Creatonotos Gangis
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''Creatonotos gangis'', the Baphomet moth, is a
species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of arctiine
moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...
in
South East Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. It was described by
Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
in his 1763 ''
Centuria Insectorum file:Centuria Insectorum.png, The first page of ''Centuria Insectorum'', as included in ''Amoenitates Academicæ'' ' (Latin, "one hundred insects") is a 1763 Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic work by Carl Linnaeus, and defended as a thesis by Boas Jo ...
''. It is often listed as a synonym of ''
Creatonotos interrupta ''Creatonotos'' is a genus of tiger moths in the family Erebidae. The moths in the genus are found in the Afrotropics, South and East Asia, Sundaland and Australia. Description " Palpi short and porrect. Hind tibiae with one pair of spurs. Fo ...
'', but the identity is unclear.


Description and life cycle

Adults have white hindwings and brown forewings, each with a dark streak, and a wingspan of . The abdomen is red or, more rarely, yellow. Males have four large, grey-colored
coremata ''Coremata'' is a monotypic moth genus of the family Crambidae described by Hans Georg Amsel in 1956. It contains only one species, ''Coremata stigmatalis'', described by George Hampson in 1899, which is found in São Paulo, Brazil. The wingspan ...
behind them, which can exceed the length of the abdomen when inflated. The
eggs An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop. Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to: Biology * Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms Food * Eggs as food Places * Egg, Austria * Egg, Switzerland ...
are yellow and round, and are laid in rows on the leaves of food plants. The
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 ...
s are brown hairy animals with a yellow stripe along the back, with a polyphagous diet, known as a minor pest which feeds on groundnuts,
rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...
, ragi,
sorghum ''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...
, '' Pennisetum americanum'',
coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
,
sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its sizeable, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable, which is a staple food in parts of ...
, and
lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...
crops. In ''
The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma ''The Fauna of British India'' (short title) with long titles including ''The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma'', and ''The Fauna of British India Including the Remainder of the Oriental Region'' is a series of scientific books t ...
: Moths Vol. II'', the species (listed as ''C. interrupta'') is described as follows:


Distribution

''Creatonotos gangis'' lives in
South East Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
and parts of
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. Its Asian distribution includes eastern
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
,
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
,
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
and
New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...
. In Australia, it is restricted to northern parts of
Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
,
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...
and
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
, extending as far south as
Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airport ...
.


Ecology

Adult males
secrete Secretion is the movement of material from one point to another, such as a secreted chemical substance from a cell or gland. In contrast, excretion is the removal of certain substances or waste products from a cell or organism. The classical mec ...
the
pheromone A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
hydroxydanaidal in order to attract mates. The amount produced, and the size of the coremata which produce it, are however dependent on the diet that the moth experienced as a
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 ...
. If the larval diet contained
pyrrolizidine alkaloid Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), sometimes referred to as necine bases, are a group of naturally occurring alkaloids based on the structure of pyrrolizidine. Their use dates back centuries and is intertwined with the discovery, understanding, and e ...
s, then the coremata become large and the male will release up to 400 micrograms (0.4 milligrams) of hydroxydanaidal, but if it does not, then the
coremata ''Coremata'' is a monotypic moth genus of the family Crambidae described by Hans Georg Amsel in 1956. It contains only one species, ''Coremata stigmatalis'', described by George Hampson in 1899, which is found in São Paulo, Brazil. The wingspan ...
do not grow large and no scent is produced. The larvae of ''C. gangis'' can cause extensive damage to the foliage of
pomegranate The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punica, Punicoideae, that grows between tall. Rich in symbolic and mythological associations in many cultures, it is thought to have o ...
trees.


See also

*
Pyrrolizidine alkaloid sequestration Pyrrolizidine alkaloid sequestration by insects is a strategy to facilitate defense and mating. Various species of insects have been known to use molecular compounds from plants for their own defense and even as their pheromones or precursors to the ...


References


Further reading

* {{Taxonbar , from=Q5183599 Spilosomina Moths of Australia Moths of Asia Moths described in 1763 Moths of Japan Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Insect pests of millets Moths of Indonesia Moths of New Guinea Moths of Sri Lanka Moths of Oceania Lepidoptera of Thailand Lepidoptera of India Insects of China Lepidoptera of Iran Moths of the Middle East