Hyposidra talaca explained

Hyposidra talaca, the black looper or black inch worm,^[1] is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Francis Walker in 1860. It is found from India to Indochina, Sundaland, Sulawesi, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, the Solomon Islands, Thailand,^[2] Taiwan, New Guinea and Australia, where it has been recorded from Queensland. It is a major defoliating pest in tea plantations.^{[3] [4]}

Description

The wingspan is about 30 mm. Female with outer margin of hindwings hardly crenulate. Male with outer margin of neither wing excised. Antennae pectinated. Hindwings with outer margin angled at vein 4. Body dark olive fuscous, more or less irrorated and suffused with grey. Both wings faint traces of medial and crenulate postmedial lines. The cilia dark. Forewings with traces of antemedial line and more or less distinct sub-apical patch in male. Underside with crenulate postmedial line to both wings.^[5]

Larva is a looper, with body pinkish olive green, irrorated with black, and with dark patches on 4th and 6th somites. Later instars are uniform brown.^[6]

The larvae feed on the foliage of a wide range of plants, including Anacardium, Bombax, Terminalia, Chromolaena, Gynura, Mikania, Cupressus, Aleurites, Aporosa, Bischofia, Breynia, Glochidion, Hevea, Manihot, Ficus, Morus, Psidium, Polygonum, Rubus, Cinchona, Coffea, Mussaenda, Citrus, Euodia, Schleichera, Theobroma, Perilla frutescens, Camellia and Tectona species.^{[7] [8]}

Eggs and caterpillars are largely susceptible for many parasitized hymenopterans, and birds.^[9]

Subspecies

• Hyposidra talaca talaca
• Hyposidra talaca schistacea Warren, 1896
• Hyposidra talaca successaria (Walker, 1860)

External links

• Egg-laying pattern of Hyposidra talaca (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) in Northeastern Indian tea plantations: implications for pest management
• Fitness traits of the tea defoliator, Hyposidra talaca (Walker 1860) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) on natural and artificial diets in relation to gut enzymes and nutritional efficiencies
• Restriction endonuclease fragment analysis of Hyposidra talaca nucleopolyhedrovirus genome
• Morphological diversity, developmental traits and seasonal occurrence of looper pests (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) of tea crop
• In situ mortality of Hyposidra talaca (Geometridae: Lepidoptera) by its nucleopolyhedrovirus and comparison of tea production in untreated and chemical insecticide-treated plots
• Range expansion of Hyposidra talaca (Geometridae: Lepidoptera), a major pest, to Northeastern Indian tea plantations: change of weather and anti-predatory behaviour of the pest as possible causes
• Bio ecology and ecofriendly control of Hyposidra talaca walker Lepidoptera: Geometridae on some multipurpose tree species
• Biology of Hyposidra talaca
• First record of Hyposidra talaca Walker (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) on Perilla frutescens Linn.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Black Inch Worm . Discover Life . 8 September 2016.
2. Web site: Hyposidra talaca (Walker, 1860) . Moths of Northern Thailand . 8 September 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160914104709/http://www.geol.utas.edu.au/thailand/geometrid/hypotala.htm . September 14, 2016.
3. Web site: Hyposidra talaca (Walker) - Tocklai . Tocklai . 8 September 2016.
4. Web site: Hyposidra talaca Walker . ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources . 8 September 2016.
5. Book: Hampson, G. F. . George Hampson . 1895 . The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma . Moths Volume III . Taylor and Francis . Biodiversity Heritage Library.
6. Web site: Herbison-Evans . Don . Crossley . Stella . amp . 6 January 2014 . Hyposidra talaca (Walker, 1860) . Australian Caterpillars and their Butterflies and Moths . 31 July 2018.
7. Web site: Host plants of Hyposidra talaca . The Moths of Borneo . 8 September 2016.
8. Web site: A successful participatory IPM approach against Hyposidra talaca Wlk., a devastating pest on tea . ipmcenters . 8 September 2016.
9. Range expansion of Hyposidra talaca (Geometridae: Lepidoptera), a major pest, to Northeastern Indian tea plantations: Change of weather and anti-predatory behaviour of the pest as possible causes . International Journal of Tropical Insect Science . 31 . 4 . 242–248 . 8 September 2016. 10.1017/S174275841100035X . 2011 . Sinu . Palatty Allesh . Mandal . Picklu . Antony . Binu . 83605507 .