Eudesmia menea, the lunar eudesmia, is a moth of the subfamily Arctiinae. It was described by Drury in 1782.[1] It is found from Brazil and Colombia, through Central America (Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras),[2] to the southern United States, where it is found from southern Texas to Florida.[3]

Eudesmia menea
Illustration by Drury
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Erebidae
Subfamily: Arctiinae
Genus: Eudesmia
Species:
E. menea
Binomial name
Eudesmia menea
(Drury, 1782)
Synonyms
  • Phalaena menea Drury, 1782
  • Ruscino menea
  • Cisthene menea
  • Ruscino arctifascia Butler, 1877

Description

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Upperside: antennae filiform (threadlike) and black. Head, thorax, and abdomen yellow. Wings yellow and black. Anterior having two round black spots at the shoulders, and two long ones at the tips. Posterior having a broad black border, beginning at the abdominal corners and running round the wings, crossing the fore wings and ending at the anterior edges.

Underside: palpi and tongue black. Legs black. Breast and abdomen yellow. Wings coloured as on the upperside. Margins of the wings entire. Wingspan 2 inches (50 mm).[4]

References

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  1. ^ "930175.00 – 8097 – Eudesmia menea – (Drury, 1782)". North American Moth Photographers Group. Mississippi State University. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  2. ^ Savela, Markku. "Eudesmia menea (Drury, 1782)". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  3. ^ Heiman, Maury J. (August 31, 2013). "Species Eudesmia menea - Hodges#8097". BugGuide. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  4. ^ Drury, Dru (1837). Westwood, John (ed.). Illustrations of Exotic Entomology. Vol. 3. p. 4. pl. III.