Attacus taprobanis

Attacus taprobanis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Saturniidae
Genus: Attacus
Species: A. taprobanis
Binomial name
Attacus taprobanis
Moore, 1882[1]

Attacus taprobanis is a moth of Saturniidae family. It is native to Southern India and Sri Lanka, only species in the genus Attacus on the Asian mainland. This species is very similar in morphology to much wider distributed Attacus atlas. Therefore once the species was considered as a subspecies of A. atlas.

Description

Attacus taprobanis is much darker in color than A. atlas. The hyaline spots are small and narrow. The hyaline streak of the forewing is absent. The wingspan about 170-180 mm, probably the second largest after A. atlas. In males, forewings are maroon with sickle-shaped, which is a smaller than females. The wings are fairly dark reddish brown lateral band is clearly pink but with little white vanes transparent stains are narrowly triangular in the male, large and teardrop-shaped in females, the forewings, there is also a fairly narrow, tiny spot in front of the store.[2]

Ecology

The larvae feed on various kinds of bushes and trees. Adult moths do not take foods and survive on fat they have stored from the larval period. The females sitting most calm and emit pheromones, that the active males can notice from a distance. [3]

References

  1. ↑ "Attacus taprobanis, Moore, 1882-1883". gbif.org. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  2. ↑ 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.
  3. ↑ "Atlas Moth (Attacus taprobanis)". Biodiversity of Sri Lanka. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
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