Promethea silkmoth
Callosamia promethea (Drury, 1773)
Family: Saturniidae
Subfamily: Saturniinae
Identification: Males and females differ. Male body is black; wings are black with tan borders, faint tan postmedian lines, and pink near the eyespots on the forewing tips. Female wings are dark brown to reddish-brown with tan borders and well-developed tan cell spots on all wings.
Wing Span: 2 15/16 - 3 3/4 inches (7.5 - 9.5 cm).
Life History: Males seek females in the afternoon and early evening, with most mating occurring from 4 PM to sunset. At night, females lay rows of 4-10 eggs on the upperside of host plant leaves. Young caterpillars feed together while older caterpillars are solitary. Older caterpillars do not eat the leaf midvein, but cut the leaf petiole at the base so it falls to the ground, perhaps a defensive measure eliminating visual or olfactory signs of feeding. A caterpillar ready to pupate strengthens a leaf petiole with silk and then spins its cocoon inside the curled leaf. The cocoon hangs from the host plant throughout the winter.
Flight: One brood from May-July in the north, two broods from March-May and in August in the south.
Caterpillar Hosts: A broad range of plants including spicebush (Lindera benzoin), sassafras (Sassafras albidum), tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), white ash (Fraxinus americana), lilac (Syringa vulgaris), and others.
Adult Food: Adults do not feed.
Habitat: Deciduous woodlands.
Range: Eastern United States to the Great Plains and Maine west through southern Quebec and Wisconsin to Minnesota; south to the Florida panhandle, the Gulf coast, and east 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.
Comments: NULL
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 686 verified sightings
Observation date: May 26, 2020
Submitted by: Naamah_23
Region: Frederick County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: May 26, 2020
Observation date: Apr 28, 2020
Submitted by: PBlack
Region: Amherst County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: May 26, 2020
Observation date: May 24, 2020
Submitted by: ednar
Region: Snyder County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 24, 2020
Observation date: May 23, 2020
Submitted by: Les in Ohio
Region: Guernsey County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: May 24, 2020
Observation date: May 11, 2020
Submitted by: jrtindall
Region: Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 13, 2020
Observation date: May 02, 2020
Submitted by: jrtindall
Region: Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 02, 2020
Observation date: Apr 29, 2020
Submitted by: djchere
Region: Jackson County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Apr 29, 2020
Observation date: Apr 26, 2020
Submitted by: Fsugrad1710
Region: Oconee County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Apr 27, 2020
Observation date: Apr 18, 2020
Submitted by: Merry
Region: Georgia, Towns County, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Apr 24, 2020
Observation date: Jul 05, 2019
Submitted by: Jacksenzig
Region: Juneau County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: Ilona L.
Verified date: Apr 12, 2020
Observation date: Jun 28, 2019
Submitted by: crharvuot
Region: Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Dec 11, 2019
Observation date: Jun 08, 2019
Submitted by: RMarkows
Region: Suffolk County, New York, United States
Verified by: Sue Gregoire
Verified date: Oct 16, 2019
Observation date: May 24, 2018
Submitted by: Susan McSwain
Region: Nelson County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 08, 2019
Observation date: Aug 24, 2019
Submitted by: Ryan Stein
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Sep 04, 2019
Observation date: Jul 07, 2019
Submitted by: LisaD
Region: Warren County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Aug 28, 2019
Observation date: Jun 29, 2019
Submitted by: pmrules21
Region: Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Aug 23, 2019
Observation date: Aug 11, 2019
Submitted by: Jay Drasher
Region: Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Aug 14, 2019
Observation date: Aug 11, 2019
Submitted by: House Mouse
Region: Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 11, 2019