Smerinthus gaschkewitschii Bremer & Grey, 1853, in Motschulsky (ed.), Etudes ent. 1: 62. Type locality: [China,] Pekin [Beijing].
Note. Marumba gaschkewitschii is currently divided into seven subspecies: g. gaschkewitschii, g. complacens (Walker), g. echephron (Boisduval), g. carstanjeni (Staudinger), g. irata Joicey & Kaye, g. gressitti Clark and g. discreta Derzhavets. However, the boundaries between these are not clear-cut, particularly within China. Specimens matching two or more subspecies can be found in the same locality at the same time, for example, as was observed at Yangling (17.vii.1995) and 30km north of Huangling, Shaanxi (24.vii.1995) (A.R. Pittaway, pers. obs.). Consequently, we do not allocate distribution records to subspecies.
Wingspan: 70--92mm.
M. gaschkewitschii occurs in most habitats, including cities and orchards, and reaches over 2000m in Yunnan (Mell, 1935) and Nepal. Particularly common in montane forests rich in species of Prunus and Pyrus (Mell, 1935). Also common in the hills to the west and north of Beijing in the Ziziphus\Vitex\Rhus vegetation zone.
China: 15-28.ii (Guangdong); 28.ii-14.iii (Hong Kong); iv (Guangdong; Jiangxi); 24.iv-vi (Shandong); v-vi (Yunnan; Shanghai; Hong Kong; Zhejiang); vi (Hebei; Guangxi); vi-vii (Heilongjiang); vii (Balin; Guangdong; Hailin; Zhejiang, 1500m); 17-24.vii (Shaanxi); viii (Fujian); 18.ix-14.x (Hong Kong). Taiwan: v-vi (Hualien Hsien). Mongolia: 21.iv (Övö-Hangaj Province); 3.v (Hovd Province); 9.vii (Vostochnyy province). North Korea: vii-ix (Jueul, 1500m). South Korea: 22.vii (Jeju Do). Russia: v-28.vii (Primorskiy Kray); 6-10.vii (Amurskaya); 4-25.vii (Khabarovskaya).
M. gaschkewitschii has one to three generations a year. One is usual in Liaoning and Beijing, two in Ningxia, Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang; and three in Jiangxi (Chu et al., 1979). (Full-grown larvae were abundant around Beijing in late August 2003 (Pittaway, pers. obs. 2003).) Mell (1935) noted three to four generations (between 8.iii-5.x) in northern Guangdong and four to five generations (between 15.ii-2.xi) in southern Guangdong.
Park et al. (1999) give mid May until late August as the flight period in Korea.
OVUM: Pale, translucent jade green at first, but developing a yellow sheen; oval (2.07 x 1.57mm), shiny and smooth.
LARVA: Full-fed 75--83mm.
Generally feeds at between 0.5 and 1.5m off the ground on terminal branches of bushes rather than trees. Smaller plants set in amongst other shrubs are preferred. Larvae can be met with at very high densities, withn often four or five per branch.
PUPA: 40--48mm. Reddish mahogany brown and glossy; tapering caudad from a blunt head and thorax. Head tuberculate, with two vertical, blunt, broad crests frontad. Proboscis not present, but replaced by a knob-like tubercle. Wings smooth, abdominal segments finely punctate. Spiracular ridges present on movable abdominal segments. Cremaster broadly conical, with a sharp point; tuberculate. Similar to that of Callambulyx tatarinovii, but head more rough and with two crest-like tubercles frontad, as found in most species of Marumba. Formed in an almost silk-free cell in the soil. The overwintering stage.
Larval hostplants. Recorded in China on Eriobotrya japonica and various species of Malus, Prunus and Pyrus (Mell, 1922b; Yang, 1978; Chu et al., 1979; Chu & Wang, 1980). It is a pest of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) in Shaanxi (A.R. Pittaway, pers. obs. 1995). The majority of hostplant records for M. gaschkewitschii are Rosaceae but there are two reliable records for M. g. irata on Salix in Yunnan (Mell, 1922b). Yang (1978) and Chu & Wang (1980) also give Ziziphus mauritiana [Z. jujuba]. The first author was able to confirm this unusual hostplant by finding numerous full-grown larvae on Z. jujuba shrubs in the hills west of Beijing (Xiangshan) during late August (Pittaway, pers. obs. 2003). Larvae were also common on apricot Prunus armeniaca at Chengde. However, records from Buxus microphylla and Euonymus alatus (Chang, 1989) are suspect, while those on Vitis vinifera (Chu et al., 1979; Chu & Wang, 1980) are probably erroneous. The source and veracity of the record on Weigela (Zhang, 1994) are unknown.
In captivity the larvae found on Ziziphus and Prunus armeniaca readily transferred to Crataegus (Pittaway, pers. obs. 2003).
Recorded in Primorskiy Kray, Russia, on Prunus, Pyrus and Crataegus (Derzhavets, 1984); also on Malus baccata (Izerskiy, 1999b).
Recorded in Korea on Kerria japonica, Prunus mume, P. persica, P. salicina, P. serrulata, Malus pumila and Pyrus pyrifolia var. culta (Park et al., 1999). However, records from Buxus microphylla var. koreana are suspect.
Unknown.
The core distributions of the current seven subspecies of M. gaschkewitschii are as follows:
There is a pair in the CMNH from Lanzhou in central Gansu and also a female in the BMNH from the Chin Hills in Burma/Myanmar.
(see above).
Holarctic; eastern Palaearctic region. Pleistocene refuge: Polycentric -- Manchurian, Japanese, Sinopacific, Sinotibetan and Yunnan refugia.
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