Eudocima phalonia
| Eudocima phalonia | ||||||||||||
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Eudocima phalonia |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Eudocima phalonia | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1763) |
Eudocima phalonia ( synonym Eudocima fullonia ( Clerck , 1764)) is a butterfly ( moth ) from the family of owls (Noctuidae) that occursin tropical areas.
features
butterfly
The wingspan of the moth is 75 to 100 millimeters.
There is a clear sexual dimorphism between the sexes . While the slightly larger females show a marbled forewing top in different shades of brown, the males have an almost unmarked dark brown or light reddish brown to ocher color. In addition, a whitish arrow-shaped spot in the discal region only stands out in the females . In contrast, the males show a very thin light brown stripe that runs from the apex to the middle of the inner edge . A tooth-shaped protuberance can be seen on the inner edge near the basal region in both sexes. The upper side of the hind wing has a strong yellow to orange-yellow color in both sexes and is bordered by a wide black band. A large comma-shaped spot stands out above the anal angle . On the undersides of the wings, which are almost identical in color in both sexes, the drawings of the upper sides of the hind wings shine through in a weakened form. The undersides of the forewings show a yellowish band bordered by wide black-brown bands on a light brown background. The short palpi are colored blue at the top. The thorax is provided with thick tufts of hair. The suction nozzle is formed into a skeleton and barbed proboscis with which the shell can be pierced by fruits. In English usage, the species is therefore referred to as the Common Fruit-piercing Moth (common fruit piercing night butterfly).
Many Eudochima species are difficult to distinguish from one another on the basis of external characteristics. A reliable determination can be made by means of a genital morphological examination.
Caterpillar, pupa
Adult caterpillars have a dark brown to black basic color. They are marked with white spots and sometimes additional orange spots on either side of each segment. They also have two white pinned black eye spots on each side of the second and third body segments. When in danger, they take a defensive stance. In doing so, they bend their heads, present the eye spots clearly and at the same time lift the rearmost segments. The doll has a shiny red-brown color, a length of about 30 millimeters and is protected between leaves in a cocoon made of silk threads .
distribution and habitat
The range of Eudocima phalonia includes tropical areas in Africa south of the Sahara , in southeast Asia and in Australia. The species does not occur on the American continent, but has been found in Hawaii . It is sometimes harmful in fruit-growing areas.
Way of life
The nocturnal moths can be found all year round, mainly in March, July and October. You visit artificial light sources at night . The butterflies feed on the juice of fruits that they pierce with their skeletonized proboscis. The eggs are laid in large mirrors on the underside of the leaves of the food plant. The caterpillars feed, among other things, on the leaves of the coral trees ( Erythrina ), which belong to the legumes (Fabaceae ), as well as on the lunar seed family (Menispermaceae).
Agricultural pest
If butterfly species appear as agar pests , their caterpillars are responsible for the damage in the majority of cases. In the present case, however, the adults are the cause of the damage in fruit and vegetable growing areas. The fruits they have pierced for food consumption are no longer suitable for sale, as juice leaks and bacteria also lodge on the lesions . Thus, the fruit must be disposed of by the fruit grower as unsaleable. When it comes to the food sources visited, the moths are not very picky and infestations have been reported on the fruits of a variety of different species, including citrus fruits, bananas, peaches, plums, tomatoes, apples, pears, figs, aubergines and grapes. Further infestation was also found on mango, kiwi, pineapple, melon, lychee , guava , papaya , persimmon , carambola and longan . In experiments on Sarawak has been found that after treatment of fruits with agriculturally used mineral oil ( Horticultural Mineral Oil ) and with the insecticides zählendem dimethoate a significant protection was achieved. Other considerations for reducing pests involved protecting the fruit trees with nets, but this did not make sense because of the size of the orchards. The destruction of the pre-imaginal stages could not be represented on a large scale either, since the food plants are mostly scattered and are located at a considerable distance from the plantations. Another consideration was attracting the moths with light traps . Oh, this measure was rejected because the necessary infrastructure is usually not available and the costs for the electrical energy are out of proportion to the success. Collecting the butterflies while sucking with hand nets only brings local success. The use of pheromone traps and the use of parasites to combat the first populations are further options that will have to be investigated intensively in the future .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Caterpillars in Australia
- ↑ a b flight time and occurrence
- ↑ a b Information from Mississippi State University
- Jump up ↑ Rangaswamy Muniappan, B. Merle Shepard, Gerald R. Carner & Peter Aun-Chuan Ooi: Arthropod Pests of Horticultural Crops in Tropical Asia , CAB International, 2012, ISBN 978-1-84593-951-9
- ↑ Stephen Chan Teck Leong & Roland Kueh Jui Heng: Seasonal Abundance and Suppression of Fruit-Piercing Moth Eudocima phalonia (L.) in a Citrus Orchard in Sarawak , The Scientific World Journal 11 (1), 2011, doi : 10.1100 / 2011 / 753484
- ↑ Asha Chhagan & C. McKenna: Fruit-piercing moth, Eudocima phalonia (Linneaus 1763) review: biology, ecology and pest management with reference to kiwifruit , The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Limited, No. BS 1847, 2019, pp. 1-54
Web links
- Lepiforum e. V. - photos
- africanmoths - African Moths
- mothsofborneo.com - Moths of Borneo
- funet.fi - dissemination