Perimeceta incrustalis (Snellen, 1895)
 (one synonym Phanerobela niphospila Turner, 1932)
HELIOTHELINI,   SCOPARIINAE,   CRAMBIDAE,   PYRALOIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans,
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley


(Photo: courtesy of Shan Wei, Bentong, Malaysia)

The Caterpillars of this species are off-white with a broad diffuse grey band along the back. The head has angular black marks, and each segment has four black warts. The caterpillar has been found feeding on

  • Finger Fern (Davallia denticulata, POLYPODIOPHYTA).

    The caterpillars are antisocial, each living under a separate fern frond. In captivity, the caterpillars pupated under shallow soil.


    (Photo: courtesy of Buck Richardson, Kuranda, Queensland)

    The adult moths have a dark brown pattern with white marks on each forewing. The hindwings are a uniform pale brown. The wingspan is about 2 cms.

    The species has been found in :

  • Malaysia,
  • Thailand,

    and in Australia in

  • Queensland.

    Further reading :

    Buck Richardson,
    Tropical Queensland Wildlife from Dusk to Dawn Science and Art,
    LeapFrogOz, Kuranda, 2015, p. 50 (listed as Perimeceta niphospila).

    Pieter Cornelius Tobias Snellen,
    Aanteekeningen over Pyraliden met beschrijving van nieuwe genera en soorten,
    Tijdschrift voor Entomologie,
    Volume 38 (1895), p. 119, No. 16.

    A. Jefferis Turner,
    New Australian Lepidoptera,
    Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia,
    Volume 56 (1932), p. 189.

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    (updated 20 March 2012, 14 December 2025)