Careades plana Warren, 1916
(one synonym: Aiteta plinthophora)
CHLOEPHORINAE ,   NOLIDAE

Don Herbison-Evans ( donherbisonevans@yahoo.com )
&
Stella Crossley

Careades plana
(Photo: courtesy of USDA-ARS/CSIRO Australian Biological Control Lab, Indooroopilly, Queensland).

This Caterpillar looks as though it had an arguement with a balloon. The Caterpillar is pale brown with a dark dorsal stripe, and a darker lateral stripe each side, but its first abdominal segment is green, and expanded to be nearly spherical. It also has a brown horn on its tail. It has been found feeding on :

  • Golden Penda ( Xanthostemon chrysanthus, MYRTACEAE ), and
  • Blake Paperbark ( Melaleuca quinquenervia, MYRTACEAE ).

    It pupates in a papery white cocoon on the underside of a leaf of its foodplant.

    Careades plana
    (Photo: courtesy of Invasive Plant Research Laboratory, Fort Lauderdale, Florida).

    The adult moth has brown forewings, each with two dark blotches on the inner margin. The hindwings are pale brown, fading toward the bases.

    The species is found in

  • Queensland.
    The
    species is being studiedas a possible biological control agent for infestations of Melaleuca in Florida.

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    (updated 30 April 2011)