Actias selene
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''Actias selene'', the Indian moon moth or Indian luna moth, is a species of saturniid moth from Asia. It was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1807. This species is popular among amateur entomologists and is often reared from eggs or cocoons that are available from commercial sources. They fly mainly at night.


Distribution

This moth is quite widespread, found from India to Japan and then south into Nepal, Sri Lanka,
Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
, and other islands in eastern Asia. Many subspecies live in Pakistan, Afghanistan, the Philippines, Russia, China,
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
, Sri Lanka, Sumatra and
Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
.


Subspecies

*''Actias selene selene'' (Hübner, 1807) *''Actias selene brevijuxta'' (Nässig & Treadaway, 1997) *''Actias selene eberti'' Rougeot, 1969 (Afghanistan) *''Actias selene taprobanis'' U. Paukstadt & L.H. Paukstadt, 1999 (Sri Lanka)


Hybrid

''Graellsia isabellae'' × ''Actias selene'' is a
hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...
of the Spanish moon moth (''
Graellsia isabellae ''Graellsia isabellae'', the Spanish moon moth, is in the silkmoth family Saturniidae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus ''Graellsia''. The species was first described by Mariano de la Paz Graells y de la Agüera in 1849 and the genu ...
'') and the Indian moon moth.


Adult

Male: Head, thorax, and abdomen white; palpi pink, prothorax with a dark pink band; legs pink. Forewing very pale green, white at base; a dark pink costal fascia, darkest along subcostal vein: an outwardly-oblique pale yellow antemedial line; two inwardly-oblique slightly curved submarginal lines; a pale yellow marginal band; a dark red-brown lunule at end of cell, with a grey line on it, bounding inwardly a round ochreous spot with pinkish centre. Hindwing similar to the forewing; the central portion of the tail pinkish. Female: The outer margin less excised and waved; the yellow markings less developed; the antemedial line of forewing nearer the base, and that on hindwing absent; the tail less pink.


Life cycle

Eggs are 2 mm, coloured white with extensive black and brown mottling. Incubation lasts approximately 12 days and newly hatched larvae are red with a black abdominal saddle. Second-
instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ...
larvae are all red with black heads. It is not until the third instar that larvae take on a green colour. The developing larvae prefer humid conditions.


Larva

Larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. ...
apple green; paired dorsal and lateral yellow spinous tubercles on each somite except the last; dorsal yellow hairs; lateral and ventral black hairs; the pad to anal claspers rufous.


Pupa

Cocoon pale brown and oval.


Images of life cycle

Image:MOON MOTH CATTE HATCHING.jpg, Hatching caterpillars Image:MOON MOTH NEWLY CATTER.jpg, Newly hatched caterpillars Image:Actias selene 2nd 3rd instar sjh 2.JPG, Second-instar larva with third instars in the background Image:Actias selene 5th instar 3 sjh.JPG, Fifth-instar larva Image:Actias selene 5th instar head sjh.JPG, Fifth-instar larva closeup to show head and mouthparts Image:MMCAT DURING LAST MOLTING.jpg, Last moult stage Image:Actias selene prepupa sjh.jpg, Cocoon cut away to show prepupa stage Image:Actias selene adult male sjh.jpg, ''Actias selene'', adult male


Host plants

*''
Liquidambar ''Liquidambar'', commonly called sweetgum (star gum in the UK), gum, redgum, satin-walnut, or American storax, is the only genus in the flowering plant family Altingiaceae and has 15 species. They were formerly often treated in Hamamelidaceae ...
'' (sweetgum) *'' Rhododendron'' *''
Prunus ''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, Cherry, cherries, peaches, Peach#Nectarine, nectarines, apricots, and almonds. Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of Sou ...
'' (including cherry) *''
Malus ''Malus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 30–55 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including the domesticated orchard apple, crab apples, wild apples, and rainberries. The genus is native to the temperate zone ...
'' (including apple) *''
Coriaria ''Coriaria'' is the sole genus in the family Coriariaceae, which was described by Linnaeus in 1753. It includes 14 species of small trees, shrubs and subshrubs, with a widespread but disjunct distribution across warm temperate regions of the w ...
'' *'' Pieris'' (andromeda) *''
Hibiscus ''Hibiscus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. The genus is quite large, comprising several hundred species that are native to warm temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world. Member species ...
'' *''
Salix Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...
'' (willow) *'' Crataegus'' (hawthorn) *'' Photinia'' (red robin) *''
Juglans regia ''Juglans regia'', the Persian walnut, English walnut, Carpathian walnut, Madeira walnut, or especially in Great Britain, common walnut, is an Old World walnut tree species native to the region stretching from the Balkans eastward to the Himala ...
'' (walnut) *''
Musa Musa may refer to: Places * Mūša, a river in Lithuania and Latvia * Musa, Azerbaijan, a village in Yardymli Rayon * Musa, Iran, a village in Ilam Province * Musa, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Iran *Musa, Kerman, Iran * Musa, Bukan, West Azerbaija ...
'' (banana)


References


External links

* http://www.butterflies.be


Videos


Fourth instar eatingFifth instar eatingPart 2Part 3Moth emerging from pupaPart 2Part 3
{{Taxonbar , from=Q135316
Selene In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Selene (; grc-gre, Σελήνη , meaning "Moon"''A Greek–English Lexicon's.v. σελήνη) is the goddess and the personification of the Moon. Also known as Mene, she is traditionally the daughter of ...
Moths described in 1807 Moths of Asia