Madoryx oiclus, Paraguay, PYBIO

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TAXONOMY: Family: Sphingidae, Latreille, 1802 Subfamily: Macroglossinae, Harris, 1839 Tribe: Dilophonotini, Burmeister, 1878 Genus: Madoryx Boisduval, 1875 ........... Species: oiclus oiclus Cramer, 1780

DISTRIBUTION:

Madoryx oiclus oiclus (wingspan: 76-93mm, males considerably smaller than females) flies in
Suriname;
French Guiana: Kaw; and from
Venezuela to
Trinidad and Tobago;
Costa Rica: San Jose.

It is also recorded in
Paraguay: Guaira; Canindeyu; Alto Paraguay, Presidente Hayes, Concepcion, San Pedro, Cordillera, Paraguari, Caaguazu and Alto Parana and Neembucu (AOC); and
Argentina: Salta (405m EB; 701m); Jujuy; Tucuman; Formosa; Misiones (JRR) and
Bolivia: Santa Cruz;
Brazil: Para, Rio de Janeiro (LRV) and southeastern Brazil.

I suspect it also flies in Panama, Colombia and Guyana.

Madoryx oiclus, Río Pilcomayo National Park, Formosa Province, Argentina;
May 20, 2011, courtesy of Ezequiel Osvaldo Núñez Bustos.

The uppersides of the body and wings are silver-grey. The forewing apex is truncate. Forewing upperside with a narrow olive-green basal band. The silver discal spots are almost equal in size. In most specimens the upper one is transverse and the lower one more-or-less rounded. A very acute angle is formed by two pales lines near end of Rs4, outer line ends at tip of CuA1, inner line ends near i.m. midpoint, enclosing an almost concolorous area. A broadly preapical, pale line, emanating from costa, meets pm line at an internal angle slightly greater than ninety degrees. Lower two-thirds of forewing outer margin heavily scalloped.

Madoryx oiclus, Paraguay, PYBIO

Maroyx oiclus, Pilar, Neembucu, Paraguay, courtesy of Andres Oscar Contreras.

FLIGHT TIMES:

Moths are probably on the wing in just about every month.

Madoryx oiclus oiclus, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
June 3, 2019, Lucius Rabello Vasconcellos.

ECLOSION:

Adults eclose, usually within three weeks, from pupae formed in relatively sturdy cocoons spun amongst leaf litter.

SCENTING AND MATING:

Females call in the males with a pheromone released from a gland at the tip of the abdomen.

Madoryx oiclus oiclus male, Costa Rica, courtesy of Dan Janzen.

Madoryx oiclus 76mm, Cozumel Island, Mexico,
December, 2014, courtesy of Bedros Orchanian, id by Bill Oehlke

Madoryx oiclus jamaicensis, 96mm, Jamaica,
Creative Commons, SNSB.

Madoryx oiclus oiclus female, Costa Rica, courtesy of Dan Janzen.

EGGS, LARVAE, PUPAE: Larvae feed on Rehdera trinervis and Crescentia alata and spin heavy cocoons. The last instar is cream colored with dark brown and black mottling on back and sides. There are two black eye spots on the sides of thorax, giving the appearance of a snake's head. When resting larvae look like a huge inchworm.

The cocoon is dark rust brown and often incorporates leaves The cocoon is very sturdy and the pupa has a cremaster firmly attached to silk. There are three creamy orange bands on the abdomen. Moths eclose within three weeks of pupation. All images from Costa Rica, courtesy of Dan Janzen.

Ben Trott sends the following series of images, showing amazing camouflage and defensive poses of this larvae. I am not sure if Madoryx oiclus inhabits Mexico or if this is the larva of another Madoryx species.

Madoryx oiclus early fifth instar, Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico,
courtesy of Ben Trott.

Madoryx oiclus mature fifth instar in defense position,
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico, courtesy of Ben Trott.

Madoryx oiclus mature fifth instar in defense position,
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico, courtesy of Ben Trott.

Madoryx oiclus mature fifth instar in defense position,
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico, courtesy of Ben Trott.

Madoryx oiclus mature fifth instar in typical resting position,
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico, courtesy of Ben Trott.

Madoryx oiclus mature fifth instar in typical resting position,
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico, courtesy of Ben Trott.

I often think that larvae have the ability to see their surroundings, have an ability to capture an image of same in their brains and have a way of processing that information into subtle changes that take place in their DNA. I see in the larvae depicted above the unmistakeable snake head, and can even see the leaf nodes of the bark patterned on their backs. It is possible that all these changes occur in very small increments over time, simply by principles of "survival of the fittest", but some details appear to have become so precise that I think there is a more active principle involved.

Return to Sphingidae Index
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Ezequiel Bustos image:
Colección de Lepidoptera Proyecto DNA Barcodes Lepidoptera Argentina
Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales ¨Bernandino Rivadavia¨ (MACN)
Av. Angel Gallardo 470 (1405)
Ciudad de Buenos Aires
Argentina

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