Columbia silkmoth
Hyalophora columbia (S.I. Smith, 1865)
Family: Saturniidae
Subfamily: Saturniinae
Identification: Wings are dark brown to red-brown. The gray area outside the white postmedian band does not contain any red. Crescent spots on the forewings and hindwings are white, although occasionally the spots on the forewing may be reduced or absent.
Wing Span: 3 1/8 - 3 15/16 inches (8 - 10 cm).
Life History: Females lay one or two eggs at the base of larch needles, or on leaves and twigs of other host plants. Caterpillars hatch in less than two weeks and are solitary feeders. The cocoon is compact and spun close to the ground on the trunk or stem of the host plant or on nearby thick undergrowth.
Flight: One brood from May-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: In the east laricina); in addition, caterpillars in western Ontario eat pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica), speckled alder (Alnus rugosa), and white birch (Betula papyrifera). In the west: western choke cherry (Prunus demissa), bitter cherry (P. emarginata), bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata), wild roses (Rosa), willows (Salix), buffalo berry (Shepherdia argentea), Russian olive (Eleagnus angustifolius), and buckbrush (Ceanothus).
Adult Food: Adults do not feed.
Habitat: Woodland with poorly drained, boggy, acid soil; suburban gardens; and a wide variety of wooded habitats.
Range: In the east Quebec and Ontario to Michigan, northern Wisconsin, and southeastern Manitoba. In the west: Alberta and Montana south through the Rocky Mountain region to southwest Texas and into central Mexico. Comments: Glover's silkmoth, H. c. gloveri, once considered a separate species, is now treated as a subspecies of the Columbia silkmoth.
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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 265 - 288 of 337 verified sightings
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Lewis And Clark County, Montana, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Inyo County, California, United States
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Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Chihuahua, Mexico
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Denver County, Colorado, United States
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Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: White Pine County, Nevada, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Region: Garfield County, Utah, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Oxford County, Maine, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
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Region: Okanogan County, Washington, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Livingston County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Wayne County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Region: Sheridan County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Alamosa County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Sioux County, Nebraska, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Grand County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Region: Harney County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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Region: Cassia County, Idaho, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: San Juan County, Utah, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Dickinson County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Montcalm County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Price County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Greenlee County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Custer County, Montana, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
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