States | January 18, 2013 | Details |
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December 15, 2012 | Kreg Ellzey | East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States | December 26, 2012 | Details |
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April 11, 2012 | aharcrow | Madison County, Tennessee, United States | December 25, 2012 | Details |
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June 26, 2010 | Rangertsp | Grundy County, Tennessee, United States | December 25, 2012 | Details |
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April 09, 2012 | krickette | Caddo Parish, Louisiana, United States | December 10, 2012 | Details |
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December 01, 2012 | Jeff Trahan | Caddo Parish, Louisiana, United States | December 07, 2012 | Details |
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November 17, 2012 | lenb_99 | Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States | November 19, 2012 | Details |
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March 20, 2012 | devellison | Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States | November 13, 2012 | Details |
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November 12, 2012 | Leroy K | Charlotte County, Virginia, United States | November 12, 2012 | Details |
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November 10, 2012 | alixevans | Prince Georges County, Maryland, United States | November 11, 2012 | Details |
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November 08, 2012 | Chris561 | Albemarle County, Virginia, United States | November 09, 2012 | Details |
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May 18, 2012 | mordain | Calhoun County, Alabama, United States | November 05, 2012 | Details |
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October 20, 2012 | John Ford | Montgomery County, Virginia, United States | October 23, 2012 | Details |
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June 17, 2012 | robpring | Rockbridge County, Virginia, United States | October 19, 2012 | Details |
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May 05, 2012 | Dana is wild 4 critters | Lee County, Mississippi, United States | October 11, 2012 | Details |
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March 20, 2012 | devellison | Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States | October 10, 2012 | Details |
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April 15, 2012 | bmmann89 | Volusia County, Florida, United States | October 10, 2012 | Details |
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June 04, 2012 | Peggy Gilliland | Mississippi, United States | October 10, 2012 | Details |
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September 29, 2012 | curtis.lehman | Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States | September 30, 2012 | Details |
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June 17, 2012 | CBASLE | Fauquier County, Virginia, United States | September 19, 2012 | Details |
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April 08, 2009 | wax32 | Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States | September 17, 2012 | Details |
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June 05, 2012 | Elizabeth Wolfe | Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States | August 18, 2012 | Details |
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May 22, 2012 | dendroica5 | Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States | August 02, 2012 | Details |
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May 19, 2012 | James_Shelton32 | Northampton County, Virginia, United States | July 08, 2012 | Details |
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June 02, 2012 | katrina oakes | Halifax County, Virginia, United States | July 07, 2012 | Details |
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November 22, 2011 | Skyler | Cleveland County, Arkansas, United States | June 30, 2012 | Details |
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June 02, 2012 | higsonhs | Bedford County, Pennsylvania, United States | June 04, 2012 | Details |
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May 25, 2012 | yelpurr | Grant County, West Virginia, United States | May 27, 2012 | Details |
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May 07, 2012 | Sprice110 | Texas, Marion County, United States | May 23, 2012 | Details |
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April 17, 2012 | ken knr | Moore County, North Carolina, United States | May 10, 2012 | Details |
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May 06, 2012 | Otalan | Prince William County, Virginia, United States | May 08, 2012 | Details |
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April 20, 2012 | sumkoolskool | Clay County, Florida, United States | April 22, 2012 | Details |
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November 01, 2011 | Kayleigh740 | Vinton County, Ohio, United States | January 11, 2012 | Details |
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December 03, 2011 | MSBoutte | Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States | December 17, 2011 | Details |
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October 13, 2011 | k2chris1983 | Virginia, United States, Warren County | October 16, 2011 | Details |
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May 29, 2011 | Megan_Michelle_Anthony | Jefferson County, Alabama, United States | August 21, 2011 | Details |
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August 07, 2011 | Cheryl Jennings | Berkeley County, West Virginia, United States | August 10, 2011 | Details |
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June 22, 2011 | Shelby24019 | Botetourt County, Virginia, United States | July 17, 2011 | Details |
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June 25, 2011 | Glad | Stokes County, North Carolina, United States | July 17, 2011 | Details |
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June 29, 2011 | Otalan | Prince William County, Virginia, United States | July 14, 2011 | Details |
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June 02, 2011 | niseyg123 | Rutherford County, North Carolina, United States | July 08, 2011 | Details |
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June 05, 2011 | TheNatureInUs.com | Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States | July 08, 2011 | Details |
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May 28, 2011 | Alan Harvey | Dade County, Georgia, United States | June 20, 2011 | Details |
