Erebus hieroglyphica

Erebus hieroglyphica
from Sri Lanka
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Genus:	Erebus
Species:	E. hieroglyphica
Binomial name
Erebus hieroglyphica (Drury, 1773)
Synonyms
Phalaena hieroglyphicus Drury, 1773 Erebus hieroglyphicus Argiva celebensis Hopffer, 1874 Phalaena hermonia Cramer, 1777 Bocana lunaris Walker, 1865 Phalaena mygdonia Cramer, 1777 Nyctipao tenebratus Prout, 1919 Noctua ulula Fabricius, 1775

Erebus hieroglyphica is a moth of the Erebidae family. It is found from the Oriental tropical countries such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Japan, China (including Hong Kong), Taiwan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, and Korea. The habitat consist of lowland forests.

Description

Wingspan is about 88mm. Adults exhibit strong sexual dimorphism. In both sexes there is usually a pale cream to white bar at the costa on the forewings, with a small pale patch in the centre of the wing. They have been reported feeding on the juices of tropical fruit.

Male with vein 3 running to the functional apex of hindwing. The costal fold obsolete, and the grandular patch small. Male with veins 4 to 8 of hindwings moderately developed in the aborted costal area. Body rich blackish brown. Forewings with a whorl-shaped black mark beyond end of cell, bilobed and expanding at head, where it is outlined with blue. An oblique yellow bar runs from costa near apex, and very few show reaching outer margin.

Female has brown body with black stria. Forewings with white oblique bar. Both wings with traces of postmedial band of whitish marks and white spot on forewing above vein 3.