Achaea catocaloides rena has been identified as the insect destroying coffee, cocoa, banana and plantain farms, and contaminating water sources, across Liberia and Guinea in Africa.
According to CABI, "More than 20,000 people have so far had to evacuate their homes."
A. catocaloides rena is a member of the Noctuidae or "Owlet" moth family in the order Lepidoptera.
See also:
- Crop-eating caterpillars swarm over Liberia (CABI)
- Lepidoptera types of the Royal Museum for Central Africa
- Crop Protection Compendium
- Entomology Research Guide (UW-Madison Libraries)
[Image of A. janata caterpillar (not A. catocaloides) by Djovani. Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 Generic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/14126791@N03/1678406276]
[Copyrighted image of A. catocaloides rena moth used by permission of the Royal Museum for Central Africa, Belgium. http://www.metafro.be/lepidoptera/butterflies/RMCA-2171/taxon]
