Fruit Piercing Moth from India

What’s that moth?
September 22, 2009
I am not from this field. So don’t have much to write about it except that the moth was found recently, in September 2009 in Pune, India
Ram Kulkarni
Pune, India

Hi Ram,
This is such a beautiful moth, that despite being late for work, we have decided to post it as unidentified in the hopes that one of our readers will have enough time to research its name.  Karl, are your reading???

Hi Daniel:
This beautiful moth is a fruit-piercing moth (Noctuidae: Calpinae [sometimes included in subfamily Ophiderinae or Catocalinae]) in the genus Eudocima. There are several similar looking species in India, but I believe this one is probably E. materna. The common name is sometimes given as the Pacific Fruit-Piercing Moth, but the same name is also given for other closely related species. It is very wide ranging, found throughout Asia, Africa and the Pacific. It was formerly considered pantropical, but New World populations (including in the USA and Canada) are now considered their own species, the nearly identical E. apta =Ophideres apta). As the common name implies, the adult moths are considered a pest on a wide variety fruit trees. The individual in Ram’s photo looks like a male. Regards.
Karl