Trilocha varians

Trilocha varians
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Bombycidae
Genus:	Trilocha
Species:	T. varians
Binomial name
Trilocha varians (F. Walker, 1855)
Synonyms
Naprepa varians Walker, 1855 Chazena velata Walker, 1869

Trilocha varians is a moth in the Bombycidae family. It is widespread in the Oriental Region from India, Sri Lanka, China, extending to Taiwan, the Philippines, Sulawesi and Java.^[1]

Description

The wingspan is 25–27 mm.^[2] There are two color varieties in the species, albicollis is the greyish form and varians is the reddish form.

Head, thorax and abdomen of males are pale or dark reddish brown in color. Fore wings are pale reddish brown or greyish in color, with two antemedial curved waved lines. There is a dark patch on the outer margin below the apex. The costal edge is paler with cilia being dark reddish brown colored. Hind wings are pale or dark reddish brown or with greyish with outer reddish brown area. The postmedial line is indistinct. Ventral surface is paler with some dark red stripes.^[3]

Larvae is elongate and brown in color with dark dots and a lateral row of black dots. There is a slight protuberance on each of the thoracic and 5th, 8th somites. A long slender horn can be seen on anal somite. The larvae feed on Streblus and Ficus species. Silken cocoon is oval and pale colored.^[4] Pupation takes place in a boat-shaped cocoon, closely woven with white or yellow rather-papery silk. The pupa is pale yellow.

Subspecies

• Trilocha varians varians
• Trilocha varians lineata Dierl, 1978 (Philippines)

References

1. The Moths of Borneo
2. gaga.biodiv.tw
3. Hampson G. F. (1892). "The Fauna Of British India Including Ceylon And Burma Moths Vol-i". Digital Library of India. p. 558. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
4. Immature Stages of Four Bombycidae Species of Taiwan