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Photo#308346
Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io

Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Eddy County, New Mexico, USA
July 22, 2009
Size: about 2 inches long

Images of this individual: tag all
Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Automeris io Caterpillar on Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Cotesia electrae

Moved
Moved from Cotesia electrae.

-Woops, hit tag all rather than tag on the final image.-

Moved

Moved
Moved from Io Moth.
Added new node for Automeris io ssp. neomexicana

Moved
Moved from Automeris randa.

Moved
Moved from Automeris.

Automeris randa?
I saw a comment below suggesting Automeris randa...possible?

I have reared randa a few times and this larva, though similar, is a bit off as compared to those I've kept (Cochise Co., AZ & Hidalgo Co., NM).

I think it's important to mention Saturniids often exhibit geographic variation, particularly as adults & larvae. It's quite likely disjunct or separate pop's occupying different areas of the range may show deviations in larval characters.

Given this image, I think we can safely rule out most of the other known US Automeris species, leaving randa as the most likely candidate.

 
Thank you for your help! I v
Thank you for your help! I very much appreciate your time.

 
Automeris io
You're gonna hate me. Regarding my first guess of A. randa - above, I'm gonna have to eat crow and go with Automeris io (likely "neomexicana").

I've spent some time comparing this image to a bunch of others in books, on the web...and gotten opinions from some Saturniid specialists & enthusiasts familiar with southwestern fauna. They all agree with Automeris io!

It seems there is a variety/subspecies of Automeris io known as "neomexicana" - FOUND in south-central New Mexico!! Supposedly it occurs in the border regions of Texas & New Mexico southward. The adults are geographically divergent enough to be recognized...hence the larvae probably also differ a bit, duller coloration (per. comm.).

I've reared several Automeris species, including Automeris io "io" and A. io "lilith", and this caterpillar is not striped with the familiar bright reds & whites of io larvae I'm used to seeing here in the South & East, however, the spines do seem short for randa and as I mentioned, it looks "a bit off" when compared to other A. randa I've reared (my randa had longer spines and yellow stripes) + A. randa seems to prefer Oaks while A. io will eat many things incl. Celtis spp. (I should have payed closer attention to the mentioned host being Celtis!!).

Sorry for playing id "volleyball" and any inconveniences >:0

 
Other BugGuide photos of neomexicana
There are three other photos of the neomexicana subspecies posted on BugGuide. The larva of Photo # 222134 from Sandoval County, NM, confirms your identification. Photo # 311827 is from San Miguel County, NM. My own recent posting Photo # 377098 is from Bernallilo County, NM. I discuss the significance of the larvae being found in the wild in the latter. As the map in Tuskes, Tuttle, and Collins, The Wild Silk Moths of North America (1996), p. 151 illustrates, neomexicana occurs within a narrow corridor stretching from the Texas border of New Mexico to the latter's north-central mountains.

 
Automeris io (Subspecies & Geographic forms)
Thanks for all the additional info and links!
Do you think subcategories should be added for any of the following?

1) Automeris io ssp. neomexicana

*Some debate still exists regarding the status of the 2 sub-taxa below
2) Automeris io ssp./var. "lilith", "Florida Io Moth"
3) Automeris io ssp./var. "coloradensis", "Colorado Io Moth"

Thanks,
bill

 
Re Automeris io (Subspecies & Geographic forms)
neomexicana is well represented enough now on BugGuide to have its own ssp. category (which you have already done, I see. Tuskes, et al (reluctantly) acknowledges it as a subspecies. It is apparently isolated from other io's and spans an important wildlife corridor in New Mexico. I think it more than deserves the special attention of its own category, therefore.

As for the others, I'm ambivalent; it's up to you. Varieties, by definition, tend to blend together. So, you may be opening can of silkworms :-) There's no harm in flagging it as a variety in the description, though. A quick search shows you've done that.

 
What a great deduction! I so
What a great deduction! I so appreciate your time and thoughts. We are happy to know the identity of this caterpillar. Muchas gracias :)

 
De Nada ;)
I don't mind being wrong, as long as I/we can eventually get it right.

I want folks' to get the best possible answer and explanation ( I can give) - sometimes that requires a few corrections and adjustments ;)

Please keep taking and posting pictures!

Moved

Moved
Moved from ID Request.

definetly automeris sp.
maybe io

 
Thanks! We thought perhaps i
Thanks! We thought perhaps io as well.

im no expert
but i KNOW this is hemileucinae and i THINK its
i think its automeris randa, (these are silkmoths).
(experts please be sure to tell me if im wrong)

 
Yes! I've seen IO and this h
Yes! I've seen IO and this had something different about it, hence the post here. I will look into this further. THANKS!

 
Automeris io (neomexicana?)
It seems there is a variety/subspecies of Automeris io known as "neomexicana" - FOUND in south-central New Mexico!! Supposedly it occurs in the border regions of Texas & New Mexico southward. The adults are geographically divergent enough to be recognized...hence the larvae probably also differ a bit, duller coloration (per. comm.).

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