''Automeris io'', the Io moth () or peacock moth, is a colorful North American moth in the family
Saturniidae
Saturniidae, commonly known as saturniids, is a family of Lepidoptera with an estimated 2,300 described species. The family contains some of the largest species of moths in the world. Notable members include the emperor moths, royal moths, and gi ...
. The io moth is also a member of the subfamily
Hemileucinae
Hemileucinae is a subfamily of the family Saturniidae. It is also known as venomous caterpillars.
This subfamily contains the following genera:
*'' Adetomeris'' Michener, 1949
*'' Ancistrota'' Hübner, 1819
*''Arias'' Lemaire, 1995
*'' Autome ...
.
The name Io comes from Greek mythology in which Io was a mortal lover of Zeus.
The Io moth ranges from the southeast corner of
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
and in the southern extremes of
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
,
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
and
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, and in the US it is found from
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
,
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
,
South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
,
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...
,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
,
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
,
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, east of those states and down to the southern end of
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
.
The species was first described by
Johan Christian Fabricius
Johan Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is cons ...
in 1775.
Adult description
Imagines (sexually mature, reproductive stage) have a wingspan of 2.5–3.5 inches (63–88 mm).
This species is
sexually dimorphic
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...
: males have bright yellow forewings, body, and legs, while females have reddish-brown to purple forewings, body, and legs.
The males also have much bigger plumose (feathery)
antennae than the females.
Both males and females have one big black to bluish
eyespot with some white in the center, on each hindwing.
Some hybridizations have resulted in variations in these hindwing
eyespots.
Adults live 1–2 weeks.
Parasitoids
Many species of flies (
Tachinidae
The Tachinidae are a large and variable family of true flies within the insect order Diptera, with more than 8,200 known species and many more to be discovered. Over 1,300 species have been described in North America alone. Insects in this family ...
) and wasps (
Ichneumonidae
The Ichneumonidae, also known as the ichneumon wasps, Darwin wasps, or ichneumonids, are a family (biology), family of parasitoid wasps of the insect order Hymenoptera. They are one of the most diverse groups within the Hymenoptera with roughly 2 ...
and
Braconidae
The Braconidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. After the closely related Ichneumonidae, braconids make up the second-largest family in the order Hymenoptera, with about 17,000 recognized species and many thousands more undescribed. One analysis ...
) are known parasitoids.
The flies include the introduced ''
Compsilura concinnata
''Compsilura concinnata'' (tachinid fly; order Diptera) is a parasitoid native to Europe that was introduced to North America in 1906 to control the population of an exotic forest, univoltine, spongy moth named ''Lymantria dispar''. It is an endo ...
'', ''
Lespesia
''Lespesia'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
*'' Lespesia affinis'' (Townsend, 1927)
*'' Lespesia afra'' ( Wulp, 1890)
*'' Lespesia aletiae'' ( Riley, 1879)
*'' Lespesia andina'' (Bigot, 1888)
*'' Lespesia anisotae'' (Webbe ...
sabroskyi'' ''
Chetogena
''Chetogena'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
*'' C. acuminata'' Rondani, 1859
*'' C. alpestris'' Tschorsnig, 1997
*'' C. arnaudi'' (Reinhard, 1956)
*'' C. claripennis'' ( Macquart, 1848)
*'' C. clunalis'' (Reinhard, 1956) ...
claripennis'', ''
Carcelia
''Carcelia'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
Subgenus '' Carcelia'' Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830
*'' Carcelia albifacies'' Townsend, 1927
*'' Carcelia alpestris'' Herting, 1966
*'' Carcelia amplexa'' (Coquillett, 1897)
*'' Carc ...
formosa'', ''
Sisyropa
''Sisyropa'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
*'' S. alypiae'' Sellers, 1943
*'' S. eudryae'' (Townsend, 1892)
*'' S. formosa'' Mesnil, 1944
*'' S. heterusiae'' ( Coquillett, 1899)
*'' S. picta'' (Baranov, 1935)
*'' S. promi ...
eudryae'', ''
Lespesia
''Lespesia'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
*'' Lespesia affinis'' (Townsend, 1927)
*'' Lespesia afra'' ( Wulp, 1890)
*'' Lespesia aletiae'' ( Riley, 1879)
*'' Lespesia andina'' (Bigot, 1888)
*'' Lespesia anisotae'' (Webbe ...
frenchii'', and ''
Nilea
''Nilea'' is a genus of flies in the family Tachinidae.
Species
*'' Nilea mbigua'' Bergstrӧm, 2007
*'' Nilea anatolica'' Mesnil, 1954
*'' Nilea breviunguis'' Chao & Li, 1998
*'' Nilea brigantina'' Herting, 1977
*'' Nilea carpocapsae'' (Townsend ...
dimmocki''. The wasps include the
Ichneumonidae
The Ichneumonidae, also known as the ichneumon wasps, Darwin wasps, or ichneumonids, are a family (biology), family of parasitoid wasps of the insect order Hymenoptera. They are one of the most diverse groups within the Hymenoptera with roughly 2 ...
species ''
Hyposoter
''Hyposoter'' is a large cosmopolitan genus of parasitoid wasps belonging to the family Ichneumonidae.
The genus has cosmopolitan distribution.
Selected species
* '' Hyposoter affinis'' (Cresson, 1864)
* ''Hyposoter albicans'' (Brischke, 1880) ...
fugitivus'' and ''
Enicospilus americanus''
and the
Braconidae
The Braconidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. After the closely related Ichneumonidae, braconids make up the second-largest family in the order Hymenoptera, with about 17,000 recognized species and many thousands more undescribed. One analysis ...
species ''
Cotesia
''Cotesia'' is a genus of braconid wasps first described by Peter Cameron in 1891. Some species parasitize caterpillars of species considered pests, and are used as biocontrol agents. ''Cotesia congregata'' parasitizes the tomato and the tobac ...
electrae'' and ''
Cotesia
''Cotesia'' is a genus of braconid wasps first described by Peter Cameron in 1891. Some species parasitize caterpillars of species considered pests, and are used as biocontrol agents. ''Cotesia congregata'' parasitizes the tomato and the tobac ...
hemileucae''.
Predators
Io moths have many
predators
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the ...
. These include
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s,
small mammals, and
spider
Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...
s.
Defenses
Stinging spines of
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
Io moths have a very painful
venom
Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...
that is released with the slightest touch; a condition known as . There are two hypotheses regarding where this
venom
Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...
originates: (1) the glandular cells on the base of the branched
seta
In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms.
Animal setae
Protostomes
Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. Th ...
or (2) from the secretory
epithelial
Epithelium or epithelial tissue is one of the four basic types of animal tissue, along with connective tissue, muscle tissue and nervous tissue. It is a thin, continuous, protective layer of compactly packed cells with a little intercellula ...
cells. Contacting the
seta
In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms.
Animal setae
Protostomes
Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. Th ...
is not life-threatening for humans, but still causes irritation to the
dermal
The dermis or corium is a layer of skin between the epidermis (with which it makes up the cutis) and subcutaneous tissues, that primarily consists of dense irregular connective tissue and cushions the body from stress and strain. It is divided in ...
tissue, thought to result in a stinging sensation.
Both male and female adult io moths utilize their hindwing
eyespots in predatory defense when the moth is sitting in the head-down position or is touched, via shaking and exposing these eyespots.
Life cycle
Females lay small, white
ova
, abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...
in the leaves of
host
A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it.
Host may also refer to:
Places
* Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County
People
*Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman
* Michel Host ...
plants, including:
*
Morus alba-mulberry
* ''
Prunus pensylvanica
''Prunus pensylvanica'', also known as bird cherry, fire cherry, pin cherry, and red cherry, is a North American cherry species in the genus ''Prunus''.
Description
''Prunus pensylvanica'' grows as a shrub or small tree, usually with a straigh ...
''—pin cherry
* ''
Salix
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...
''—willow
* ''
Abies balsamea
''Abies balsamea'' or balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada (Newfoundland west to central Alberta) and the northeastern United States (Minnesota east to Maine, and south in the Appalachian Mountains to ...
''—balsam fir
* ''
Acer rubrum
''Acer rubrum'', the red maple, also known as swamp maple, water maple, or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest Service recognizes it as the most abundant nati ...
''—red maple
* ''
Amorpha fruticosa
''Amorpha fruticosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae, known by several common names, including desert false indigo, false indigo-bush, and bastard indigobush. It is native to North America.
Description
''Amorpha f ...
''—bastard indigo
* ''
Baptisia tinctoria
''Baptisia tinctoria'' (common names include yellow false indigo, wild indigo, wild-indigo and horseflyweed) is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Fabaceae. It is native to eastern North America.
Distribution and habitat
''Baptisia tinc ...
''—wild indigo
* ''
Carpinus caroliniana
''Carpinus caroliniana'', the American hornbeam, is a small hardwood tree in the genus ''Carpinus''. American hornbeam is also known as blue-beech, ironwood, musclewood and muscle beech. It is native to eastern North America, from Minnesota and ...
''—American hornbeam
* ''
Celtis laevigata
''Celtis laevigata'' is a medium-sized tree native to North America. Common names include sugarberry, Southern hackberry, or in the southern U.S. sugar hackberry or just hackberry.
Sugarberry is easily confused with common hackberry ('' C. occ ...
''—sugarberry or southern hackberry
* ''
Cephalanthus occidentalis
''Cephalanthus occidentalis'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae that is native to eastern and southern North America. Common names include buttonbush, common buttonbush, button-willow, buck brush, and honey-bells.
Descripti ...
''—button-bush
* ''
Cercis canadensis
''Cercis canadensis'', the eastern redbud, is a large deciduous shrub or small tree, native to eastern North America from southern Michigan south to central Mexico, east to New Jersey. Species thrive as far west as California and as far north as ...
''—eastern redbud
* ''
Chamaecrista fasciculata
''Chamaecrista fasciculata'', the partridge pea, is a species of Fabaceae, legume native to most of the eastern United States. It is an annual which grows to approximately 0.5 meters tall. It has bright yellow flowers from early summer until fi ...
''—showy partridge pea
* ''
Comptonia peregrina
''Comptonia peregrina'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Myricaceae. It is the only extant (living) species in the genus ''Comptonia (plant), Comptonia'', although a number of extinct species are placed in the genus. ''Comptonia pere ...
''—sweetfern
* ''
Cornus florida
''Cornus florida'', the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida ...
''—flowering dogwood
* ''
Corylus avellana
''Corylus avellana'', the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch family Betulaceae. It is native to Europe and western Asia. It is an important component of the hedgerows that were the traditional field boundaries in lowland En ...
''—common hazel
*
Erythrina herbacea
''Erythrina herbacea'', commonly known as the coral bean, Cherokee bean, Mamou plant in South Louisiana, red cardinal or cardinal spear, is a flowering shrub or small tree found throughout the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico; ...
, coral bean
* ''
Fagus
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
''—beech
* ''
Fraxinus
''Fraxinus'' (), common name, commonly called ash, is a genus of flowering plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae. It contains 45–65 species of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous, though a number of Subtropics, subtropic ...
''—ash
* ''
Liquidambar styraciflua
American sweetgum (''Liquidambar styraciflua''), also known as American storax, hazel pine, bilsted, redgum, satin-walnut, star-leaved gum, alligatorwood, or simply sweetgum, is a deciduous tree in the genus ''Liquidambar'' native to warm temper ...
''—American sweetgum
*
Lythrum salicaria
''Lythrum salicaria'' or purple loosestrifeFlora of NW Europe''Lythrum salicaria'' is a flowering plant belonging to the family Lythraceae. It should not be confused with other plants sharing the name loosestrife that are members of the family Pr ...
, introduced Purple Loosestrife
* ''
Quercus
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...
''—oak
* ''
Paeonia—peony''
*
Phoenix roebelenii
''Phoenix roebelenii'', with common names of dwarf date palm, pygmy date palm, miniature date palm or robellini palm, is a species of date palm native to southeastern Asia, from southwestern China (Yunnan Province), northern Laos and northern V ...
The eggs have large
micropyle Micropyle may refer to:
* Micropyle (botany)
In seed plants, the ovule is the structure that gives rise to and contains the female reproductive cells. It consists of three parts: the ''integument'', forming its outer layer, the ''nucellus'' (o ...
rosettes that turn black as the fertile eggs develop. They are usually laid in clusters of more than twenty and hatch within 8–11 days.
From the eggs, orange
larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle.
The ...
e emerge, usually eating their egg shell soon after hatching.
They go through five
instar
An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ass ...
s, each one being a little different.
![Io moth after laying eggs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Io_moth_after_laying_eggs.JPG)
The
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
s are
herbivorous
A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpart ...
and
gregarious
Sociality is the degree to which individuals in an animal population tend to associate in social groups (gregariousness) and form cooperative societies.
Sociality is a survival response to evolutionary pressures. For example, when a mother wasp ...
in all their
instar
An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ass ...
s, many times traveling in single file processions all over the food plant.
As the
larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle.
The ...
e develop, they will lose their orange color and will turn bright green and
urticating, having many spines. The green
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
s have two lateral stripes, the upper one being bright red and the lower one being white. These
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
s can reach sizes of 7 cm in length.
When the
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
s are ready, they spin a flimsy, valveless
cocoon made from a dark, coarse
silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...
. Some
larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle.
The ...
e will crawl to the base of the tree and make their
cocoons among
leaf
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
litter on the ground, while others will use living
leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
to wrap their
cocoons with.
The
leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
will turn brown and fall to the ground during
fall
Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...
, taking the
cocoons with them.
There they
pupa
A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...
te, the
pupa
A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...
being dark brown/black.
The
pupa
A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...
e also have
sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...
with the females being considerably larger than the males.
![(Automeris io) caterpillars on reed](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/%28Automeris_io%29_caterpillars_on_reed.jpg)
Adult io moths normally emerge from their cocoons in late morning or early afternoon. The emergence of the adults moths is typically from June to July.
Eclosion
A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...
(emergence from the cocoon) only takes a few minutes.
After eclosing, the moths climb and hang on plants so that their furled wings can be inflated with fluid (
hemolymph
Hemolymph, or haemolymph, is a fluid, analogous to the blood in vertebrates, that circulates in the interior of the arthropod (invertebrate) body, remaining in direct contact with the animal's tissues. It is composed of a fluid plasma in which ...
) pumped from the body. This inflation process takes about twenty minutes.
Adult moths are strictly
nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
, generally flying during the peak hours of the night.
The females generally wait until nightfall and then extend a
scent gland
Scent gland are exocrine glands found in most mammals. They produce semi-viscous secretions which contain pheromones and other semiochemical compounds. These odor-messengers indicate information such as status, territorial marking, mood, and sexu ...
from the
posterior region of the
abdomen
The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...
, in order to attract males via wind-borne
pheromone
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
s.
The males use their larger
antennae to detect the pheromones. After mating, the females die following egg laying. These moths have
vestigial
Vestigiality is the retention, during the process of evolution, of genetically determined structures or attributes that have lost some or all of the ancestral function in a given species. Assessment of the vestigiality must generally rely on co ...
mouthparts and do not eat in the adult stage.
Conservation Status
The io moth is currently not listed on the
IUCN Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...
or the US Federal List.
In the eastern range of the US, the populations indicate a declining and more localized trend.
See also
* ''
Aglais io
''Aglais io'', the European peacock, more commonly known simply as the peacock butterfly, is a colourful butterfly, found in Europe and temperate Asia as far east as Japan. It was formerly classified as the only member of the genus ''Inachis'' ( ...
'', a butterfly species
References
External links
Site with a description and pictureson the
UF /
IFAS Featured Creatures Web site
{{Taxonbar , from=Q1766445
Hemileucinae
Moths of North America
Moths described in 1775
Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius