About Pericyma cruegeri (Butler, 1886)
Pericyma cruegeri, commonly known as the poinciana looper, is a moth species belonging to the family Erebidae. It was first formally described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1886. This species is native to Southeast Asia, with recorded populations in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, the Philippines, and New Guinea. It is also found in Australia, specifically in northern New South Wales and Queensland. Pericyma cruegeri is an introduced species in Hawaii and Guam, where it was first detected in 1971. In Japan, the species was first recorded on Ishigaki Island in 1986, and its range had expanded to Okinawa Island by 2000. The wingspan of adult Pericyma cruegeri moths is approximately 40 mm. The larvae of this moth feed on the foliage of plant species in the Caesalpiniaceae family, including Peltophorum pterocarpum and Delonix regia, and their feeding can cause extensive damage to these plants.
