cocoon in folded leaves
(Photo: courtesy of Helen Cross, Kambah, Australian Capital Territory)

The caterpillar pupates in a cocoon made by joining food plant leaves together with silk.

Male
(Photo: courtesy of Donald Hobern, Black Mountain, Australian Capital Territory)

The adult male and female moths are quite different in appearance. The male moth has forewings with a bold pattern of light and dark brown. The hindwings are dark brown with a triangular orange patch on the margin. The male has a wingspan of about 4 cms.

Female
(Photo: courtesy of Aaron Clausen, Kaleen, Australian Capital Territory)

The female is off-white, with a subterminal arc of black-edged red dots on each forewing. In dead specimens, the red fades to grey. The female has a wingspan of about 6 cms.

Male
(Photo: courtesy of Peter Marriott, Moths of Victoria - Part 1)

The species is found in eastern Australia, including:

Female
(Specimen: courtesy of the Macleay Museum, University of Sydney)

Further reading :

Ian F.B. Common,
Moths of Australia,
Melbourne University Press, 1990, Pls. 28.1, 28.2, p. 390.

Peter Marriott,
Moths of Victoria - Part 1,
Silk Moths and Allies - BOMBYCOIDEA,
Entomological Society of Victoria, 2008, pp. 14-15.

Francis Walker,
Lepidoptera Heterocera,
List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum,
Part 3 (1855), pp. 761-2, No. 1.

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(updated 6 April 2013, 13 October 2019, 15 October 2020, 4 January 2022)