Damage Characteristics and Control Methods of the Red-banded Tiger Moth on Vegetables
The red-banded tiger moth (Aloa lactinea) belongs to the family Erebidae, order Lepidoptera. Also known as the red-sleeved tiger moth and red-edged tiger moth. It damages vegetables such as broccoli, mustard, choy sum, napa cabbage, cherry radish, snow peas, hyacinth beans, and sweet corn.
The damage characteristic of the red-banded tiger moth is that its larvae chew on the tender leaves, flowers, and fruits of vegetables, affecting yield and quality.
Morphological characteristics: The adult has a body length of 18-20 mm and a wingspan of 46-64 mm. The body and wings are white; the costal margin of the forewing and the terminal margin of the collar are red; the dorsal surface of the abdomen is orange-yellow except for the basal segment and the anal tuft, with alternating black bands. The mature larva has a body length of about 40 mm. The head is yellow-brown; the trunk is dark ochre or black, densely covered with reddish-brown or black long hairs. The thoracic legs are black, and the prolegs are red. Young larvae are grayish-yellow. The egg is hemispherical, with a diameter of 0.79 mm; the eggshell surface has radial longitudinal ridges from the top toward the periphery; when freshly laid it is yellowish-white and glossy, later turning grayish-yellow to dark gray; the micropyle is slightly red, later turning black. The pupa is oval, 22-26 mm long, with a thoracic width of 9-10 mm, dark brown and glossy, with 10 abdominal segments, enclosed in a yellow-brown silk cocoon. The female pupa has a genital opening at the center of the ventral surface of the 8th abdominal segment, and the male pupa has 10 anal spines at its posterior end.
Life habits: It has 1-3 generations per year, overwinters as a pupa, and begins to emerge in May-June of the following year. Eggs are laid in masses on the underside of leaves, up to several hundred per mass. Newly hatched larvae feed in groups, and after the third instar they disperse to cause damage. Young larvae are agile. The egg stage lasts 6-8 days, the larval stage 27-28 days, and the adult lifespan 5-7 days.
Control methods:
1. Use blacklight traps to kill adults and reduce the pest source in the field.
2. In the early period, inspect the wasteland around host fields of cruciferous and leguminous vegetables; if large numbers of larvae are found migrating toward the vegetable field, dig trenches to block and kill them.
3. Apply pesticides in time before the larvae reach the third instar. Options include spraying 25% diflubenzuron No. 3 suspension concentrate at 500-800 times dilution, or 5% nomolt emulsifiable concentrate at 1000-1500 times dilution, or 5% chlorfluazuron emulsifiable concentrate at 3000-4000 times dilution, or 20% diflubenzuron suspension concentrate at 3000-4000 times dilution, or 10% trebon suspension concentrate at 1500-2000 times dilution, or 2.5% high-efficiency beta-cypermethrin emulsifiable concentrate at 2000-3000 times dilution, or 5% cascade emulsifiable concentrate at 1500-2000 times dilution, or 5.7% betacyfluthrin emulsifiable concentrate at 3000-4000 times dilution.