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Silkworm
The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically important insect, being a primary producer of silk. A silkworm's preferred food are white mulberry leaves, though they may eat other mulberry species and even the osage orange. Domestic silk moths are entirely dependent on humans for reproduction, as a result of millennia of selective breeding. Wild silk moths (other species of ''Bombyx'') are not as commercially viable in the production of silk. Sericulture, the practice of breeding silkworms for the production of raw silk, has been under way for at least 5,000 years in China, whence it spread to India, Korea, Nepal, Japan, and the West. The domestic silk moth was domesticated from the wild silk moth '' Bombyx mandarina'', which has a range from northern India to northern China, Korea, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm '' Bombyx mori'' reared in captivity ( sericulture). The shimmering appearance of silk is due to the triangular prism-like structure of the silk fibre, which allows silk cloth to refract incoming light at different angles, thus producing different colors. Silk is produced by several insects; but, generally, only the silk of moth caterpillars has been used for textile manufacturing. There has been some research into other types of silk, which differ at the molecular level. Silk is mainly produced by the larvae of insects undergoing complete metamorphosis, but some insects, such as webspinners and raspy crickets, produce silk throughout their lives. Silk production also occurs in hymenopte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sericulture
Sericulture, or silk farming, is the cultivation of silkworms to produce silk. Although there are several commercial species of silkworms, '' Bombyx mori'' (the caterpillar of the domestic silkmoth) is the most widely used and intensively studied silkworm. Silk was believed to have first been produced in China as early as the Neolithic Period. Sericulture has become an important cottage industry in countries such as Brazil, China, France, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, and Russia. Today, China and India are the two main producers, with more than 60% of the world's annual production. History According to Confucian text, the discovery of silk production dates to about 2700 BC, although archaeological records point to silk cultivation as early as the Yangshao period (5000–3000 BC). In 1977, a piece of ceramic created 5400–5500 years ago and designed to look like a silkworm was discovered in Nancun, Hebei, providing the earliest known evidence of sericulture. Also, by caref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Morus Alba
''Morus alba'', known as white mulberry, common mulberry and silkworm mulberry, is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized mulberry tree which grows to tall. It is generally a short-lived tree with a lifespan comparable to that of humans, although there are some specimens known to be more than 250 years old. The species is native to India and is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere (including United States, Mexico, Australia, Kyrgyzstan, Argentina, Turkey, Iran, and many others). The white mulberry is widely cultivated to feed the silkworms employed in the commercial production of silk. It is also notable for the rapid release of its pollen, which is launched at greater than half the speed of sound. Its berries are edible when ripe. Description On young, vigorous shoots, the leaves may be up to long, and deeply and intricately lobed, with the lobes rounded. On older trees, the leaves are generally long, unlobed, cordate at the base and rounded to acuminate at the tip, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Mulberry
''Morus alba'', known as white mulberry, common mulberry and silkworm mulberry, is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized mulberry tree which grows to tall. It is generally a short-lived tree with a lifespan comparable to that of humans, although there are some specimens known to be more than 250 years old. The species is native to India and is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere (including United States, Mexico, Australia, Kyrgyzstan, Argentina, Turkey, Iran, and many others). The white mulberry is widely cultivated to feed the silkworms employed in the commercial production of silk. It is also notable for the rapid release of its pollen, which is launched at greater than half the speed of sound. Its berries are edible when ripe. Description On young, vigorous shoots, the leaves may be up to long, and deeply and intricately lobed, with the lobes rounded. On older trees, the leaves are generally long, unlobed, cordate at the base and rounded to acuminate at the tip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Morus (plant)
''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identified species, three of which are well-known and are ostensibly named for the fruit color of the best-known cultivar: white, red, and black mulberry ('' Morus alba'', '' M. rubra'', and '' M. nigra'', respectively), with numerous cultivars. ''M. alba'' is native to South Asia, but is widely distributed across Europe, Southern Africa, South America, and North America. ''M. alba'' is also the species most preferred by the silkworm, and is regarded as an invasive species in Brazil and the United States. The closely related genus '' Broussonetia'' is also commonly known as mulberry, notably the paper mulberry (''Broussonetia papyrifera''). Description Mulberries are fast-growing when young, and can grow to tall. The leave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bombyx Mandarina
''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth, is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mori'', the domesticated silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. Unlike the domesticated relative which is unable to fly or indeed persist outside human care, the wild silk moth is a fairly ordinary lepidopteran. Its main difference from the domesticated taxon is the more slender body with well-developed wings in males, and the dull greyish-brown colour. Phylogeny and systematics ''Bombyx mandarina'' and the domesticated '' Bombyx mori'' constitute two of the currently identified eight species of the genus ''Bombyx'', the true or mulberry silk moths. The origin of the domestic silk moth is enigmatic. It has been suggested that it is the survivor of an extinct species which diverged from the ancestors of ''Bombyx mandarina'' millions of years ago. However, this is based on an untenable molecular clock hypothesis that assumes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bombyx
''Bombyx'' is the genus of true silk moths or mulberry silk moths of the family Bombycidae, also known as silkworms, which are the larvae or caterpillars of silk moths. The genus was erected as a subgenus by Carl Linnaeus in his 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' (1758). Species * '' Bombyx horsfieldi'' (Moore, 1860) * '' Bombyx huttoni'' Westwood, 1847 * '' Bombyx incomposita'' van Eecke, 1929 * ''Bombyx lemeepauli'' Lemée, 1950 * ''Bombyx mandarina'' (Moore, 1872) – wild silk moth * ''Bombyx mori'' (Linnaeus, 1758) – domestic silk moth * ''Bombyx rotundapex'' Miyata & Kishida, 1990 * ''Bombyx shini'' Park and Sohn, 2002 Hybrids Two instances of semi-natural hybridisation are known within this genus: * ''Bombyx'' hybrid, a hybrid between a male ''B. mandarina'' and a female ''B. mori'' * ''Bombyx'' second hybrid, a hybrid between a male ''B. mori'' and a female ''B. mandarina'' Food The caterpillars Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Symphyta) are commonly called caterpillars as well. Both lepidopteran and symphytan larvae have eruciform body shapes. Caterpillars of most species eat plant material ( often leaves), but not all; some (about 1%) eat insects, and some are even cannibalistic. Some feed on other animal products. For example, clothes moths feed on wool, and horn moths feed on the hooves and horns of dead ungulates. Caterpillars are typically voracious feeders and many of them are among the most serious of agricultural pests. In fact, many moth species are best known in their caterpillar stages because of the damage they cause to fruits and other agricultural produce, whereas the moths are obscure and do no direct harm. Conversely, various species of cate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bombycidae
The Bombycidae are a family of moths. The best-known species is ''Bombyx mori'' (Linnaeus) or silkworm, native to northern China and domesticated for millennia. Another well-known species is ''Bombyx mandarina'', also native to Asia. Taxonomy The family was recently severely restricted, and currently contains only one or two subfamilies, the Bombycinae and Epiinae (previously the tribe Epiini). The former subfamilies Oberthueriinae and Prismostictinae have been placed as subjective junior synonyms of Endromidae. The former subfamilies Apatelodinae and Phiditiinae have been reinstated as separate families. Genera This list is provisional. '' Ephoria'' may be a synonym of '' Epholca'' (Geometridae: Ennominae: Ourapterygini), and ''Epia'' may be one of '' Hadena'' (Noctuidae: Hadeninae: Hadenini), and may also be placed within Apatelodidae, along with '' Tamphana''. Some genera were formerly placed in Apatelodinae, such as '' Anticla'' and '' Quentalia''.Hamilton, C.A., St Laure ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of which have yet to be described. Most species of moth are nocturnal, but there are also crepuscular and diurnal species. Differences between butterflies and moths While the butterflies form a monophyletic group, the moths, comprising the rest of the Lepidoptera, do not. Many attempts have been made to group the superfamilies of the Lepidoptera into natural groups, most of which fail because one of the two groups is not monophyletic: Microlepidoptera and Macrolepidoptera, Heterocera and Rhopalocera, Jugatae and Frenatae, Monotrysia and Ditrysia.Scoble, MJ 1995. The Lepidoptera: Form, function and diversity. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press; 404 p. Although the rules for distinguishing moths from butterflies are not well establishe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jasmone
Jasmone is an organic compound, which is a volatile portion of the oil from jasmine flowers. It is a colorless to pale yellow liquid. Jasmone can exist in two isomeric forms with differing geometry around the pentenyl double bond, ''cis''-jasmone and ''trans''-jasmone. The natural extract contains only the cis form, while synthetic material is often a mixture of both, with the cis form predominating. Both forms have similar odors and chemical properties. Its structure was deduced by Lavoslav Ružička. Jasmone is produced by some plants by the metabolism of jasmonic acid Jasmonic acid (JA) is an organic compound found in several plants including jasmine. The molecule is a member of the jasmonate class of plant hormones. It is biosynthesized from linolenic acid by the octadecanoid pathway. It was first isolate ..., via a decarboxylation.Paulina Dąbrowska, Wilhelm Boland "iso-OPDA: An Early Precursor of cis-Jasmone in Plants?" ChemBioChem 2007, Volume 8, pages 2281– ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eighth of Earth's inhabitable landmass. Russia extends across eleven time zones and shares land boundaries with fourteen countries, more than any other country but China. It is the world's ninth-most populous country and Europe's most populous country, with a population of 146 million people. The country's capital and largest city is Moscow, the largest city entirely within Europe. Saint Petersburg is Russia's cultural centre and second-largest city. Other major urban areas include Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, and Kazan. The East Slavs emerged as a recognisable group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE. Kievan Rus' arose as a state in the 9th century, and in 988, it adopted Orthodox Christianity from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
