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 121 - 144 of 869 verified sightings
Observation date: May 29, 2019
Submitted by: Emergenurse
Region: Warren County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Dec 10, 2020
Observation date: Apr 18, 2020
Submitted by: Vally
Region: Cocke County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Dec 10, 2020
Observation date: Aug 17, 2019
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Nov 27, 2020
Observation date: Jul 13, 2017
Submitted by: Wade Wander
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Oct 11, 2020
Observation date: Jul 19, 2018
Submitted by: Wade Wander
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Oct 11, 2020
Observation date: Jun 18, 2020
Submitted by: BReeves
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Oct 01, 2020
Observation date: May 31, 2018
Submitted by: Pamela Simmons
Region: Windham County, Vermont, United States
Verified by: Tom Clark
Verified date: Sep 28, 2020
Observation date: Aug 01, 2020
Submitted by: jmacmetro
Region: Bergen County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Sep 14, 2020
Observation date: Jun 07, 2014
Submitted by: woody meristem
Region: Lamoille County, Vermont, United States
Verified by: Tom Clark
Verified date: Sep 05, 2020
Observation date: Jun 24, 2020
Submitted by: Helena Uber-Wamble
Region: Rutland County, Vermont, United States
Verified by: Tom Clark
Verified date: Sep 03, 2020
Observation date: Aug 22, 2019
Submitted by: Bennatti
Region: Hancock County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 02, 2020
Observation date: Aug 23, 2020
Submitted by: plawryniuk
Region: Virginia, York County, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 24, 2020
Observation date: Aug 05, 2020
Submitted by: Baz
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Aug 16, 2020
Observation date: Jul 06, 2019
Submitted by: Eddie Wyatt
Region: York County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Aug 15, 2020
Observation date: Jul 02, 2020
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Aug 06, 2020
Observation date: Jul 19, 2020
Submitted by: MSwance62
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 05, 2020
Observation date: Jul 18, 2020
Submitted by: JMJaskula
Region: Newton County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 26, 2020
Observation date: Jul 21, 2020
Submitted by: scottj4hops
Region: Jessamine County, Kentucky, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 22, 2020
Observation date: Jul 14, 2020
Submitted by: peggyrodgers8
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 17, 2020
Observation date: Jul 15, 2020
Submitted by: DeeAnn Veeder
Region: Columbia County, New York, United States
Verified by: Sue Gregoire
Verified date: Jul 16, 2020
Observation date: Jul 14, 2020
Submitted by: peggyrodgers8
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 14, 2020
Observation date: Jul 09, 2020
Submitted by: TJ in Derry
Region: Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 10, 2020
Observation date: Jul 06, 2020
Submitted by: Laurie.Marx
Region: Grant County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 06, 2020
Observation date: Jul 06, 2020
Submitted by: Cyrus Li
Region: Montgomery County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 06, 2020
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