Gonimbrasia belina - Mopane moth, Mopane worm, Anomalous emperor

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Gonimbrasia belina

Photo(s): Bart Wursten, Sinamatela Camp, Hwange National Park.

Species details:

Note: The larvae of this species are the well-known Mopane worms, a popular traditional food source in much of the southern African region. These caterpillars are not restricted to the mopane tree (Colophosperma mopane) for their food source but can be found on quite a number of different species. It is due to the dominant nature of the mopane tree and the subsequent collection of vast numbers of caterpillars from these trees that the tree and this moth are usually only associated with each other.
Distribution: Angola, Botswana, Cameroon, DRC, Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Larval food (by plant family):
Larval food (by plant genus):
EbenaceaeDiospyros (Larval foodplant)
MoraceaeFicus (Larval foodplant)
SalicaceaeSalix (Larval foodplant)
Larval food (by plant species):
AnacardiaceaeMangifera indica (Larval foodplant)
AnacardiaceaeSclerocarya birrea subsp. caffra (Larval foodplant)
Fabaceae subfamily CaesalpinioideaeBurkea africana (Larval foodplant)
Fabaceae subfamily CaesalpinioideaeColophospermum mopane (Larval foodplant)
Literature:

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Caprivi: Lepidoptera - Butterflies and Moths: Gonimbrasia belina .
https://www.capriviflora.com/speciesdata/insect-display.php?insect_species_id=402540, retrieved 4 October 2024

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