Subject: A black-winged pink-headed bug
Location: Jiangsu province, China
July 31, 2015 7:11 am
Hi, Could you help me identify the species/ name of this bug? thanks
Signature: a bug lover
Dear bug lover,
This request had us confused for a bit at first. Though it looks decidedly mothlike, the antennae had us believing this might be a Fishfly in the Subfamily Chauliodinae, which delayed our ability to quickly find an identification. Then we found a similar looking diurnal moth from China on FlickR that is identified as Cyclosia midamia in the family Zygaenidae and we resumed our search, eventually finding a side view of Histia flabellicornis on the Digest of Taiwan Lepidopterology page. A dorsal view on FlickR has us confident that your moth is indeed Histia flabellicornis, a Leaf Skeletonizing Moth in the family Zygaenidae. Insect Creations describes it as: “A wonderful and some what rare moth. The wing shape is very unique.”