SUBFAMILY ARIOLICINI
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Lasiolopha saturata Walker
Areola saturata Walker, 1865, List Specimens lepid. Insects Colln Br. Mus., 33: 774.
Paracrama olivacea Hampson, 1893, Illust. typical Specimens lepid. Heterocera Colln Br. Mus., 9: 87.
Lasiolopha saturata Walker; Kobes, 1997: 32.

 


Lasiolopha saturata


Diagnosis.
The dark green forewings with finely paler fasciation and paler green basal and broadly apical zones are diagnostic. The hindwings are dark grey-brown.

Geographical range. Oriental tropics to New Guinea and Queensland.

Habitat preference. The species is rare but occurs in forests from the lowlands to about 1800m.

Biology. Bell (MS) described the life history in India. The larva has segments T1-3 swollen, berry-like, with abdominal segments decreasing in width posteriorly. All prolegs are fully developed. Primary setae only are present, short, erect, dark, sharp. The head is light orange, marked with black. The body is dark grass green above a broad whitish subspiracular band that extends into the spiracular region, where it is tinged yellow, to be limited by a supraspiracular white line. Above this there are indistinct whitish lateral and dorsolateral lines over the abdominal segments, and whitish edging to a dark, pulsating dorsal line. All lines are indistinct on the thoracic tumidity. The anterior of A1 and all of A10 are tinged pink.

The pupa is enclosed in a cocoon woven at the base of the midrib on a leaf on the upperside and extending along it. The cocoon is a long semiovoid, the front end slightly rounded, produced into a very long dorsal process projecting at 45 degrees over the perpendicular front. The pupa is ovoid with segment A10 broadly truncated and conical.

The larva sits on the leaf upperside along the midrib in the ‘cocoon’ position, or rests on stems or twigs. It eats only young, fresh, tender leaves.

The host-plant is Memecylon (Melastomataceae).

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