Species Catocala luciana - Luciana Underwing - Hodges#8808

8808

Shining Underwing (1)

Catocala luciana Strecker, 1874 (2), (3), (4), (5), (4)

Catocala luciana Hy. Edwards, 1875 (211, preoccupied), (6)

Catocala nebraskae Dodge, 1875 (2), (7), (4)

Catocala nebraskae var. somnus Dodge, 1881 (40), (3)

Specific epithet from Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. Luciana is Adriana’s sister, and dwells with her and Antipholus of Epheseus. "The name luciana has generally been ascribed to Hy. Edwards but, unfortunately, the rules of nomenclature demand that this species along with mariana, hippolyta, cleopatra, and perdital (all described in the same paper) be credited to Strecker who drew up descriptions, using Hy. Edwards' manuscript names, and published them prior to the appearance of Hy. Edwards' descriptions in No. 14 of his Pacific Coast Lepidoptera. This procedure is somewhat of an injustice to Hy. Edwards and throws no very creditable light on Strecker's methods, but we imagine that "Time, the great healer," whom Mr. Strecker was so fond of invoking, has already smoothed over any ill-feeling that might have arisen in this connection." (5) Actor and entomologist Henry Edwards (1827–1891) used many female characters from Shakespeare for insect names.

Wingspan 57-70 mm. (8)

The western prairies of Canada and the United States. (9)

Type locality: Colorado. (2), (10)

Larval hosts are cottonwood (Populus) and willow (Salix). (8), (11)

Barnes, Wm. & J.H. McDunnough, 1918. Illustrations of the North American species of the genus Catocala. Memoirs of the AMNH 2(1): p.21; Pl.7, f.21-23. (5)

Strecker, H., 1875. Lepidoptera, Rhopaloceres and Heteroceres, indigenous and exotic; with descriptions and colored illustrations (v. 12). Owen's Steam Book & Job Printing, p.99. (2)

Moth Photographers Group (9)

Bill Oehlke's North American Catocala (8)

E.H. Strickland Entomological Museum (1)