Psalis pennatula, the yellow hairy caterpillar, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1793.[1] It is found in India, Sri Lanka,[2] Thailand,[3] Australia and Java.[4]
| Psalis pennatula | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Superfamily: | Noctuoidea |
| Family: | Erebidae |
| Genus: | Psalis |
| Species: | P. pennatula
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| Binomial name | |
| Psalis pennatula (Fabricius, 1793)
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| Synonyms | |
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Description
editIts wingspan is about 40 mm. The forewings are coloured in two shades of brown divided by a line from the base to the wingtip. The anterior part is pale brown, whereas the posterior part is darker brown. Hindwings off white. Eggs are yellow and pubescent. The caterpillar is hairy with a broad black line along the back. There are four brown tussocks. Black line is bordered by yellow patches on each segment and each yellow patch having a red line through it. Two red glands found on the back of the two abdominal segments. There are two black hair-pencils found on the prothorax.[5]
Biology
editThe caterpillar is known to feed on many agriculturally important crops such as Oryza sativa,[6] Sorghum bicolor, Saccharum officinarum, Imperata cylindrica, Camellia sinensis, Persea bombycina, Shorea robusta, Vigna mungo,[7] Solanum melongena, Tectona grandis, Triticum aestivum, Cucumis sativus, Eleusine coracana, Hyparrhenia, Cyperus and Pennisetum purpureum.[8]
It is a minor pest on paddy, where the attack by caterpillar can result defoliation. Damage can be minimized by using light traps or using chlorpyrifos.[9] A braconid parasitoid wasp Microplitis pennatula is known to induces rapid behavioral changes in the parasitized host, which is the caterpillar of P. pennatula.[10]
References
edit- ^ "Species Details: Psalis pennatula Fabricius, 1793". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ Koçak, Ahmet Ömer; Kemal, Muhabbet (20 February 2012). "Preliminary list of the Lepidoptera of Sri Lanka". Cesa News (79). Centre for Entomological Studies Ankara: 1–57 – via Academia.
- ^ "Psalis pennatula (Fabricius, 1793) 台灣生物多樣性資訊入口網". Taiwan Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ Savela, Markku. "Psalis pennatula (Fabricius, 1793)". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
- ^ Herbison-Evans, Don & Crossley, Stella (27 May 2017). "Psalis pennatula (Fabricius, 1793)". Australian Caterpillars and their Butterflies and Moths. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
- ^ "Tussock caterpillar, Psalis pennatula (Fabricius) feeding on rice at Delhi". CABI. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ "Yellow hairy caterpillar". ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ "Psalis pennatula hosts". Lepidoptera HOSTS. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ "Crop Protection: Pest of paddy". TNAU. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ Mohan, P; Sinu, PA (2017). "Parasitoid wasp usurps its host to guard its pupa against hyperparasitoids and induces rapid behavioral changes in the parasitized host". PLOS ONE. 12 (6): e0178108. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1278108M. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178108. PMC 5479522. PMID 28636632.