Sataspes infernalis Westwood

Sesia infernalis Westwood, 1848, Cabinet. Orient. Ent., p. 61.

Sataspes infernalis Westwood; Rothschild & Jordan, 1903: 472.

Diagnosis

The bee-like appearance of this species is unmistakable.

In Sumatra flies the congener S. tagalica Boisduval (Diehl, 1980). This lacks the yellow scaling on the thorax and abdomen, and has more oblique, definite fasciation at the base of the forewing.

The iridescence in tagalica is greenish blue rather than reddish blue.

Geographical range

India, W. China, Burma, Borneo.

Habitat preference

Only two specimens have been noted in Borneo.

One was filmed visiting a flower over a stream in tall secondary forest at Poring near G. Kinabalu.

The other was found dead in a ditch at Seria, Brunei (Harman, 1981).

Biology

Bell & Scott (1937) described all instars of the larva.

Early instars are pale green with the horn black.

The final instar is pale glaucous green, darker on the venter, with six whitish oblique stripes, the one associated with the horn being stronger than the rest.

Some larvae have a diamond shaped pale or reddish brown patch dorsally on A3-4, flanked by larger patches; further small patches may occur just anteriorly to this and on A6. Recorded host-plants (Bell & Scott) are: Albizia, Dalbergia, Lespedeza (Leguminosae).