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Uraniidae
The Uraniidae are a family (biology), family of moths containing four subfamily (biology), subfamilies, 90 genera, and roughly 700 species. The family is distributed throughout the tropics of the Americas, Africa and Indo-Australia.Carter, David, ''Eyewitness Handbook to Butterflies and Moths'' (1992) pp. 190–191; Dorling Kindersley/New York, NY Some of the tropical species are known for their bright, butterfly-like colors and are called sunset moths (for example ''Chrysiridia rhipheus''). Such moths are apparently toxic and the bright colors are a warning to predators. The family Uraniidae contains both Diurnality, diurnal and nocturnal species. The day-flying species are usually more strikingly colored and vibrant than the nocturnal ones. Many diurnal species also have iridescence, iridescent scales and multiple tails, which often led them to be mistaken for butterflies. In sharp contrast, the nocturnal species are generally small, pale-colored insects. The Uraniidae ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Urania Leilus
''Urania leilus'', the green-banded urania, is a day-flying moth of the family Uraniidae. The species was Species description, first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It is found in tropical South America east of the Andes, especially in the Amazon rainforest. Its range includes Suriname, Guyana, French Guiana, eastern Colombia, Venezuela, eastern Ecuador, Brazil, northern Bolivia, eastern Peru, as well as the island of Trinidad. It has been recorded as a vagrant to the central and northern Lesser Antilles, such as St. Kitts, Barbados and Dominica.Smith, N.G. (1972)"Migrations of the day-flying moth ''Urania'' in Central and South America" ''Caribbean Journal of Science''. 12: 45-58 Their preferred habitat consists of riverbanks, in primary and secondary rainforest, at elevations between sea level and about . Urania leilus MHNT dos.jpg , Dorsal side Urania leilus MHNT ventre.jpg, Ventral side ''U. leilu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chrysiridia Rhipheus
''Chrysiridia rhipheus'', the Madagascan sunset moth, is a species of day-flying moth of the family Uraniidae. It is considered one of the most impressive and appealing-looking lepidopterans. Famous worldwide, it is featured in most coffee table books on Lepidoptera and is much sought after by collectors, though many older sources misspell the species name as "''ripheus''". The colours originate from optical interference in the iridescent parts of the wings, while the black parts are pigmented. Adults have a wingspan of . Dru Drury, who described the moth in 1773, placed it in the genus ''Papilio'', considering it a butterfly. Jacob Hübner placed it in the moth genus ''Chrysiridia'' in 1823. Later redescriptions led to junior synonyms such as ''Chrysiridia madagascariensis'' (Lesson, 1831). At first the moth was thought to be from China or Bengal, but was later found to be endemic to Madagascar. It is found throughout the year in most parts of the island, with peak population ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
