Geographic Range
Polyphemus moths,
Antheraea polyphemus
, can be found in all of the continental United States except Arizona and Nevada and
in every Canadian province except Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island.
Habitat
Polyphemus moths inhabit deciduous hardwood forests, urban areas, orchards, and wetlands.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- Terrestrial Biomes
- forest
- Other Habitat Features
- urban
- suburban
- agricultural
- estuarine
Physical Description
Polythemus moths, as caterpillars, are bright green with a reddish brown head. They have 6 orange tubercles and bristles on each segment of their body. Each abdomen segment has a slanted yellow line that is purple-brown in color. Caterpillars can grow to about 7 cm in length.
As adults, members of this species are large moths. Polythemus moths have a hairy body, and adults can vary from red-brown to dark brown in color. Each hind wing has a large yellow “eyespot” lined with blue and black. The center of this eyespot is uniquely transparent. The front wings have a smaller yellow spot. The margin of both the front and hind wings has a black and white stripe. Wingspan ranges from 10 to 15 cm. Whereas adult males have bushy antennae for detecting pheromones, females have slender antennae.
Polyphemus moth caterpillars greatly resemble caterpillars of
luna moths
. While polyphemus moths have single horizontal lines along each side of the body,
luna moths have vertical yellow lines on each segment.
- Other Physical Features
- ectothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes alike
Development
After about 10 days, tiny polyphemus moth caterpillars hatch from eggs. Larvae (caterpillars)
molt 5 times and grow to their full size in 5 to 6 weeks. When caterpillars are fully
grown, they wrap themselves in a leaf and build a cocoon out of silk. Cocoons are
oval in shape, 40 mm in length and 22 to 24 mm in diameter. While in a cocoon, a caterpillar
develops into a pupa and then emerges as an adult moth in about 2 weeks. Polyphemus
moths can also overwinter in their cocoons, which increases time as pupae.
- Development - Life Cycle
- metamorphosis
Reproduction
Popyphemus moths mate the same day that they emerge from their cocoons, and mating
usually occurs during late afternoon. Females emit pheromones, which can be detected
up to a mile away, to attract mates. Mating of
saturniids
can last from less than an hour to many hours. Females lay their eggs shortly after
mating. If unsuccessful in recruiting a male after 2 or 3 days, females stop calling
and release their unfertilized eggs.
- Mating System
- polygynous
Female polyphemus moths begin to emerge and mate during early spring. Females lay
up to 5 eggs singly or in groups of 2 or 3 on the underside of tree leaves. Eggs are
flat and round, cream to light tan in color on top with a brown outline, and are about
1.25 mm thick and 3 mm in diameter. In most regions, 2 broods of polyphemus moths
hatch per year; one hatches in early spring and the other in late summer. However,
in the northernmost part of their range, only one brood hatches per year. In the southern
part of their range, many broods may hatch each year.
- Key Reproductive Features
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- fertilization
- oviparous
Female polyphemus moths usually lay their eggs on leaves that are a good food source
for the caterpillars. They are not otherwise involved in the rearing of their offspring.
- Parental Investment
- no parental involvement
Lifespan/Longevity
As adults (moths), polyphemus moths live a maximum of only 4 days. Their entire life
cycle averages about 3 months in length. This includes about 10 days as eggs, 5 to
6 weeks as larvae, 2 weeks as pupa, and about 4 days as adults. If they overwinter
as pupa, this life cycle increases in length.
Behavior
Adult polyphemus moths are nocturnal. Adult males can only fly at temperatures above
7ËšC. Larvae are solitary and, in captivity, crowding of
Saturniids
leads to decreased growth and increase likelihood of disease transmittance.
Home Range
Little information is available regarding the home range of polyphemus moths.
Communication and Perception
When ready to mate, female polyphemus moths emit pheromones that attract males. Males
use their sense of smell and touch to find females. Although larvae (caterpillars)
have eyes, they are small and primitive, resulting in poor vision.
- Other Communication Modes
- pheromones
Food Habits
Caterpillars feed on leaves of broad-leaved trees and shrubs such as sweetgum (
Liquidambar
), birch (
Betula
), grape (
Vitis
), hickory (
Carya
), maple (
Acer
), oak (
Quercus
), willow (
Salix
), and members of the rose family (
Rosaceae
). Larvae also eat their egg shells after hatching and their freshly molted skin.
A caterpillar eats 86,000 times its body weight. Adult moths have a reduced mouth
and do not eat.
- Plant Foods
- leaves
Predation
Polyphemus moth caterpillars are preyed upon by
yellowjackets
and
ants
. They are also parasitized by
wasps
. Larvae and pupae are consumed by
raccoons
and
squirrels
. The green coloration of caterpillars makes them difficult to spot. Adults also practice
mimicry; they have eyespots on their hind wings.
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Polyphemus moths act as prey for certain insects,
raccoons
, and
squirrels
. They are also parasitized by some
wasps
. Because they consume a large quantity of leaves, they may also considerably contribute
to nutrient cycling.
- wasps Hymenoptera
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
There are no known direct positive effects of polyphemus moths on humans, though many
are hand-raised by curious individuals.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Polyphemus moth caterpillars are occasionally considered pests to plum orchards in
California.
- Negative Impacts
- crop pest
Conservation Status
Polyphemus moths have not been evaluated or are not considered threatened by the IUCN, US Fish and Wildlife Service or CITES.
Other Comments
Polyphemus moths are so named for the large eyespots on their wings. They are named
after the Greek myth of the Cyclops, Polyphemus.
Additional Links
Contributors
Rutika Kalola (author), Rutgers University, Stevie Steffey (author), Rutgers University, David V. Howe (editor), Rutgers University.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- marsh
-
marshes are wetland areas often dominated by grasses and reeds.
- swamp
-
a wetland area that may be permanently or intermittently covered in water, often dominated by woody vegetation.
- bog
-
a wetland area rich in accumulated plant material and with acidic soils surrounding a body of open water. Bogs have a flora dominated by sedges, heaths, and sphagnum.
- urban
-
living in cities and large towns, landscapes dominated by human structures and activity.
- suburban
-
living in residential areas on the outskirts of large cities or towns.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- estuarine
-
an area where a freshwater river meets the ocean and tidal influences result in fluctuations in salinity.
- metamorphosis
-
A large change in the shape or structure of an animal that happens as the animal grows. In insects, "incomplete metamorphosis" is when young animals are similar to adults and change gradually into the adult form, and "complete metamorphosis" is when there is a profound change between larval and adult forms. Butterflies have complete metamorphosis, grasshoppers have incomplete metamorphosis.
- polygynous
-
having more than one female as a mate at one time
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- fertilization
-
union of egg and spermatozoan
- internal fertilization
-
fertilization takes place within the female's body
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- solitary
-
lives alone
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- pheromones
-
chemicals released into air or water that are detected by and responded to by other animals of the same species
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- folivore
-
an animal that mainly eats leaves.
- ectothermic
-
animals which must use heat acquired from the environment and behavioral adaptations to regulate body temperature
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
References
Cook, M. 2004. "Polyphemus Silkmoth- Antheraea Polyphemus" (On-line). wormspit.com. Accessed November 07, 2007 at http://www.wormspit.com/polyphemus.htm .
Day, L. 2007. "How to Rear Saturniid Moths" (On-line). Accessed November 09, 2007 at http://butterflywebsite.com/articles/lizday/moth.html .
Hyche, L. 2000. "Polyphemus Moth" (On-line). Accessed November 09, 2007 at http://www.ag.auburn.edu/enpl/bulletins/polyphemus/polyphemus.htm .
Mackinnon, D. 2007. "Polyphems Moth" (On-line). Accessed November 07, 2007 at http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/polyphemus_moth.htm .
Oehlke, B. 2005. "The Polyphemus Moth" (On-line). Accessed November 07, 2007 at http://www3.islandtelecom.com/~oehlkew/zpolmoth.htm .
Tuskes, P., J. Tuttle, M. Collins. 1996. The Wild Silk Moths of North America . Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
Vaughn, C. 2006. "Polyphemus Moth (Antheraea polyphemus)" (On-line). Accessed April 14, 2011 at http://butterflies.aa6g.org/Butterflies/Raised/polyphemus.html .
Texas AgriLife Extension. 1999. "Luna, Io, Imperial, Cecropia, Polyphemus Moths" (On-line). Texas AgriLife Extension Service, Texas A&M System. Accessed November 09, 2007 at http://insects.tamu.edu/fieldguide/cimg296.html .
Big Sky Institute at Montana State University. 2005. "Polyphemus Moth" (On-line). Butterfiles and Moths of North America. Accessed November 07, 2007 at http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=3290 .
Reiman Gardens. 2007. "Polyphemus" (On-line). Reiman Gardens, Iowa State University. Accessed November 09, 2007 at http://www.reimangardens.iastate.edu/documents/filelibrary/images/oct_30_2006/idcardoct302006.pdf .