Polilla imperial
Eacles imperialis
Polilla
Gran polilla sedosa amarilla y púrpura (Saturniidae) cuyas larvas se alimentan de Acer (arce), Quercus (roble), Pinus, Sassafras y una amplia variedad de otras plantas leñosas caducifolias y perennifolias. Las orugas pueden alcanzar 4 inches y se alimentan solitarias en el borde del dosel. La envergadura alar de la polilla adulta es de 3-7 inches; los adultos no se alimentan. Las poblaciones han disminuido notablemente en el este de los Estados Unidos debido a una combinación de contaminación lumínica (que interrumpe el apareamiento), fragmentación del hábitat y presión de moscas taquínidas parasitoides introducidas.
Conservación
Sin clasificación formal de la IUCN, pero en declive a lo largo del rango oriental según múltiples observaciones a nivel estatal; plantar árboles de dosel nativos (especialmente robles) y reducir la iluminación exterior son las acciones de conservación recomendadas.
Plants in the catalog
Plantas hospedantes de larvas · 11
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center documents black walnut as a larval host for large silk moths (Saturniidae), naming the luna and regal moths; the imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) is a closely related polyphagous Saturniid that also uses walnut, mapped here as the nearest catalogued silk-moth host.
Oaks (Quercus spp.) are among the commonly reported larval hosts of the polyphagous imperial moth (Eacles imperialis), per Butterflies and Moths of North America; host use is regional, so this is recorded as plausible rather than a documented bur-oak-specific record.
Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) larvae feed on Quercus canopy through summer alongside multiple hairstreak (Banded, Edward's, Gray, White-M per NC State) and duskywing (Horace's, Juvenal's) species. Oak canopy is the foundational eastern hardwood Lep habitat.
NC State: "Members of the genus Acer support Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis) larvae which have one brood per season and appear from April-October in the south."
NC State documents sassafras among the imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) larval hosts alongside maples, oaks, and pines.
Carya hosts imperial moth + multiple hairstreak + duskywing species — among Tallamy's keystone genera with hundreds of supported Lepidoptera.
Like all oaks, live oak hosts imperial moth + multiple hairstreak + duskywing species.
NC State: "Members of the genus Acer support Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis) larvae which have one brood per season and appear from April-October in the south."
Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) larvae feed on Quercus canopy through summer; one of the giant silk moths declining across the eastern range due to light pollution. Planting oaks is the canonical conservation action.
Distribución
Este y centro de América del Norte, desde el sur de Ontario hasta Florida; una sola generación por año en el sur (abril-octubre), con las poblaciones del norte produciendo un vuelo a finales del verano.