SUBFAMILY ACRONICTINAE
View Image Gallery of Subfamily Acronictinae

Acronicta pruinosa Guenee  
Acronycta pruinosa Guenee, 1852, Hist. nat. Insectes, Spec. gen. Lepid., 5:53.
Polio soluta Walker, 1865, List Specimens lepid. Insects Colln Br. Mus., 33: 723.
Acronycta consanguis Butler, 1879,Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (5), 4: 358.
Acronycta albiorbis
Hampson, 1909, Cat. Lepid. Phalaenae Br. Mus., 8: 74, syn. n.
Acronycta crenulata Bethune-Baker, 1906, Novit. Zool,13: 198, syn. n.
Acronicta pruinosa
Guenee; Holloway, 1976: 13; Barlow, 1982: 86.


Acronicta pruinosa


Diagnosis.
This species may be distinguished from the next and Craniophora species by the very reduced black basal and subtornal streaks, and the prominent pale orbicular stigma on the forewing. The postmedial and antemedial are also distinctively pale, edged finely with black.

Taxonomic notes.
There is some variation in the male genitalia. A specimen from Kulu (N.W. Himalaya) has a much shorter aedeagus vesica, narrower valves and longer harpe (slide 14122). The valve in crenulata is somewhat shorter, the harpe more strongly flexed over the basal section (illustrated here; Bornean genitalia featured in Holloway (1976)). The genitalia of albiorbis from Sri Lanka are as in Bornean males but the valve is slightly shorter and narrower.

Geographical range.
Sri Lanka, Himalaya, east to Japan, and Taiwan south to Burma and Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Java (t. loc. of  pruinosa), New Guinea.

Habitat preference.
A single Bornean specimen has been taken, at 1200m (Bundu Tuhan) on G. Kinabalu in a cultivated area with extensive forest remnants nearby.

Biology.
The larva was described by Gardner (1941). It is yellow with black spots. Abdominal segment 1 has a median dorsal rounded protuberance close covered apically with short black hairs. A2-A8 each bear three longitudinal black spots, the posterior one in A8 larger on a raised globular swelling. Primary setae are borne on chalazae except for a multisetose verruca sublaterally on all segments; short fine, white secondary setae are numerous. The head and prothoracic shield are brown.

The host-plant was Elaeagnus (Elaeagnaceae).

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