Pillar Parade (s Afr)

A parade of pillars down the cat-walk ;-)

A showcase of the southern African Lepi babies. I have found this very useful for IDs, and maybe you will too. Many USEFUL LINKS below - click the MORE button!

Our moth fauna is very poorly recorded and a good way of expanding our knowledge (and having fun at the same time) is to rear caterpillars through to adulthood. If you are not yet a member of the Caterpillar Rearing Group (CRG), please consider joining and submitting your rearings to the group. If you would like to submit rearings to the CRG and need more info, please send me (karoopixie) a private message with your email address, and I will send you all the bumf. See also the CRG FB page and the many helpful downloadable documents (thanks, Magriet:-).

You can also join the CRG whatsapp group - send a private message to @suncana if you wish to join.

You can see the wonderful rearings submitted to iNat so far on the Reared from larval stage (not just lepis, but other goodies as well).

I will compile a list of Rearing Tips here – please send me any tips you have.

Useful references

Illustrated references

Check out UKLeps caterpillar morphology page. This is quite useful in determining what family your caterpillar is likely to belong to. It is not exhaustive by any means, but gives one a good start in basic pillar recognition especially of the more well known Macrolepidoptera (the big ones, as opposed to the Microlepidoptera).

Rearings submitted to the African Caterpillar Rearing Group (CRG) have been published in the journal Metamorphosis, and below are links for each section of the illustrated supplement. The first paper was in 2016, the second in 2017 (butterflies only), and the third in 2020:

• Bombycidae, Eupterotidae 2016
• Bombycidae, Eupterotidae, Lasiocampidae 2020
• Lasiocampidae 2016 -
• Saturniidae 2016 - emperors
• Saturniidae, Sphingidae 2020 - emperors & hawkmoths
• Sphingidae 2016 - hawkmoths
• Gelechioidea 2016
• Gelechioidea 2020
• Geometridae: Desmobathrinae, Larentiinae 2016
• Geometridae: Desmobathrinae, Ennominae (1) 2020
• Geometridae: Ennominae 2016
• Geometridae: Ennominae (2) 2020
• Geometridae: Ennominae (3) 2020
• Geometridae: Geometrinae 2016
• Geometridae: Geometrinae, Larentiinae, Sterrhinae | Uraniidae 2020
• Geometridae: Sterrhinae 2016
• Erebidae: Aganainae, Boletobiinae, Hypeninae 2016
• Erebidae: Aganainae, Anobinae, Arctiinae 2020
• Erebidae: Arctiinae 2016
• Erebidae: Boletobiinae, Calpinae 2020
• Erebidae: Erebinae 2020
• Erebidae: Herminiinae, Hypeninae, Hypocalinae 2020
• Erebidae: Lymantriinae 2016
• Erebidae: Lymantriinae, Rivulinae, Scoliopteryginae, Thiacidinae, Tinoliinae, Toxocampinae, undetermined subfamily 2020
• Erebidae: Anobinae, Calpinae, Erebinae, Hypocalinae, Scoliopteryginae, Tinoliinae & unknown 2016
• Euteliidae: Euteliinae, Stictopterinae 2020
• Noctuidae: Acontiinae, Agaristinae, Amphipyrinae, Bagisarinae 2020
• Noctuidae: Bagisarinae, Caradrininae, Heliothinae 2016
• Noctuidae: Caradrinine assemblage 2020
• Noctuidae: Condicinae, Cucullinae, Eustrotiinae, Heliothinae 2020
• Noctuidae: Noctuinae 2016
• Noctuidae: Noctuinae 2020
• Noctuidae: Acontiinae, Agaristinae, Cuculiinae, Eustrotiinae, Plusiinae, Thiacidinae & unknowns 2016
• Noctuidae: Plusiinae and undetermined subfamily 2020
• Nolidae 2016
• Nolidae 2020
• Notodontidae 2016 - prominents
• Notodontidae 2020
• Noctuoidea others 2016 - Euteliidae, Thyretidae
• Other small lepi families 2016 - Bucculatricidae, Choreutide, Cossidae, Calacticidae, Gracillariidae, Hepialidae, Hyblaeidae, Lecithoceridae, Limacodidae, Plutellidae, Psychidae, Pterophoridae, Sesiidae, Somabrachyidae, Thyrididae, Tineidae, Yponomeutidae, Zygaenidae & unknowns
• Other small lepi families 2020 - Anomoeotidae, Bucculatricidae, Choreutidae, Cossidae, Drepanidae, Galacticidae, Gracillariidae, Hyblaeidae, Lacturidae, Limacodidae, Plutellidae
• Other small lepi families 2020 - Prodidactidae, Psychidae, Pterophoridae, Somabrachyidae, Thyrididae, Tineidae, Yponomeutidae, Zygaenidae, undetermined family
• Papilionoidea & Hesperiidae 2016 - butterflies and skippers
• Papilionoidea: Hesperiidae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Hesperiidae: Coeliadinae, Hesperiinae, Heteropterinae, Pyrginae 2020 - skippers
• Papilionoidea: Lycaenidae: Poritiinae, Miletinae, Aphnaeinae, Polyommatinae, Lycaeninae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Lycaenidae: Theclinae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Lycaenidae: Aphnaeinae, Lycaeninae, Miletinae, Polyommatinae, Poritiinae, Theclinae 2020 - blues
• Papilionoidea: Papilionidae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Nymphalidae: Danainae, Libytheinae, Satyrinae, Charaxinae, Nymphalinae, Cyrestinae, Biblidinae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae, Limenitidinae 2017
• Papilionoidea: Nymphalidae: Biblidinae, Charaxinae, Danainae, Heliconiinae, Libytheinae, Limenitidinae, Nymphalinae, Satyrinae; Papilionidae: Papilioninae; Pieridae: Coliadinae, Pierinae 2020
• Papilionoidea: Pieridae & Riodinidae 2017
• Crambidae 2016 - crambid snout moths
• Pyraloidea: Crambidae: Cybalomiinae, Evergestinae, Glaphyriinae, Odentiinae, Pyraustinae, Spilomelinae 2020
• Pyralidae 2016 - snout moths
• Pyraloidea: Pyralidae: Epipaschiinae, Galleriinae, Phycitinae, Pyralinae, undetermined subfamily 2020
• Tortricidae 2016 - leaf-rollers
• Tortricoidea: Tortricidae: Olethreutinae, Tortricinae, undetermined subfamily 2020

I have some pics of some typical family characters but still need to work out if I can add them here... Probably in journal posts (will work on that).

Please give me any ideas for any info you would like to see on this project.

Some useful links for ADULT lepi identification:

• Afromoths
• Bold
• Lepimap
• African Moths

Keywords (for searches): caterpillar, cats, larva, larvae, lepidoptera, moth, butterfly, characters, characteristics, diagnostic, features menos ↑