Hypercompe ocularia

{{Short description|Species of moth}}

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{{Speciesbox

| name= Ocularia leopard

| image =

| image_caption =

| taxon = Hypercompe ocularia

| authority = (Fabricius, 1775)

| synonyms =

  • Bombyx ocularia Fabricius, 1775
  • Ecpantheria cyaneator Walker, [1865]
  • Ecpantheria columbina Oberthür, 1881
  • Ecpantheria distans Oberthür, 1881

}}

Hypercompe ocularia, the ocularia leopard, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775.

Description

This moth is a translucent-white colour, patterned with numerous brown, oval rings on the forewings.{{cite web |url =http://www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Andes%20-%20Hypercompe%20ocularia.htm |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130402104717/http://www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Andes%20-%20Hypercompe%20ocularia.htm |url-status =usurped |archive-date =April 2, 2013 |title = Moths of the Amazon and Andes Ocularia Leopard | last = Hoskins |first = Adrian | website = Learn About Butterflies |accessdate = 3 February 2014}}

Distribution

It is found in Colombia,{{cite web |last=Savela |first=Markku |url=https://www.nic.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/noctuoidea/arctiidae/arctiinae/hypercompe/#ocularia |title=Hypercompe ocularia (Fabricius, 1775) |website=Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms |accessdate=18 August 2019}} Peru and Ecuador. This is a cloud-forest species found at elevations between about 200–1000 m.

Biology

Moths of the genus Hypercompe are noxious to birds and exhibit warning colouration. When approached by a bird, these moths expose a coloured abdomen and exude noxious fluids as a defence mechanism.

References

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Sources

  • {{cite web |last1=Pitkin |first1=Brian |last2=Jenkins |first2=Paul |name-list-style=amp |url=https://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/data/butmoth/search/GenusList3.dsml?&FAMILY=Arctiidae&sort=GENUS |title=Search results Family: Arctiidae |website=Butterflies and Moths of the World |publisher=Natural History Museum, London}}

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Category:Hypercompe

Category:Moths described in 1775

Category:Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius