Eumorpha vitis Linnaeus 1758
Larval morphology and behavior:
The larvae of this species exhibit both a deep green and a purple color morph.
Distribution:
Collected in Heredia Province, Costa Rica.
Foodplant Associations:
Vitaceae: Cissus sp.
Parasitoid Associations:
Tachinidae: Unknown spp. (N=1). This parasitoid emerged from a later instar larvae (3-4). The developing parasitoid larvae forced their spiracles through the integument of the larvae, allowing them to breath air directly.
Ichneumonidae: Unknown spp. (N=1) This parasitoid emerged from an early instar larvae (1-2).
This information is based an ongoing project dedicated to the inventory and dissemination of information on lepidopteran larvae, their host plants, and their parasitoids in a Costa Rican tropical wet forest and an Ecuadorian montane cloud forest.
N=7 rearings as of 2012, 2 eclosed, 2 were parasitized and 3 died.