Lantana Defoliator Moth

Description:

Brown moth, almost 2cm in body length. Hypena laceratalis Walker, 1859, of family Noctuidae, subfamily Hypeninae, called the Lantana Defoliator. It is native to Africa (where it is known from Kenya, Socotra, Madagascar, Mascarenes) to Yemen and India, but was deliberately introduced to Australia (where it now known from northern Queensland to Kempsey in New South Wales) via Hawaii in 1965 to control the weed Lantana camara. The larvae feed on Lantana camara. They feed on the undersides of leaves, forming clear windows and skeletonising the leaves. Pupation occurs in the soil. Development from egg to adult takes about 28 days. Adults live for about two weeks.

Habitat:

Spotted on the ceiling of the garage.

Notes:

Reference: Matching image - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sachingurul.... http://www.ccs-hk.org/DM/butterfly/Noctu.... http://www.ccs-hk.org/DM/butterfly/Noctu.... Philippine Distribution - ftp://ftp.funet.fi/ftp/index/Science/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/noctuoidea/noctuidae/hypeninae/hypena/index.html.