Columbia silkmoth
Hyalophora columbia (S.I. Smith, 1865)
Family: Saturniidae
Subfamily: Saturniinae
Identification: Wings are dark brown to red-brown. The gray area outside the white postmedian band does not contain any red. Crescent spots on the forewings and hindwings are white, although occasionally the spots on the forewing may be reduced or absent.
Wing Span: 3 1/8 - 3 15/16 inches (8 - 10 cm).
Life History: Females lay one or two eggs at the base of larch needles, or on leaves and twigs of other host plants. Caterpillars hatch in less than two weeks and are solitary feeders. The cocoon is compact and spun close to the ground on the trunk or stem of the host plant or on nearby thick undergrowth.
Flight: One brood from May-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: In the east laricina); in addition, caterpillars in western Ontario eat pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica), speckled alder (Alnus rugosa), and white birch (Betula papyrifera). In the west: western choke cherry (Prunus demissa), bitter cherry (P. emarginata), bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata), wild roses (Rosa), willows (Salix), buffalo berry (Shepherdia argentea), Russian olive (Eleagnus angustifolius), and buckbrush (Ceanothus).
Adult Food: Adults do not feed.
Habitat: Woodland with poorly drained, boggy, acid soil; suburban gardens; and a wide variety of wooded habitats.
Range: In the east Quebec and Ontario to Michigan, northern Wisconsin, and southeastern Manitoba. In the west: Alberta and Montana south through the Rocky Mountain region to southwest Texas and into central Mexico. Comments: Glover's silkmoth, H. c. gloveri, once considered a separate species, is now treated as a subspecies of the Columbia silkmoth.
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.
Get your BAMONA Gear!
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 73 - 96 of 335 verified sightings
Observation date: May 24, 2015
Submitted by: sam samples
Region: Custer County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: charleseharp
Verified date: Jun 06, 2015
Observation date: May 30, 2015
Submitted by: stinglessbee
Region: Saguache County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: charleseharp
Verified date: Jun 06, 2015
Observation date: May 31, 2015
Submitted by: Ayatana Artists
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jun 02, 2015
Observation date: Jun 02, 2015
Submitted by: presj
Region: Bonner County, Idaho, United States
Verified by: Robert Martin
Verified date: Jun 02, 2015
Observation date: May 31, 2015
Submitted by: joelbert62
Region: Bonner County, Idaho, United States
Verified by: Robert Martin
Verified date: Jun 02, 2015
Observation date: Aug 15, 2014
Submitted by: pshorst
Region: Cascade County, Montana, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: May 22, 2015
Observation date: May 21, 2015
Submitted by: buz
Region: Alberta, Canada
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: May 22, 2015
Observation date: May 07, 2015
Submitted by: drycreekschool
Region: Converse County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: May 11, 2015
Observation date: May 01, 2015
Submitted by: Debbie.angell
Region: Douglas County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: azukoff
Verified date: May 07, 2015
Observation date: Apr 08, 2015
Submitted by: Brushfire
Region: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: kmortensen
Verified date: May 06, 2015
Observation date: Apr 12, 2015
Submitted by: Maryh228
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: kmortensen
Verified date: May 06, 2015
Observation date: Apr 18, 2015
Submitted by: Adelma Hnasko
Region: New Mexico, United States
Verified by: kmortensen
Verified date: May 06, 2015
Observation date: Apr 23, 2015
Submitted by: queenpattijo
Region: Fremont County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: charleseharp
Verified date: Apr 26, 2015
Observation date: Feb 23, 2015
Submitted by: paula_albin
Region: Yavapai County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: kellyrichers
Verified date: Apr 22, 2015
Observation date: Apr 06, 2015
Submitted by: acapulco_john
Region: Yavapai County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: kellyrichers
Verified date: Apr 22, 2015
Observation date: Jun 10, 2014
Submitted by: J_Martineau
Region: Carbon County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Nov 26, 2014
Observation date: Sep 01, 2014
Submitted by: JSpringer
Region: Coconino County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 08, 2014
Observation date: Aug 10, 2014
Submitted by: marrl
Region: Alberta, Canada
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Aug 11, 2014
Observation date: Jul 28, 2014
Submitted by: time
Region: Apache County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: kellyrichers
Verified date: Jul 30, 2014
Observation date: Jul 06, 2014
Submitted by: uglycasanova
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Jul 06, 2014
Observation date: Jun 27, 2014
Submitted by: makotara
Region: Yellowstone National Park County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Jul 06, 2014
Observation date: Jun 05, 2014
Submitted by: letsgomoe
Region: Gallatin County, Montana, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Jul 06, 2014
Observation date: Jun 05, 2014
Submitted by: cdemers
Region: Essex County, New York, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Jul 03, 2014
Observation date: Jul 01, 2014
Submitted by: charlespharding
Region: Cache County, Utah, United States
Verified by: Josiah Gilbert
Verified date: Jul 02, 2014
- ‹ previous
- 4 of 14
- next ›