Pantydia metaspila (Walker, 1858)
 (one synonym : Hypaetra sordida Butler, 1886)
EREBINAE,   EREBIDAE,   NOCTUOIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley


(Photo: courtesy of Graeme Cocks, Townsville, Queensland)

This caterpillar is mottled brown and has reduced prolegs so that it moves in a looper fashion. It has been reported to feed on:

  • White Beech ( Gmelina, VERBENACEAE ),
  • Soybeans ( Glycine max, FABACEAE ), and
  • Beans ( Vigna FABACEAE ).


    (Photo: courtesy of Graeme Cocks, Townsville, Queensland)

    The adult moths have brown forewings, each with a thin pale submarginal line containing white dots, and a variable black mark near the basal end of the hind margin. The hindwings are plain pale brown. The wingspan is about 3 cms.

    The moths have been found in:

  • Fiji,
  • Hong Kong,
  • India,
  • Japan,
  • Taiwan,

    as well as

  • Queensland.

    Further reading :

    Buck Richardson,
    Tropical Queensland Wildlife from Dusk to Dawn Science and Art,
    LeapFrogOz, Kuranda, 2015, p. 148.

    Francis Walker,
    Noctuidae,
    List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum,
    Part 13 (1858), p. 1032, No. 12.

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    (updated 30 November 2012, 10 February 2020)