Brahmaea wallichii

Brahmaea wallichii
Subspecies B. w. insulata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Brahmaeidae
Genus:	Brahmaea
Species:	B. wallichii
Binomial name
Brahmaea wallichii Gray, 1831[1]
Synonyms
Bombyx wallichii Gray, 1831 Brahmaea conchifera Butler, 1880[2] Brahmophthalma wallichii

Brahmaea wallichii also known as the owl moth, is a moth from the Brahmaeidae family, the Brahmin moths. It is found in the north of India, Bhutan, Myanmar, China, Taiwan and Japan. The owl moth is nocturnal.^[3] The wingspan is about 160 mm (6.3 in).

Mounted pair

The larvae feed on Fraxinus excelsior, Ligustrum and common lilac. They are able to neutralize plant toxins produced by Ligustrum.^[4]

Etymology

The species is named after the botanist Nathaniel Wallich.

Subspecies

• Brahmaea wallichii wallichii
• Brahmaea wallichii insulata Inoue, 1984 (Taiwan)
• Brahmaea wallichii saifulica de Freina, 1983 (western Himalaya)

References

1. Gray, J.E. (1831): Description of a new species of Bombyx from Nepaul, discovered by Dr. WALLICH. — The Zoological Miscellany (London), 1, 1831: 39. scan
2. Savela, Markku (November 24, 2002). "Brahmaea genus". funet.fi. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
3. Carter, David (2002). Butterflies and Moths (Second ed.). United States: Dorling Kindersley. p. 304. ISBN 0-7894-8983-X.
4. Kotaro Konno, Sachiko Okada and Chikara Hirayama (2001). "Selective secretion of free glycine, a neutralizer against a plant defense chemical, in the digestive juice of the privet moth larvae". Journal of Insect Physiology 47 (12): 1451–1457. doi:10.1016/S0022-1910(01)00135-4.