Arcte coerula

Arcte coerula, the ramie moth, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is found from in south-east Asia, including Fiji, India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Japan, New Guinea, Taiwan and Norfolk Island. It has been recently observed in Hawaii, on the island of Maui.[1]

Ramie moth
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Noctuidae
Genus:
Arcte
Species:
A. coerula
Binomial name
Arcte coerula
(Guenée, 1852)
Synonyms
  • Cocytodes coerula Guenée, 1852
  • Arcte coerulea
  • Cocytodes caerulea

Description

Its wingspan is about 84 mm. The mid and hind tibia are spiny. Hindwings of male with long hairy inner margin. Head black and thorax vinous reddish brown. Pectus white. Abdomen bluish fuscous with a white tuft in male below claspers. Forewings with brown suffused with black, except costal area as far as postmedial line and the apical area, and irrorated with a few bluish-white scales. A short almost basal line, two black sub-basal patches, an oblique waved antemedial line present. A black spot in cell and two lunules at end of cell. Traces of a pale waved sub-marginal line can be seen. Hindwings are black with a bright blue patch on disk and a maculate post-medial band and patch near anal angle.[2]

Caterpillar

Larva black. Somites with transverse dorsal white bars each enclosing a black line. Stigmata ochreous, black ridges and with some red color around the, situated on white patches from near the top of each of which springs a white hair. There is an inter-spiracular disconnected white line and a broader spiracular line with a black spot from which springs a white hair below each spiracle. A broad ventral white band present. The 11th somite humped and black above. Extremity orange above spotted with black. Head and somites are covered with long white hairs.[3]

The larvae feed on Boehmeria nipononivea (ramie) and Boehmeria australis.[4] In Hawaii, the larvae have been observed feeding on native Urticaceae, such as Pipturus albidus (māmaki) and Boehmeria grandis (‘akolea), food sources for the native Kamehameha butterfly.[5]

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References
  1. https://www.civilbeat.org/2019/06/spitting-caterpillars-from-asia-are-the-latest-threat-to-native-insects-on-maui
  2. Hampson, G. F. (1894). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma: Moths Volume II. Taylor and Francis – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  3. Herbison-Evans, Don & Crossley, Stella (10 April 2015). "Arcte coerula (Guenée, 1852) Ramie Moth". Australian Caterpillars and their Butterflies and Moths. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  4. "此為 Arcte coerula". Taiwan Moth Information Center. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  5. https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/blog/2019/06/04/nr19-107/
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