Lacera alope, the toothed drab, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Pieter Cramer in 1780. It is found in Africa, where it is known from southern and eastern Africa, including several islands of the Indian Ocean, Saudi Arabia, and southern Asia from India, Sri Lanka to China.[3]

Toothed drab
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Erebidae
Genus: Lacera
Species:
L. alope
Binomial name
Lacera alope
(Cramer, 1780)[1][2]
Synonyms
  • Phalaena alope Cramer, 1780

Description

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Its wingspan is about 48–64 mm. Body dark reddish brown slightly irrorated with grey. Forewings with traces of sub-basal line. A curved slightly dentate antemedial black line and an obscure reniform spot with an indistinct figure-of-8-shaped mark above it. A very irregularly dentate postmedial line excurved beyond the cell present. There is a pale mark with black streaks on the veins in the sinus and a pale mark on it can be seen above inner margin. The outer area variegated with pale brown and fuscous. Hindwings with indistinct wave postmedial line and a marginal dark line with some blue-grey specks found on it. Ventral side with outer area of forewings variegated with reds and purples. A brown speckled yellow patch can be seen at apex.[4]

Larva greenish with dark dorsal stria. Somites 4 to 11 with dark specks and a sub-lateral series of similar specks present. Legs and tow dorsal prominences on 11th segment dark. Larva feeds on Caesalpinia, Canthium, Cissampelos, Macadamia plants.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Cramer, P. [1779]–[1780]. De uitlandsche Kapellen voorkomende in de drie waereld-deelen Asia, Africa en America, by een verzameld en beschreeven door den heer Pieter Cramer (etc.).— 3(17–24):1–176, pls. 193–288
  2. ^ Yu, Dicky Sick Ki. "Lacera alope (Cramer 1780)". Home of Ichneumonoidea. Taxapad. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  3. ^ De Prins, J. & De Prins, W. (2018). "Lacera alope (Cramer, 1780)". Afromoths. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  4. ^ Hampson, G. F. (1894). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma: Moths Volume II. Taylor and Francis – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  5. ^ "Lacera alope (Cramer, 1780)". African Moths. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
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