Arthroschista hilaralis

Arthroschista hilaralis (Walker, 1859)
Kadam Defoliator
(one synonym: Margarodes aquosalis)
SPILOMELINI , PYRAUSTINAE , CRAMBIDAE

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

(Photo: courtesy of Buck Richardson, Kuranda, Queensland)

The caterpillars of this species are yellow, with a brown head, black thorax, black tail, and pairs of black spots along the back. The caterpillars are a pest, attacking :

Kadam ( Neolamarckia cadamba, RUBIACEAE ).

(Photo: courtesy of Buck Richardson, Kuranda, Queensland)

The caterpillars abseil down silk threads to the ground to pupate in the ground litter.

(Photo: courtesy of Buck Richardson, Kuranda, Queensland)

The adults are a beautiful green colour, with a brown line along the termen of each fore wing with two adjacent brown dots, and brown dots along the margin of each hind wing, and often along the abdomen. The moths have a wingspan of about 3 cms.

The green wings are blotchy, in contrast to the green Pyralids in the genus Parotis, which have uniformly coloured wings, see for example : Parotis suralis.

The species occurs over south-east Asia, including :

Bengal,

Cambodia,

Indonesia,

Sri Lanka,
as well as in Australia in

Queensland.