|
Marumba sperchius Menetries
Smerinthus sperchius Menetries, 1857, Enum. Corp. Anim. Mus. Petropol.,
Lep. 2: 137.
Marumba sperchius Menetries; Rothschild & Jordan, 1903: 280.
Marumba sperchius sumatranus Clark, 1923, Proc. New Engl. zool.
Club., 8:
71.
|
Marumba sperchius
(.65
natural size)
|
Diagnosis. This species is similar to the next but the forewing fasciae
and the tone of the hindwing are more reddish; the fasciae on either side
of the weak discal mark converge towards the dorsum more markedly than in sperchius. On the underside
juvencus and tigrina both have the forewing
apex dark brown; sperchius lacks this but has the tornus suffused with
rufous. The hindwing fasciae below on sperchius are reddish and much less
sinuous than in juvencus and
tigrina.
Geographical range. N. India to Korea and Japan; Sumatra, Borneo.
Habitat
preference. The species has been taken singly at 1790m in upper montane
forest on G. Mulu, and twice in lowland forest at 250m on the limestone G.
Api in Sarawak.
Biology. Bell & Scott (1937) described and illustrated the larva of
the Indian race. Early instars are pale yellow. Later ones are bluish
green with the tubercles brown or reddish, tipped with white. Oblique
stripes are formed of mauve or yellow tubercles on a white ground. The
horn is green with paler tubercles.
Recorded host-plants (Bell & Scott, 1937; Miyata, 1983) are: Castanea,
Castanopsis, Quercus (Fagaceae); Juglans (Juglandaceae); Eriobotrya
(Rosaceae).
<<Back
>>Forward <<Return
to Contents page
|
