Artace | |
---|---|
Artace cribrarius | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Lasiocampidae |
Subfamily: | Poecilocampinae |
Tribe: | Macromphaliini |
Genus: |
Artace Walker, 1855 |
Artace is a genus of moths in the family Lasiocampidae. The genus was erected by Francis Walker in 1855. [1] [2] [3]
In 2009, Kyrgyzstani zoologist Dr. Arthur Anker [4] photographed a moth in the Canaima National Park of the Gran Sabana region of Venezuela, and the photograph went "viral" on the internet, [5] including hoaxes claiming to be additional photos. [6] Anker initially captioned his photo as "Poodle moth, Venezuela", and later added " (Artace sp, perhaps A. cribaria)". [7]
Dr. John E. Rawlins from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History concurred with Anker's suggestion of the genus Artace for the identification:
Here’s my vote/guess to ID the poodle moth. The antenna is distinctive. " Lasiocampidae: Artace or a related genus, probably not Artace cribraria (presumably North America to Argentina, but nobody has revised this group from Mexico south). There are more than a dozen described South American species of Artace, but their delimitation, validity, and even their generic placement is uncertain. It will take two things to solve this problem: a comprehensive revision of Artace and kin, plus an actual specimen of a genuine “Venezuelan poodle moth.” [5]