Crambid Snout Moth

Description:

Crambidae; Spilomelinae; Glyphodes sp. The description of this moth is a little tricky. In dorsal view, the wings and body of the moth are a pale beige colour and are decorated with mid-brown lines and marks which form a detailed symmetrical pattern. The anterior two thirds of the abdomen are marked in the same style. The posterior third of the abdomen appears to be banded in the mid-brown. The complication in describing this moth is that there are also present on the upper surface of the wings triangular blueish marks on the the pale beige surfaces, which are not always visible, depending on the angle of view. When these blue marks can be seen, they are clearly part of the base colour, running under the mid-brown lines. They resemble brush marks made by a painter. At first, I thought that I had photographed a sickly moth or one which was an abberation of some kind. But right there, in the Crambidae section of https://philepidoptera.wixsite.com/moths..., there is a picture of a Glyphodes sp. that is undeniably the same sp. as mine.

Habitat:

This moth was spotted in our vegetable plot on String Beans (Vigna unguiculata) and Salunay (local name of a wild plant that I have not yet identified). This "Salunay" had sprouted up in the rows of beans and was so entangled, we did not attempt to uproot, or kill it. The moth seemed to like it!

Notes:

Additional note re. the blue "paint brush" marks. These marks sometimes appear black or grey and react to sunlight (or camera flash) in a manner similar to iridescense.