Ipomoea ''Ipomoea'' () is the largest genus in the plant family Convolvulaceae, with over 600 species. It is a large and diverse group, with common names including morning glory, water convolvulus or water spinach, sweet potato, bindweed, moonfl ...

morning glories Morning glory (also written as morning-glory) is the common name for over 1,000 species of flowering plants in the family Convolvulaceae, whose current taxonomy and systematics are in flux. Morning glory species belong to many genera, some of ...

are used as food plants by the

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. ...

e of a number of Lepidoptera species, including:

Monophagous A generalist species is able to thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions and can make use of a variety of different resources (for example, a heterotroph with a varied diet). A specialist species can thrive only in a narrow range of e ...

Species which feed exclusively on ''Ipomoea'' Bedelliidae * '' Bedellia minor'' * '' Bedellia terenodes'' Bucculatricidae * '' Bucculatrix univoca'' – recorded on

water spinach ''Ipomoea aquatica'', widely known as water spinach, is a semi- aquatic, tropical plant grown as a vegetable for its tender shoots. ''I. aquatica'' is generally believed to have been first domesticated in Southeast Asia. It is widely cultivate ...

(''I. aquatica'') Noctuidae *'' Schinia simplex'' – recorded on bush morning glory (''I. leptophylla'')

Polyphagous

Species which feed on ''Ipomoea'' and other plants

Arctiidae The Arctiinae (formerly called the family Arctiidae) are a large and diverse subfamily of moths with around 11,000 species found all over the world, including 6,000 neotropical species.Scoble, MJ. (1995). ''The Lepidoptera: Form, Function and ...

* '' Hypercompe eridanus'' * ''

Hypercompe icasia ''Hypercompe icasia'' is a moth of the family Erebidae first described by Pieter Cramer in 1777. It is widely distributed in South America and is also found on Martinique, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin, Dominica, St. Kitts, Nevis, St. Thomas an ...

'' Bedelliidae * '' Bedellia orchilella'' (Hawaiian sweet potato leaf miner) – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas''), '' I. tuberculata'', probably others * ''

Bedellia somnulentella ''Bedellia somnulentella'', the sweet potato leaf miner, is a moth in the family Bedelliidae. Description The wingspan is 8–10 mm. The larvae feed on '' Calystegia pubescens'', ''Calystegia sepium'', ''Convolvulus althaeoides'', ''Conv ...

'' (sweet potato leaf miner) – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas''), common morning glory ('' I. purpurea''), possibly others Bucculatricidae * '' Bucculatrix ruficoma'' – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas'')

Crambidae The Crambidae are the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, the nominal subfamily Crambinae (grass moths) taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies includ ...

* ''

Omphisa anastomosalis ''Omphisa anastomosalis'', the sweetpotato vineborer, is a moth of the family Crambidae. It is widespread, with records including the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hawaii, Vietnam, China, Japan, Cambodi ...

'' (sweet potato vine borer) – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas''), probably others

Geometridae The geometer moths are moths belonging to the family Geometridae of the insect order Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies. Their scientific name derives from the Ancient Greek ''geo'' γεω (derivative form of or "the earth"), and ''metro ...

* ''

Gymnoscelis rufifasciata The double-striped pug (''Gymnoscelis rufifasciata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is a widespread and common species, being found throughout the Palearctic region, including the Near East and North Africa. This is a variable specie ...

'' (double-striped pug) – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas''), probably others

Hepialidae The Hepialidae are a family of insects in the lepidopteran order. Moths of this family are often referred to as swift moths or ghost moths. Taxonomy and systematics The Hepialidae constitute by far the most diverse group of the infraorder Exop ...

* ''

Trichophassus giganteus ''Trichophassus'' is a monotypic moth genus of the family Hepialidae. The only described species is ''Trichophassus giganteus'' which is endemic to Brazil. The larva of this species has been recorded feeding on '' Adenocalymma'', ''Eucalyptus'', ...

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a red ...

* ''

Danaus chrysippus ''Danaus chrysippus'', also known as the plain tiger, African queen, or African monarch, is a medium-sized butterfly widespread in Asia, Australia and Africa. It belongs to the Danainae subfamily of the brush-footed butterfly family Nymphalidae. ...

'' (plain tiger) – recorded on moon vine ('' I. alba''), '' I. bona-nox'', possibly others * '' Junonia orithya'' (blue pansy) – recorded on sweet potato (''I. batatas''), possibly others Noctuidae *'' Spodoptera'' spp. (armyworms) – recorded on little violet morning glory ('' I. cordatotriloba''), ivy-leaved morning glory ('' I. hederacea'') and others

External links

* {{Ipomoea

+Lepidoptera