Carnegie Museum of Natural History

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New Moth Species Marumba verdeciae Named for CMNH Scientific Preparator

Specimens from Carnegie Museum of Natural History are frequently cited in the research papers of scientists from all over the world.  For researchers, access to these vital materials comes through the assistance of museum staff who are familiar with the physical organization of the collections, and this routine service is generally recognized in the “Acknowledgements” section of any resulting publications. A far rarer form of “thank you” occurred this month when German entomologist Ulf Eitschberger, the first author of a 200-page paper revising  a species complex of a sphinx moth known from multiple localities across southeast Asia, named one of the resulting new species for Vanessa Verdecia, Scientific Preparator in the CMNH Section of Invertebrate Zoology.

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Vanessa checking specimens in a collection storage unit.

Vanessa assisted Ulf in his study of the Marumba saishiuana species complex by taking images of specimens from the museum’s collection and sharing them with him via email. This process involved searching for and verifying many relevant type specimens in the IZ collection because Ulf needed to view images of numerous moths within the Marumba genus for his research.

The type locality for Marumba verdeciae is Qingchenhou Shan, in Sichuan, China.  There were an additional 52 male specimens collected at the same site, between May and June of 2005, which need to be studied further. The new publication makes no mention of M. verdeciae collected at other sites, and at this time the female of the species is unknown.

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The assistance of Vanessa Verdecia allowed a researcher in Germany to evaluate pinned insects in Pittsburgh.

Vanessa is pleased with the recognition. As she explains, “I feel honored to have this beautiful species dedicated to me as the Sphingidae are one of my favorite groups of moths and a part of the collection I enjoy working in. It was my pleasure to search for these specimens and provide the images necessary for this revision and ongoing work by this researcher.”

For reference the full citation of the publication is below:

“Erster Schritt zur Revision des Marumba saishiuana auct. Artenkomplexes (nec Okamoto, 1924) (Lepidoptera, Sphingidae)”

[TRANSLATION: “First step in revising the Marumba saishiuana species complex (Okamoto, 1924) (Lepidoptera, Sphingidae)”]

Authors:  Ulf Eitschberger & Hoa Binh Nguyen

Journal: Neue Entomologische Nachrichten 75: 123-327, Marktleuthen (Februar 2021)

Patrick McShea works in the Education and Visitor Experience department of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

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Deck the Trees with Moth Cocoons

By Vanessa Verdecia

cocoons

Many people wonder: “what happens to bugs during the winter months?”  In the case of Callosamia promethea, known as the Promethea Moth, the caterpillars will have spun a cocoon in a leaf and will spend the winter as a pupa in a cocoon that is well attached by silk and hanging from a tree.  This is the third stage of metamorphosis before the adult moth ecloses (=emerges) the following summer and is seen flying during June-July in Pennsylvania.  You may look for these cocoons in the winter as they are usually found on low-hanging branches of many types of forest trees.

This year in Invertebrate Zoology we reared Promethea caterpillars and we are now ready to mimic winter conditions in the lab. The live cocoons have been carefully stored in a sealed plastic bag with a damp paper towel to maintain humidity.  This bag has been stored in the refrigerator to mimic the cold temperature that the cocoons would have experienced outside.  Insects are sensitive to temperature cues that will dictate when the moth is ready to eclose.  Experiencing diapause—a period of suspended development—will trigger the moths to eclose the following year.  The cocoons will remain in the refrigerator until next spring, and hopefully they will survive and we’ll have some beautiful moths eclose.  Insects are also dependent on light cues and are sensitive to day length, which is more difficult to mimic in a lab setting.  I am hopeful these will survive, as this technique has worked in the past.

many cocoons

This process will conclude the full cycle of an isofemale rearing in which all of the stages of metamorphosis were observed and documented.  We have the wild-caught male and female adult parents.  At each stage of development, specimens were chosen to be preserved in order to document the egg, larval, and pupal stages.  These specimens serve as a reference for associating the developmental stages of a single species, as documented in a reared culture from a single parent.

egg, larvae, and cocoon specimens

Go ahead and look around because this is the perfect time of the year to see Promethea moth cocoons decking the trees of the forest this holiday season!

Vanessa Verdecia is a collection assistant in the museum’s Invertebrate Zoology Section. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

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The Very Hungry Promethea Caterpillars

by Vanessa Verdecia

promethea moth eggs

These Promethea Moth (Callosamia promethea) eggs were laid in clusters by a single female parent.  When the caterpillars first hatched they measured approximately 3mm in length and as the caterpillars grew, they shed their skin and molted through a series of stages referred to as instars.  Each one of these instars varies in appearance.  Early instars are gregarious and remain together on the underside of the leaves.  

promethea moth caterpillars
promethea moth caterpillars

In the earlier instars the Promethea Moth caterpillars have a black and yellow banded appearance.  In contrast to these earlier stages, the body of the last instar caterpillars are pale green and they are recognized by the protruding, bright red knobs that are located on the thoracic region as well as the yellow knob found on the eighth abdominal segment.  The final instar caterpillars in this culture measured up to 4.5cm in length in a resting position, but they can measure up to 6cm when active and stretched out.

promethea moth caterpillar

The Promethea Moth is a member of the family Saturniidae, a group known as the Giant Silkworm moths. In this group of moths, the mouth parts are reduced and the digestive tract is absent, which means they do not feed as adults.  Most caterpillar species are big eaters, but in families like Saturniidae, the adult moths rely heavily on all the energy stored while eating in the larval stages.

Raising caterpillars in the lab is a labor of love.  Caterpillars depend on having fresh food and a clean environment that is created by housing the live caterpillars in plastic chambers that help preserve the moisture in the leaves.  This culture was reared on sweet gum, but Promethea Moth caterpillars will feed on many different trees.  The caterpillars hatched on 8-June-2018 and some of the specimens in the final instars were seen spinning their cocoons on 17-July-2018.

caterpillars on sweet gum

The caterpillars produce silk on a leaf and the petiole and spin a cocoon with the leaf wrapped around it. After the caterpillars spin their cocoons, they will enter the pupal stage and overwinter until the late spring or early summer of 2019, however, a partial second generation in the summer is known to occur in Pennsylvania.  Cocoons attached to the hostplant by the silk can be seen in the winter when all the other leaves have fallen.

cocoon

Vanessa Verdecia is a collection assistant in the museum’s Invertebrate Zoology Section. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

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The Significance of Raising Caterpillars

By Vanessa Verdecia

Imperial moth

The Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) is a member of the Saturniid family, a group also known as the Giant Silkworm Moths.  This specimen is one of several that was reared from eggs laid last year. The corresponding larva (caterpillar) can be seen in this 2017 blog post.

Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) develop through a process known as complete metamorphosis. They go through four distinct stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.  Entomologists use isofemale culture rearings to document these stages in a wide variety of different species.  In isofemale cultures, wild-caught females are kept in isolation until they have laid their eggs. The resulting larvae then represent one known species derived from a single individual. This method eliminates the possibility of accidentally rearing two or more different species together.

Recording the growth and development of caterpillars is important to understanding the natural history of a species. Detailed notes tell the story of the species being reared. For example, we can document the time of year that adults are found and when eggs are laid, food preferences of the larvae, and whether adults eclose from the pupae in the Fall or overwinter until the Spring before starting the cycle all over again.  Even though laboratory conditions may affect the timing of these changes, the specimens preserved still serve as vouchers to represent stages associated with each species.

The Section of Invertebrate Zoology’s Lepidoptera larval collection serves as an incredible library of associated eggs, larvae, pupae, and adult stages for many species documented through extensive isofemale culture rearings. The corresponding notes serve as a valuable resource for life history information, such as host plant preferences.  Host records are important since a given species will survive on only certain types of host plants.  The caterpillars of the Imperial moth will eat a variety of deciduous trees and this specimen was reared on oak.  However, some species may be host specific and only survive when given the correct plant to eat.

Imperial moth

The larvae of Imperial moth caterpillars reared last year overwintered in the pupal stage.  Winter conditions were provided by storing the pupae in containers kept in the refrigerator through the winter.  The containers were removed and placed at room temperature and we are now enjoying the adult Imperial moths that have been eclosing since May and June.  Many images have been taken, and multiple voucher specimens were preserved to fully document this species in the museum’s reared larval collection.

Vanessa Verdecia is a collection assistant in the museum’s Invertebrate Zoology Section. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

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Moths, butterflies, and skippers

Butterflies on display

Moths, butterflies, and their close relatives, the skippers, are members of the order Lepidoptera—the most diverse group of plant-feeding animals on Earth.

Learn more about them at Amazing Butterflies, opening January 21, 2017 at Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

(photo by Hayley Pontia)