Page 424 - The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species From Around the World

MOTH CATERPILLARS

FAMILY Saturniidae
DISTRIBUTION Most of Africa south of the Sahara and west of Ethiopia
and Somalia
HABITAT Tropical forests and savannahs
HOST PLANTS Many, including Zebrawood (Brachystegia speciformis) and
Bauhinia spp.
NOTE Large, cryptic caterpillar that has many natural enemies
CONSERVATION STATUS Not evaluated, but widespread

ADULT WINGSPAN
3½–4⅝ in (90–120 mm)
CATERPILLAR LENGTH
2¾ in (70 mm)
PSEUDOBUNAEA IRIUS
POPLAR EMPEROR
422
(FABRICIUS, 1793)

When it hatches, the caterpillar of the Poplar Emperor silkmoth
is dark brown with a black head. By the second instar it is olive
green, and in the third it is darker olive green and remains
so through the fth and nal instar. Its color is lighter on the

dorsum and darker on the ventrum because, like many large
caterpillars, it hangs upside down. From below, the larva is pale
like the sky; from above, it is dark like the earth. When it has
finished feeding, the caterpillar descends to burrow into the
ground, where it pupates.

Caterpillars have many natural enemies. A study carried out
in South Africa revealed that, although bacterial and viral
pathogens sometimes kill many Poplar Emperor larvae,
parasitoids are more of a threat to the species, especially those

that attack the pupae. In fact, the most signi cant enemies of
Pseudobunaea irius are hawks, which eat many of the full-grown,
surviving caterpillars.

Actual size
The Poplar Emperor caterpillar is green, lighter
dorsally and darker ventrally, with orange, oval
spiracles, and tiny, dark green dots. There is a
distinct, narrow, greenish-white lateral line
ending in a white loop around the head. The true
legs are black, and there is a brown-and-white
bar above the yellow-and-brown claspers.