Snout Moth vs Scarlet-Bodied Pergid Sawfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Snout Moth Scarlet-Bodied Pergid Sawfly
Scientific Name Vitessa suradeva Perga kirbyi
Order Lepidoptera Hymenoptera
Family Pyralidae Pergidae
Size 40-50 mm wingspan 16-24 mm
Habitat Forests Woodlands
Diet Herbivores Herbivores
Regions Southeast Asia Australia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Snout Moth

A large pyralid moth from Southeast Asia and New Guinea whose caterpillars spin webs on young leaves of poisonous shrubs. Adults have elongated labial palps forming a 'snout'.

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Did You Know?

Caterpillars can tolerate feeding on toxic plants that would kill most other moth species.

Scarlet-Bodied Pergid Sawfly

A large, robustly built Australian sawfly with a bright scarlet to red-orange abdomen and dark head and thorax. Its spitfire larvae feed on eucalyptus in tight clusters.

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Did You Know?

Adult females demonstrate rare parental care for an insect by guarding their egg batch and early-instar larvae on the eucalyptus leaf.