Catocala chelidonia
kah-TOCK-uh-lah mm chel-ih-DOE-nee-uh
Grote, 1881

Catocala chelidonia courtesy of Bruce Walsh.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: Noctuidae Group: Noctuinina Subfamily: Catocalinae Genus: Catocala, Schrank, 1802

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DISTRIBUTION:

Catocala chelidonia, (wingspan: 75mm) flies from Arizona to California, as far north as Napa, Ca..

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Catocala chelidonia are usually on the wing from mid June to September. The Catocala chelidonia caterpillar feeds on oaks.

ECLOSION:

Adults eclose from pupae at soil surface.

SCENTING AND MATING: Catocala chelidonia females emit an airbourne pheromone and males use their antennae to track the scent plume. Right: Catocala chelidonia male, Frazier Mountain Rd, 5750', Ventura County, CA., September 7, 1991. Kelly Richers, collector, at uv light.

Catocala chelidonia female, two miles south of Fishcamp, 4700'.
Madera County, CA.. Kelly Richers, collector, at uv trap.

EGGS, CATERPILLARS, COCOONS, AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited on tree bark in the fall and hatch the following spring.

Larval Food Plants

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants. It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive, although some species seem very host specific. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Quercus.......

Oak

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