Oenospila flavifusata Walker

Thalera flavifusata Walker, 1861, List Specimens lepid. Insects Colln Br. Mus. 22: 596.

Thalassodes sinuata Moore, 1867, Proc. zool. Soc. Lond., 1867: 637.

Diagnosis

The white costa and dark dentate fasciae are diagnostic. Albinospila floresaria Walker is similar in appearance but with white fasciae.

The next two species are distinguished by a dark triangle where the hindwing postmedial meets the dorsum: some of the Australasian taxa also have this feature.

Taxonomic Notes

This species would not appear to occur east of Sundaland.

Taxa attributed to it from Sulawesi and the Australasian tropics have distinct male genitalia and should be regarded as good species: O. flavilinea Warren stat. rev. (Queensland); O. rufinotata Warren stat. rev. (New Guinea, Sulawesi); O. stellata Warren stat. rev. (= perlineata Warren; islands S.E. of New Guinea to Solomons); O. moniliata Warren stat. rev. (Solomons).

Geographical range

Oriental tropics to Sundaland.

Habitat preference

The species is infrequent in lowland forest, including heath forest, and also softwood plantations (Chey, 1994).

Biology

The larva has been described by Moore (1847) and Bell (MS), illustrated by the former.

It is yellow, with a dorsal, slender, red double line, the middle segments with narrow black loops on either side of the double line.

The build is slender, the head apically bifid.

Bell referred to the dark dorsal and subdorsal markings as being on slight ridges.

The larva feeds on young foliage.

Pupation is in a cell between two leaves spun together and perforated.

Host-plants recorded by these authors, Browne (1968), Kuroko & Lewvanich (1993), Zhang (1994) and in unpublished IIE records are: Anacardium (Anacardiaceae); Barringtonia (Lecythidaceae); Memecylon (Melastomataceae); Eugenia, Syzygium (Myrtaceae); Nephelium (Sapindaceae); Chrysophyllum (Sapotaceae).

Genitalia: