Imperial moth
Eacles imperialis (Drury, 1773)
Family: Saturniidae
Subfamily: Ceratocampinae
Identification: Females are larger than males. Upperside is yellow with pinkish brown to purple-brown patches, bands, and cell spots, and tiny brown spots scattered overall. Males have larger patches on the forewings than females, except for some subspecies pini males which have reduced purple and are mostly yellow.
Wing Span: 3 1/8 - 6 7/8 inches (8 - 17.4 cm).
Life History: Adults emerge before sunrise and mate after midnight the next day. Females lay eggs at dusk singly or in groups of 2-5 on both surfaces of host plant leaves. The eggs hatch in about 2 weeks, and the caterpillars are solitary feeders. Pupation takes place in underground burrows.
Flight: One brood; in the north from June-August, in the south from April-October.
Caterpillar Hosts: Conifers and deciduous trees and shrubs including pine (Pinus), oak (Quercus), box elder (Acer negundo), maples (Acer), sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua), and sassafras (Sassafras albidum). Confirmed feeding on Norway spruce (see record 738773). Subspecies pini feeds only on conifers.
Adult Food: Adults do not feed.
Habitat: Deciduous and evergreen forests.
Range: Maine west to eastern Nebraska, south to the Florida Keys and central Texas. Subspecies pini occurs across the northern Great Lakes basin and the northern third of Michigan's Lower Peninsula.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 145 - 168 of 2702 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 26, 2022
Submitted by: RobbiF83
Region: Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 26, 2022
Observation date: Jul 22, 2013
Submitted by: Boreas
Region: Essex County, New York, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 25, 2022
Observation date: Jul 19, 2022
Submitted by: NatureTraipser
Region: Licking County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 25, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 25, 2022
Observation date: Jul 24, 2022
Submitted by: Allen B
Region: Fentress County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: Allen B
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 21, 2022
Submitted by: Shane Miller
Region: Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 23, 2022
Submitted by: karmar
Region: Perry County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 23, 2022
Observation date: Jul 20, 2022
Submitted by: kbinko
Region: York County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 18, 2022
Submitted by: cbaugher
Region: DuPage County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 19, 2022
Observation date: Jul 15, 2022
Submitted by: glen Peter
Region: Wyoming County, New York, United States
Verified by: Sue Gregoire
Verified date: Jul 16, 2022
Observation date: Jun 11, 2013
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jul 10, 2022
Observation date: Jul 06, 2022
Submitted by: Hosting Butterflies
Region: Muskegon County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 08, 2022
Observation date: Jul 06, 2022
Submitted by: Kristylardomita
Region: Geauga County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 07, 2022
Observation date: Jun 01, 2022
Submitted by: mabfrazer
Region: Ocean County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: BarbSendelbach
Verified date: Jun 01, 2022
Observation date: May 29, 2022
Submitted by: PamM
Region: Greene County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: May 30, 2022
Observation date: Dec 02, 2021
Submitted by: TonyaR
Region: Hardin County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: May 20, 2022
Observation date: May 11, 2022
Submitted by: ktew
Region: Brunswick County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: May 11, 2022
Observation date: Sep 17, 2017
Submitted by: Deb Powell
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Feb 16, 2022
Observation date: Sep 12, 2016
Submitted by: kevinambioterra
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Feb 16, 2022
Observation date: Aug 24, 2019
Submitted by: Rie
Region: Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Feb 11, 2022
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