''Bombyx'' is the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of true silk moths or mulberry silk moths of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Bombycidae The Bombycidae are a family of moths. The best-known species is ''Bombyx mori'' (Linnaeus) or silkworm, native to northern China and domesticated for millennia. Another well-known species is ''Bombyx mandarina'', also native to Asia. Taxonomy Th ...

, also known as silkworms, which are the larvae or caterpillars of silk moths. The genus was erected as a subgenus by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

in his 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' (1758).

Species

* ''

Bombyx horsfieldi ''Bombyx horsfieldi'' is a moth in the family Bombycidae. It was described by Frederic Moore in 1860. It is found in Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and Sout ...

'' (Moore, 1860) * ''

Bombyx huttoni ''Bombyx huttoni'', or the chocolate-tipped silk moth, is a moth belonging to the silk moth family, Bombycidae. It is closely related to the domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''). It was described by John O. Westwood in 1847. Westwood named th ...

'' Westwood, 1847 * ''

Bombyx incomposita ''Bombyx incomposita'' is a moth in the family Bombycidae. It was described by van Eecke in 1929. It is found on Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest ...

'' van Eecke, 1929 * ''

Bombyx lemeepauli ''Bombyx lemeepauli'' is a species of Bombycidae in the genus ''Bombyx''. It was described by Albert Marie Victor Lemée in 1950. It is found in Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam ...

'' Lemée, 1950 * ''

Bombyx mandarina ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth, is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mori'', the domesticated silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. Unlike the domesticated ...

'' (Moore, 1872) – wild silk moth * ''

Bombyx mori The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) – domestic silk moth * ''

Bombyx rotundapex ''Bombyx rotundapex'' is a moth of the family Bombycidae. It is found in Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Oce ...

'' Miyata & Kishida, 1990 * ''

Bombyx shini ''Bombyx'' is the genus of true silk moths or mulberry silk moths of the family Bombycidae, also known as silkworms, which are the larvae or caterpillars of silk moths. The genus was erected as a subgenus by Carl Linnaeus in his 10th edition of ...

'' Park and Sohn, 2002

Hybrids

Two instances of semi-natural hybridisation are known within this genus: * ''Bombyx'' hybrid, a hybrid between a male ''B. mandarina'' and a female ''B. mori'' * ''Bombyx'' second hybrid, a hybrid between a male ''B. mori'' and a female ''B. mandarina''

Food

The

caterpillars Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Symp ...

feed on

Moraceae The Moraceae — often called the mulberry family or fig family — are a family of flowering plants comprising about 38 genera and over 1100 species. Most are widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, less so in temperate climates; however ...

, especially on mulberries ('' Morus'' species). Domestic silkworms may be fed artificial mulberry chow.

References

Bombycidae Moth genera {{Bombycidae-stub