Franziska Bauer
Chrysauginae moth (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae: ?Tosale sp.), wing closeup with tympanal organ
Male chrysaugine moths have unique modifications on the forewings in the form a membrane stretched across a spherical cavity. This construction certainly works as a "hearing" (tympanal) organ – but for which sounds? This question is legitimate, since they already have an abdominal tympanal organ. Thus they are the only moths I know of which possess two different types of these hearing organs. I presume it could be involved in courtship since females do not carry this wing modification. Someone should go out and check the songs sung by the females...
non-spread museum specimen, collected in Bolivia, @5x magnification
Canon EOS 5DIII, MP-E65mm,
Studio work, 2.0 sec, ƒ/6.3, ISO 250
53 exposures stacked with Zerene Stacker
Chrysauginae moth (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae: ?Tosale sp.), wing closeup with tympanal organ
Male chrysaugine moths have unique modifications on the forewings in the form a membrane stretched across a spherical cavity. This construction certainly works as a "hearing" (tympanal) organ – but for which sounds? This question is legitimate, since they already have an abdominal tympanal organ. Thus they are the only moths I know of which possess two different types of these hearing organs. I presume it could be involved in courtship since females do not carry this wing modification. Someone should go out and check the songs sung by the females...
non-spread museum specimen, collected in Bolivia, @5x magnification
Canon EOS 5DIII, MP-E65mm,
Studio work, 2.0 sec, ƒ/6.3, ISO 250
53 exposures stacked with Zerene Stacker