Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata

Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata is a moth of the subfamily Arctiinae. It was described by Alfredo Rei do Régo Barros in 1956. It is found in Venezuela and Trinidad. It is an introduced species in Sri Lanka, as well as on Sabah, Borneo, Palawan and Guam.[1]

Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Erebidae
Subfamily: Arctiinae
Genus: Pareuchaetes
Species:
P. pseudoinsulata
Binomial name
Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata
Régo Barros, 1956

Description

The wings and thorax are uniform pale yellow, the abdomen deep yellow with a dorsal row of black spots.[2] Antennae of male bipectinated. Mid tibia clothed with very long hair. Forewings with both antemedial and postmedial tufts on inner margin.[3]

The larvae feed on the leaves of Chromolaena odorata. Defoliation causes most shoots of host plant to dry up. Continuous defoliation of new sprouts from basal clumps will result in total death of the bushes.[4] The ground colour of the larvae is blackish, with interrupted narrow white stripes.

Since C. odorata is an invasive species, P. pseudoinsulata has been used as a form of biological control.

References
  1. Savela, Markku. "Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros, 1956". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  2. Holloway, Jeremy Daniel. "Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros". The Moths of Borneo. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  3. Hampson, G. F. (1894). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma: Moths Volume II. Taylor and Francis – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  4. Rearing, release and monitoring of Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Archived 2011-04-09 at the Wayback Machine


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