Cotton as a host plant for Saturniidae

[tims]

Last year I raised Samia cynthia on cotton. This year I tried rearing Cecropia, Polyphemus, Prometheus,Luna,and Imperial Moths on it. All fed readily on cotton, except Luna, which failed to feed at all. In general, larval growth was slower than caterpillars raised on more traditional hosts. Dispite slower growth rates, cotton may prove to be a useful host substitute for some of you out there with limited space for raising Saturnids. Seeds are readily available and can be purchased on line. Plant growth is fairly rapid, and plants can be grown indoors if given proper lighting.

[oehlkew]

Thanks for a very interesting observation!
Bill Oehlke

[tims]

Of the five species that I have raised using cotton as a host plant, I would only recommend it for Imperial Moths, Cecropias, and Cynthia Moths. Polyphemus can be raised to adult, but growth is very slow.   I had difficulty raising Prometheus to pupa. Prometheus grows well on cotton and further test needs to be done. The problem I had with cotton is aphids and the ants they attract ants.  Nearly all losses of Prometheus caterpillars raised on cotton were do to ants or other arthropods killing them.

[garin33]

I am raising Polyphemus for the first time and at first tried Sycamore because some websites said that you can use Sycamore but it they wouldn't eat it. I then tried Japanese Maple but they would not eat that as well. I then finally found a cork oak tree near my work and they are eating and seem to be doing well now.
I never thought they would be so picky. I live in Los Angeles in the city so it's not easy to find the different types of trees. Thanks for the suggestion regarding cotton.

[ironhunt]

I am also in the LA area and from my observations, nearly all local Lepidoptera species that feed on trees will go for one of the following: Oak, Willow, Elm, Citrus, or Sycamore. I've also been able to rear several types of moths on the artificial food you can get for painted ladies, but I've never tried that for Saturnids. In fact, I've never had one. Where are you finding these caterpillars locally?

[garin33]

I bought the eggs online. Pretty cheap. 12 eggs for $10 plus $4 for shipping. Of course, they are only available at certain times and currently they are not available. (I just checked)
I tried the sycamore and the larvae just sat on the fresh leaves and did nothing. It had been over 24 hours since they had hatched so I was very concerned. I found some cork oak trees and they immediately ate them. I have read on a few website that they will eat Sycamore so not sure why for me they would not. I wish they did because my street has sycamore trees everywhere. Oak trees in my area are more difficult to find.

[ironhunt]

I'm pretty sure there is a large oak population in Griffith Park, if you're close to it.

[garin33]

Thanks for the info ironhunt. I'm sort of far from Griffith Park but fortunately I found a street in Torrance, which is very close to my work. They have a bunch of Cork Oak Trees and it seems to work well.
Thanks.