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Nemoria elfa Ferguson, 1969. [7029]
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Nemoria elfa male, reared
ex ovum from parent female collected from cypress swamp, Pocomoke
State Forest, Worcester Co., MD, May 2008. |
Nemoria elfa is a small species, similar in size to
Synchlora aerata. It has been found from
Maryland in the Mid-Atlantic through the Carolinas to Florida and west
to Texas. Ferguson documented cool season forms that show varying
degrees of brown coloration on the wings, though these may be less
common than the brown spring form of
Nemoria bistriaria.
N. elfa has an unmarked green abdomen and noticeably wavy pm lines on forewing and hindwing.
The wing ground color is often a pale shade of green even on fresh
specimens that have been reared. It is frequently marked with distinct
discal spots on all four wings.
N. elfa larvae have been reported
(Ferguson 1985) as being reared on sweetgum leaves (Liquidambar styraciflua),
but the more common host plant appears to be baldcypress (Taxodium
distichum). Wagner's Field Guide to Eastern caterpillars gives the
species the name Cypress Emerald and reports baldcypress as the host
plant. We have reared N. elfa successfully on both baldcypress and
on oak, and also tested sweetgum and blueberry, these last two being
only marginally successful at sustaining larval growth.
For
additional images of immature stages of Nemoria elfa, click
here:
Nemoria elfa
eggs, larvae and pupae.
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