Page 70 - The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species From Around the World

BUTTERFLY CATERPILLARS

FAMILY Hesperiidae
DIS TRIBUTION Southwestern United States, mainland Mexico
DISTRIBUTION
DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT T Arid mountains
A
HABIT
HABITAT
HOST PLANTS
HOST PLANTS
HOS T PLANT S Century plant (Agave spp.)
NO
TE
NOTE
NOTE One of the largest skipper caterpillars in the world
CONSERVATION STATUS
CONSERVATION STATUS
CONSERV A TION S T A TUS Not evaluated, but common in most of its range
ADULT WINGSPAN
2–2⅜ in (50–61 mm)
CATERPILLAR LENGTH
1¾ in (45 mm)
AGATHYMUS ARYXNA
ARIZONA GIANT-SKIPPER
68
(DYAR, 1905)

The Arizona Giant-skipper caterpillar lives only inside the
thick leaves of plants such as Agave utahensis in southeastern
California, Arizona, and Mexico. The mother drops each egg
from the top of the plant from where it usually falls into the leaf
base. The young caterpillar then crawls up to the leaf tip, bores
into it, and hibernates inside its burrow. After hibernation it
moves back to the leaf base and and chews another burrow to
live in. It then makes a trapdoor on the bottom of the leaf and
pupates inside the burrow. The adult crawls out of its trapdoor,
expands its wings, and flies in August and September to
mate and lay eggs.

An even larger Mexican species (the Gusano del Maguey,
Aegiale hesperiaris) lives in giant Agave plants, which are used
to make tequila and mescal. Introduced as a marketing ploy, the
caterpillars can sometimes be seen floating just under the cork in

bottles of those spirits. The larvae are also roasted, then packed
in barrels to be sold as a snack food.

The Arizona Giant-skipper caterpillar is a cream
brownish green or bluish white, with a black
collar and rear. The body is smooth with very
ne, short setae, and some individuals are lightly
spotted in green. The smooth head is brown or
orangish and unmarked.
Actual size