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Project Noah Nature School
Achaea janata
A beautiful moth about 2cm in length. With color combination of grey, blue, brown. The 4th picture was taken with a flash. This is Achaea janata (Linnaeus, 1758) (synonym: Phalaena melicarta), the Castor Semi-Looper moth in the family Noctuidae (owlet moths), subfamily Catocalinae. It has a wingspan of about 50mm. It has patterned forewings, and black and white hindwings. The caterpillars, called Croton Caterpillars, are termed 'semi-loopers' due to their mode of locomotion and feed on castor plant (Ricinus communis). As they feed off the castor plant exclusively, they are extremely poisonous and should be avoided. Achaea janata is the most destructive pest of castor in the Philippines. It is found from the Indo-Australian tropics and subtropics, extending south to New Zealand and east through the Pacific archipelagos to Easter Island.
Backyard, spotted inside the dirty kitchen.
Similar spotting from the Philippines: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/784... Reference: http://pk-photography.blogspot.com/2011/... http://www.leapfrogoz.com.au/LeapFrogOz/... http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au... http://www.cabi.org/isc/Default.aspx?sit...
Spotted on Jun 21, 2013
Submitted on Jul 1, 2013
1 Comment
Thanks Noel! :)