Bradypodicola

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Bradypodicola hahneli
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pyralidae
Genus: Bradypodicola
Spuler, 1906
Species: B. hahneli
Binomial name
Bradypodicola hahneli
Spuler, 1906
Synonyms
  • Bradipodicola hahneli

Bradypodicola hahneli is a sloth moth in the Pyralidae family that lives exclusively in the fur of the Pale-throated Three-toed Sloth (Bradypus tridactylus), a three-toed sloth found in South America.[1] It is the only species of the Bradypodicola genus.[2]

While the other sloth moth Cryptoses choloepi has a continuosly convex front of its head, Bradypodicola hahneli has a concave shape of the front of its head. [3]

The three-toed sloth’s fur forms a micro-ecozone inhabited by green algae and hundred of insects. The fur provides a home and protection for the moth which feeds on the algae. It also deposits its eggs in the droppings of the sloth, where they pupate and hatch, and the newly hatched moths fly off to look for another sloth to live on.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sherman, Lee (Spring 2008). An OSU scientist braves an uncharted rainforest in a search for rare and endangered species. "Expedition to the Edge". Terra (Oregon State University). Retrieved 14 February 2011. 
  2. ↑ "global Pyraloidea database". Globiz.pyraloidea.org. Retrieved 2011-10-10. 
  3. ↑ http://books.google.com/books?id=J31NAAAAYAAJ&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false
  4. ↑ Kissel, Joe (4 February 2005). "The hidden lives of sloths". Interesting Thing of the Day. alt concepts. Retrieved 14 February 2011. 
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