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Helicoverpa
armigera Hubner
Noctua armigera Hubner, 1803-1808, Samml. Europ. Schmett. Noct.2: Fig. 370.
Helicoverpa
armigera Hubner; Hardwick, 1965: 91 (full synonymy); Holloway, 1976: 8.
Helicoverpa
armigera larva |
Diagnosis.
Both this
and the next species have similar forewing fasciation, and hindwings with a
lenticular dark brown border containing usually a diffuse pale patch in the
centre of the distal half. On the underside the forewing reniform is darkened,
and there is an incomplete submarginal brown band on both wings. This band is
usually much weaker in the next species, which is yellower with more clearly
defined forewing fasciation, particularly the postmedial which is entire,
double, rather than lunulate. In the male genitalia, the middle spine of the
cluster on the most basal coil of the aedeagus vesica is larger than all other
spines on the vesica in armigera (Hardwick, 1965)
Taxonomic
notes. Hardwick
recognised three subspecies. The typical race flies throughout most of the
range, ssp. conferta Walker in Australia and the Pacific and ssp. commoni
Hardwick on Canton I.
Geographical
range. Old
World tropics and subtropics and east into Pacific.
Habitat preference. Only
one recent specimen has been seen, from Kundasan, a cultivated area at about
1050m on the slopes of G. Kinabalu.
Biology. The adults are migratory.
The larva above has been recorded from a wide range of hosts from many plant
families, such as Acanthaceae, Aizoaceae, Alliaceae, Anacardiaceae, Apocynaceae,
Cannabidaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Cleomaceae, Compositae, Cruciferae,
Cucurbitaceae, Gramineae, Labiaceae, Leguminosae, Linaceae, Malvaceae, Musaceae,
Papaveraceae, Resedaceae, Rosaceae, Rubiaceae, Rutaceae, Scrophulariaceae,
Solanaceae, Vitaceae, Zygophyllaceae; it is a serious pest of such crops as
maize, tomato, tobacco, cotton, flax, pulses and citrus fruit (Hardwick, 1965;
Matthews, 1988).
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