Eacles oslari

[livingplanet3]

Have just received some eggs of Eacles oslari - any advice on rearing would be much appreciated. I've never kept this genus before. Hopefully, the larvae will accept one of my local oak species, such as Quercus fusiformis.

[jwa121]

In addition to Quercus, Prunus serotina and Liquidambar are also recommended for Eacles oslari.

[livingplanet3]

Aug 5, 2021 8:10:46 GMT -8 jwa121 said:

In addition to Quercus, Prunus serotina and Liquidambar are also recommended for Eacles oslari.

Many thanks. Apart from several species of oak, I also have Liquidambar. What kind of substrate would be best for pupation?

[kevinkk]

For burrowing larva, I've used potting mix in a bucket, with the mix somewhat damp, and kept far enough from the top to prevent escape.
Also, a lid for darkness, and one thing I noticed the first time I used a bucket, was that the larva would just go around in a circle,
until- I put an object in it's way, anything, a stick, a rock, or piece of wood, then they dug down. Easy to retrieve 10 days or so after
they disappear.

[livingplanet3]

Aug 5, 2021 10:20:43 GMT -8 kevinkk said:

For burrowing larva, I've used potting mix in a bucket, with the mix somewhat damp, and kept far enough from the top to prevent escape.
Also, a lid for darkness, and one thing I noticed the first time I used a bucket, was that the larva would just go around in a circle,
until- I put an object in it's way, anything, a stick, a rock, or piece of wood, then they dug down. Easy to retrieve 10 days or so after
they disappear.

Thanks again - will do. Would coconut fiber work well in place of potting mix? How do you keep the pupae after retrieval from the substrate?

Also - I assume it's normal for the eggs to be pale yellow for a while after being laid, and that they'll gradually darken as they near hatching (assuming that they're fertile)?

[jwa121]

For pupating Saturniid larvae that burrow, you can put the larvae in containers (one larva per container) with some cut up, damp paper towel. Make sure the containers are kept in darkness. Or you can put multiple larvae in a large container of some kind filled with damp coconut coir. Both methods work well. I'm right now rearing a large number of burrowing Saturniid caterpillars and I will be using both methods. Damp coconut coir is also good for the long term storage of your resulting Saturniid pupae.

[evra]

I’ve reared them on oak before and they didn’t do well at all. I would recommend using something else.

[trehopr1]

I have to ask here, if any of you fellas actually retain specimens for yourselves from all the various stock that you breed ?

Now understand this question comes from a collector. Saturniidae are my favorite family of moths so wherever possible I try to get clean, flawless, bred examples of them either through purchase or trade. I breed nothing myself because I have never had the desire within me to tolerate all the worry, work, fuss, and bother associated with breeding things.

Occasionally, I will collect a wild capture that is flawless (or nearly so) but, it is very infrequent. Perhaps there are some who just like "the challenge" of raising a decent crop of something for reasons of sale or perhaps to release back into nature.

Yet, if you guys do retain specimens for yourselves then you must all have some killer examples of your work to show us. So, how come I never see anyone posting pictures of things that they have bred ?

I for one would love to see some of the personal accomplishments that some of you have had. I am familiar with the names; and all of your various knowledge and insights gained through these breeding efforts is impressive.

However, pictures of "spot-on" perfect examples are still glorious to behold...

[exoticimports]

I bred because I wanted to enjoy the experience. I really don’t care if a specimen is perfect or not. Breeding allows one to obtain slight, and sometimes unique, variations.

[evra]

I generally don’t rear unless I have to. Certain species are so rare at lights that it takes a very long time to accumulate a series otherwise. Most of these are Sphingids, Arctiids, and Hemileucas though. A lot of the Saturniids in SE AZ are kind of junk species so I only reared E. oslari, C. splendens, A. oculea, and a few others only once. Most of the time I either don’t collect them or if they are dead in traps, I just discard them. Personally I would much rather have a nice, but not necessarily perfect, wild caught specimen with full data than an ex-pupa bred specimen.

I was using kind of a crappy oak to rear E. oslari on, Quercus virginiana, which may have had something to do with it. The last instar larvae on the oak were a dark burgundy, whereas the ones on Brazilian pepper tree ended up being tan.

[yorky]

Aug 6, 2021 10:03:12 GMT -8 trehopr1 said:

I have to ask here, if any of you fellas actually retain specimens for yourselves from all the various stock that you breed ?

Now understand this question comes from a collector. Saturniidae are my favorite family of moths so wherever possible I try to get clean, flawless, bred examples of them either through purchase or trade. I breed nothing myself because I have never had the desire within me to tolerate all the worry, work, fuss, and bother associated with breeding things.

Occasionally, I will collect a wild capture that is flawless (or nearly so) but, it is very infrequent. Perhaps there are some who just like "the challenge" of raising a decent crop of something for reasons of sale or perhaps to release back into nature.

Yet, if you guys do retain specimens for yourselves then you must all have some killer examples of your work to show us. So, how come I never see anyone posting pictures of things that they have bred ?

I for one would love to see some of the personal accomplishments that some of you have had. I am familiar with the names; and all of your various knowledge and insights gained through these breeding efforts is impressive.

However, pictures of "spot-on" perfect examples are still glorious to behold...

There is no better way of obtaining a perfect series than breeding. From my own perspective I used to breed prodigously but since being promoted and having a lot of pressure from work and limited time I don't bother now.

[livingplanet3]

Thanks again to all for the advice. The eggs are rapidly darkening as of today, so I expect that they will hatch any day now. I suppose I will just have to try my local oaks, as well as Liquidambar, and see if they will accept it. I wonder if pecan might also be worth trying?

[jwa121]

Every Saturniid species I rear is reared with the aim of obtaining a series of perfect specimens for my collection.

[livingplanet3]

Aug 7, 2021 5:57:37 GMT -8 jwa121 said:

Every Saturniid species I rear is reared with the aim of obtaining a series of perfect specimens for my collection.

My main goal as well. Also though, just for the experience.

[livingplanet3]

The eggs hatched this morning. Have offered the larvae Quercus, Liquidambar, and Carya; hopefully, they'll accept at least one of them. I cut the edges of the leaves, as I've heard that this can help prompt them to start eating.