The Pandora moth or Pandora pinemoth (''Coloradia pandora'') is an insect belonging to the
moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
genus ''
Coloradia
''Coloradia'' is a genus of moths of the family Saturniidae. There are nine described species found in Mexico and eastern North America. The genus was first described by C. A. Blake in 1863.
These are generally large moths, predominantly grey in ...
''. The species was first described by C. A. Blake in 1863. It is native to the western United States. 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 of the Pandora moth feed on the foliage of several species of
pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
trees, including the
lodgepole,
Jeffrey, and
ponderosa pines. The larvae populations sometimes reach high enough levels to cause severe defoliation; such outbreaks have occurred in northern
Arizona, central
Oregon, and southern
California. The
Paiute people in California's
Owens Valley and
Mono Lake areas harvest, prepare, and store the larvae (which they call ''piuga'') as a preferred food. This has brought the natives into conflict with the
United States Forest Service, which has sought to control moth populations through the use of
insecticide
Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed to b ...
s.
Life cycle
Pandora moths are semivoltine, producing one new generation every two years. Around the end of June, the adult moths appear; they lay eggs which hatch in August. Over the winter, the larvae remain on the tree, feeding on its foliage. The following summer, the insects drop off the trees and
pupate, burying themselves in the ground, where they will remain for a year (or, in some areas, 2–4 years), until they emerge as adult moths.
Human use
The
Paiutes (''Nüümü)'' of California's
Owens Valley (''Payahuunadü'') and
Mono Lake (''Kootza Paatsehota)'' harvest, prepare, store, and eat the larvae of the Pandora moth, which they call ''piuga'' or ''piagü''. The larvae are collected at their most mature stage, during their July migration to the forest floor at the end of their first year of life. They are gathered by hand once or twice a day, and temporarily stored in trenches in the ground. The larvae are then roasted in fire-heated sand for 30 minutes; the sand not only cooks the insects but also serves to remove the fine hairs, the
setae, from their bodies.
The cooked larvae are washed, sorted, and dried. Stored in a cool and dry place, they keep for at least a year and perhaps as long as two. The dried ''piuga'' are reconstituted before consumption by boiling for about an hour in plain or salted water. The boiled insects have an odor described as like that of cooked
mushrooms. They are eaten as a finger food; the entire larva is eaten except for the head. The cooking water is also consumed as broth, or used as a base for a ''piuga''-and-vegetable stew.
Gallery
Image:Coloradia_pandora_eggs.jpg, Eggs
Image:Coloradia pandora larva.jpg, Larva
Image:Coloradia_pandora_larva1.jpg, Larva
Image:Coloradia_pandora_pupa.jpg, Pupa
Image:Coloradia pandora adult1.jpg, Adult
Image:Coloradia_pandora_adult_female_(top)_-_male_(bottom).jpg, Adult female (top) and male (bottom)
References
*
Chapter 9: Non-wood products from organisms associated with conifers Retrieved November 6, 2006.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3542275
Hemileucinae
Moths described in 1863
Edible insects