Endotricha puncticostalis (Walker, 1866)
 (previously known as Rhisina puncticostalis)
ENDOTRICHINAE,   PYRALIDAE,   PYRALOIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley

Endotricha puncticostalis
(Photo: courtesy of Peter T. Bailey, from Pests of Field Crops and Pastures: Identification and Control)

These caterpillars are initially cream or pale pink or green with a dark head. As they mature they acquire four dark warts on each segment and vague dark stripes, and become darker and darker. They live in a web among the detritus at the base of a foodplant. They are minor agricultural pests, feeding on

  • Peanut plants ( Arachis hypogaea, FABACEAE ).

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

    The adult moths of this species are brown, with various dark and pale bands across each wing. The wingspan is about 2 cms.

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

    The species has been found in Australia in

  • Western Australia,
  • Northern Territory,
  • Queensland,
  • New South Wales,
  • Australian Capital Territory,
  • Victoria, and
  • South Australia.

    Endotricha puncticostalis
    underside
    (Photo: courtesy of Graeme Cocks, Townsville, Queensland)

    Further reading

    Peter T. Bailey,
    Pests of Field Crops and Pastures: Identification and Control,
    CSIRO Publishing, 2007, pp. 172, 223, 227-229, 246.

    Francis Walker,
    Catalogue of Lepidoptera Heterocera. Pyralides,
    List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum,
    Part 34 (1866), pp. 1324-1325.

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    (updated 5 July 2012, 3 November 2017, 3 January 2021)