Toxocampinae

17. Toxocampinae View in CoL View at ENA

Adult characters. Toxocampin moths overwinter with a significant amount of fat stored in their abdomens. They exhibit a uniform dark, greyish-brown coloration, with notably darker patagia and a blackish collar, which has led to their common designation as ‘blacknecks.’ The labial palps are well developed. In male genitalia, there is a slight bilateral asymmetry in the valvae, accompanied by an inverted Y-shaped juxta. The tegumen is longer than the vinculum, and the vesica contains a sclerotised plate or cornuti, with the exception of the genus Exophyla . In female genitalia, the antrum is sclerotised, the ductus bursae is membranous, and the post-vaginal plate is divided medially. A beaded signum is frequently observed (Fibiger 2003, Holloway 2005).

Larval characters. Larvae with the prolegs on A3 and often A4 are reduced or absent; they are semi-loopers.

Diversity and distribution. Approximately 150 species are found across the Indo-Australian tropics, northern Africa, and New Zealand. The genus Lygephila Billberg is pantropical, featuring a widely distributed species in the Old World. In India , there are 15 species documented across seven genera.