The eggs are laid in groups of about 100, and covered in coloured hairs from the females abdominal tip. The eggs hatch in about a week.

The Caterpillars are a dirty white colour. They bore into the stem of their foodplant. They mature in about a month.

They pupate in a cocoon inside the stem of the foodplant. The pupation period is about a week.

(Photo: courtesy of Philippine Rice Research Institute)

The adult moths are white. The female has a tuft of yellow or pink hairs at the tip of the abdomen. The adults live for about a week.

The species is found in :

Various techniques have been tried to control this pest, including :

Further reading :

Ian F.B. Common,
Moths of Australia, Melbourne University Press, 1990, pp. 66,70,353.

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(updated 6 February 2008)