Eudocima phalonia

{{Short description|Species of moth}} {{Speciesbox | name = Common fruit-piercing moth | image = EudocimaPhalonia.jpg | image_caption = Male in India | taxon = Eudocima phalonia | authority = (Linnaeus, 1763) | synonyms = *''Othreis fullonica'' *''Eudocima fullonia'' (Clerck, 1764) *''Phalaena phalonia'' Linnaeus, 1763 *''Phalaena fullonia'' Clerck, 1764 *''Phalaena fullonica'' Linnaeus, 1767 *''Noctua dioscoreae'' Fabricius, 1775 *''Phalaena pomona'' Cramer, 1776 *''Ophideres princeps'' Boisduval, 1832 *''Ophideres obliterans'' Walker, 1858 }} '''''Eudocima phalonia''''', the '''common fruit-piercing moth''', is a fruit piercing moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1763 ''Centuria Insectorum''. It is found in large parts of the tropics, mainly in Asia, Africa and Australia but introduced into other areas such as Hawaii, New Zealand and the Society Islands. It is one of major fruit pests in the world.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nbair.res.in/insectpests/Eudocima-phalonia.php | title=''Eudocima phalonia'' (Linnaeus) |website=Insects in Indian Agroecosystems | publisher=ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources | accessdate=18 August 2016}}</ref>

==Description== The wingspan is about 80–94 mm in male. Palpi with third joint long and spatulate at extremity. Forewings with non-crenulate cilia in male, crenulate in female. Head and thorax reddish brown with plum-color suffusion. Abdomen orange. Forewings reddish brown, usually with a greenish tinge and irrorated with dark specks. An oblique antemedial line present, which is generally dark and indistinct but sometimes pale and prominent. Reniform indistinct. A curve postmedial line found, which is almost always met by an oblique streak from apex. Hindwings orange, with a large black lunule beyond lower angle of cell. There is a marginal black band with cilia pale spots runs from costa to vein 2. Ventral side of forewings with orange postmedial band.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hampson |first=G. F. |author-link=George Hampson |date=1894 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/180400#page/5/mode/1up |title=The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma: Moths Volume II |volume=Moths - II |publisher=Taylor and Francis |via=Biodiversity Heritage Library}}</ref>

The wingspan is about 90–110 mm in female. Female has much more variegated and dark reddish brown striated forewings. Reniform dark and sending a spur along median nervure to below the orbicular speck. There is a triangular white mark usually present on the postmedial line below vein 3.<ref name="Eudocimaphalonia ">{{cite web | url=http://www.mothsofborneo.com/part-15-16/calpini/calpini_4_7.php | title=''Eudocima'' [''Othreis''] ''phalonia'' Linnaeus [''fullonia'' Clerck] | website=The Moths of Borneo | accessdate=18 August 2016}}</ref>

Larva has dilated 11th somite and surrounded by a tubercle. Body purplish brown, where dorsum brown from 6th to 11th somites. Legs red and spiracular scarlet patches largest posteriorly and with some irregular white markings round them, on somite 9 in the form of an oblique white bar. There is a yellow sub-basal mark found on 4th somite. Fifth and sixth somites have black ocelli with yellow iris and white pupils. Two yellow patches can be seen on 11th somite.<ref name="Eudocimaphalonia " />

The adult is considered an agricultural pest, causing damage to many fruit crops by piercing it with its strong proboscis in order to suck the juice. Attempts have been made to control them using baits for the adults,<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Crop Protection|volume =26|issue =4|year= 2007| pages= 664–667 |title=Attraction of fruit-piercing moth ''Eudocima phalonia'' (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) to different fruit baits|author1=Reddy, G.V.P. |author2=Cruz, Z.T. |author3=Muniappan, R. |doi=10.1016/j.cropro.2006.06.004|bibcode =2007CrPro..26..664R}}</ref> egg parasites and larval parasitoids.<ref>{{cite book|chapter=Biological control of the fruit piercing moth, ''Othreis fullonia'' (Clerck) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in the Pacific|author=Sands, D.P.A.|author2=Liebregts, W.J.M.M.|author3=Broe, R.J.|title=Biological Control of Exotic Pests in the Pacific, XIX International Congress of Entomology, June 1992, Beijing|year=1992}}</ref>

==Ecology== The larvae feed mainly on vines belonging to the Menispermaceae but have also adapted to species of ''Erythrina''<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Reddy GVP |author2=Cruz ZT |author3=Bamba J |author4=R Muniappan |title= Host adaptation of the fruit piercing moth, ''Eudocima fullonia''|journal= Physiological Entomology|volume=30|issue=4|pages=398–401|year=2005|doi=10.1111/j.1365-3032.2005.00465.x|s2cid=86538687 }}</ref> and are known to feed on ''Erythrina crista-galli'', ''Erythrina fusca'', ''Erythrina variegata'', ''Carronia multisepala'', ''Hypserpa decumbens'', ''Legnephora moorei'', ''Pleogyne australis'', ''Sarcopetalum harveyanum'', ''Stephania aculeata'', ''Stephania forsteri'', ''Stephania japonica'' and ''Tinospora smilacina''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Herbison-Evans |first1=Don |last2=Crossley |first2=Stella |name-list-style=amp |date=10 April 2016 |url=http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/calp/fullonia.html |title=''Eudocima fullonia'' (Clerck, [1874]) Fruit Piercing Moth |website=Australian Caterpillars and their Butterflies and Moths |accessdate=15 January 2019}}</ref>

Infected plant parts are mostly the fruits. Fruits show sap ooze out and internal feeding of the caterpillar. Fruits may show premature drop. Adults penetrate the skin or rind with a strong, barbed proboscis. Damaged parts become spongy and with many lesions.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.plantwise.org/KnowledgeBank/Datasheet.aspx?dsid=23012 | title=Fruit-piercing moth (''Eudocima fullonia'') | publisher=Plantwise Technical Factsheet | accessdate=18 August 2016}}</ref>

==Gallery== <gallery> File:OthreisFullonica13-1-m.jpg|Male File:OthreisFullonica13-1-f.jpg|Female File:Eudocima phalonia female dorsal.jpg|Female, dorsal view File:Eudocima phalonia female ventral.jpg|Female, ventral view File:Eudocima phalonia male dorsal.jpg|Male, dorsal view File:Eudocima phalonia male ventral.jpg|Male, ventral view File:OthreisFullonica12-1-l.jpg|Larva File:OthreisFullonica12-1-p.jpg|Pupa File:Eudocima_phalonia_Male.jpg|Male, Goa </gallery>

==References== {{Reflist|2}} 9. DAR, A. A., & JAMAL, K. (2021). Moth (Insecta: Lepidoptera) fauna of Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, India. Notulae Scientia Biologicae, 13(2), 10906. https://doi.org/10.15835/nsb13210906

==External links== *[http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0261219406001712 Attraction of fruit-piercing moth ''Eudocima phalonia'' (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) to different fruit baits] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090923023607/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/pest_detection/downloads/pra/efulloniapra.pdf USDA information] *[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3236462/ Seasonal population of the fruit-piercing moths ''Eudocima'' spp.] *[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27394873 An overlooked sibling of the fruit-piercing moth ''Eudocima phalonia'']

phalonia Category:Moths of Africa Category:Moths of Asia Category:Moths of Oceania Category:Moths of Australia Category:Moths of Japan Category:Moths of Madagascar Category:Moths of Réunion Category:Lepidoptera of Cameroon Category:Lepidoptera of Uganda Category:Moths of the Comoros Category:Insects of Southeast Asia Category:Insects of Eritrea Category:Lepidoptera of Rwanda Category:Moths of São Tomé and Príncipe Category:Moths described in 1763 Category:Animal taxa named by Carl Linnaeus