Lymantria ninayi

Lymantria ninayi
Female
Male
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lymantriidae
Genus: Lymantria
Species: L. ninayi
Binomial name
Lymantria ninayi
Bethune-Baker, 1910

Lymantria ninayi is a species of moth of the Lymantriidae family. It is found in Papua New Guinea.

It is a pest insect and can cause major damage to forests. In particular, Pinus species, which are introduced in Papua New Guinea, can be completely defoliated by the larvae. Plantations on New Guinea suffer from outbreaks once every seven to nine years.

The native food plants of the larvae are Casuarina species. The larvae feed on the needles. Young larvae feed on young needles, while older larvae feed on older needles. They only consume a small portion of a needle, the rest drops to the ground. Pupation takes place in the needles on the tree or on the ground in a cocoon made of tied up needles.

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