Mating behavior and male gathering of the white tailed zygaenid moths.(34.9MB, 00:03:10)Shot Date: 1987/09/23 Shot Location: Chokyu-ji temple, Ikoma city, Nara prefecture, Japan | ||
| species Elcysma westwoodii Key Words | ||
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Animalia >Arthropoda >Insecta >Lepidoptera >Zygaenidae >Elcysma >
Like other zygaenid moths, the white tailed zygaenid moth is diurnal. Its host plants are species from the family Rosaceae, for example, cherry trees, plum trees and peach trees. It is univoltine and the mating season is from mid-September to mid-October. In the breeding season, many flying males are observed in the early morning, from about 0600 to 0800. Females release sex pheromone and males fly and search for females to copulate with. Mating behavior is observed only during this period. Courting males try to grasp the female abdominal tip with their forceps-like claspers with fluttering their wings, but females are often reluctant to mate and refuse male attempts by bending their abdomens and walking. Males sometimes gather around a female to copulate, suggesting high opportunity for sexual selection. When the copulation is established, the male sets all of his wings vertically. Copulation usually continues until noon or the afternoon.
Koshio, C. 1996 Reproductive behaviour of the white-tailed zygaenid moth, Elcysma westwoodii (Lepidoptera, Zygaenidae) II. Female mating strategy. Journal of Ethology 14: 21-25
(Data No.momo051011ew01b)
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