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
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 337 - 360 of 869 verified sightings
Observation date: Jun 11, 2015
Submitted by: Stacypilkington
Region: New London County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: TeaKH
Verified date: Oct 11, 2015
Observation date: May 13, 2015
Submitted by: Joe Bartok
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 30, 2015
Observation date: Apr 28, 2014
Submitted by: greenesnake@yah...
Region: Gibson County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: Ken Childs
Verified date: Sep 07, 2015
Observation date: May 28, 2015
Submitted by: FLYDRIVE
Region: Wayne County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: elsner
Verified date: Sep 04, 2015
Observation date: May 30, 2015
Submitted by: louiecski
Region: Baltimore County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 24, 2015
Observation date: Apr 12, 2015
Submitted by: Joshua Spence
Region: Murray County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 01, 2015
Observation date: Jul 30, 2015
Submitted by: johnw
Region: Ohio County, West Virginia, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 31, 2015
Observation date: Jul 31, 2015
Submitted by: Btad4uk22
Region: Bullitt County, Kentucky, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 31, 2015
Observation date: Jul 11, 2015
Submitted by: Devyn_swim23
Region: Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 31, 2015
Observation date: Jul 17, 2015
Submitted by: Rich Civil
Region: Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 17, 2015
Observation date: Jul 15, 2015
Submitted by: Tuppermichelle
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 16, 2015
Observation date: Jul 13, 2015
Submitted by: sjgkmuise
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 14, 2015
Observation date: Jul 10, 2015
Submitted by: Monica Miller
Region: Greene County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 14, 2015
Observation date: Jun 09, 2015
Submitted by: TCat7187
Region: Cecil County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 10, 2015
Observation date: Aug 11, 2014
Submitted by: ottawajordan
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: TeaKH
Verified date: Jul 09, 2015
Observation date: Jun 09, 2015
Submitted by: taylorcreek
Region: Albemarle County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 08, 2015
Observation date: Jul 08, 2015
Submitted by: Lorraine Sander
Region: Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 08, 2015
Observation date: Jul 07, 2015
Submitted by: staubly
Region: Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 07, 2015
Observation date: Jun 25, 2015
Submitted by: John Schwartz
Region: Kane County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 01, 2015
Observation date: May 16, 2015
Submitted by: Teamtcb
Region: Richmond County, New York, United States
Verified by: reutere
Verified date: Jun 28, 2015
Observation date: Jun 22, 2014
Submitted by: Clarentine
Region: Goochland County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jun 28, 2015
Observation date: Jun 27, 2015
Submitted by: Ewan_bug
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jun 28, 2015
Observation date: Jun 06, 2015
Submitted by: dsaltis
Region: Herkimer County, New York, United States
Verified by: Sue Gregoire
Verified date: Jun 07, 2015
Observation date: Jun 03, 2015
Submitted by: Deidre2382
Region: Minnesota, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Jun 05, 2015
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