| Euproctis melanosoma | |
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| Species: | E. melanosoma
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| Euproctis melanosoma (Butler, 1882)[1]
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Euproctis melanosoma is a species of moth of the Lymantriidae family. It is known from New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria.
The wingspan is about 30 mm. Adults are completely white, except for the conspicuous black compound eyes, and some brown hairs along the inner margins of the forewings. The abdomen is often initially white, but often becomes black. The female has a yellow tuft on the tail. The scales on the wings are very loose, and rub off at the slightest handling.[2]
The female moth lays her eggs in long disorganised strings, and covers them in hairs from her tail.
The larvae feed on the leaves and flowers of various plants, including Sechium edule, Quercus species, Pelargonium x zonale, Dietes grandiflora, Lophostemon confertus, Poaceae species, Rosa odorata and Vitis vinifera. They are black and hairy, with two bright red spots on the back. The red spots indicate the position of dorsal glands. Full-grown larvae are about 30 mm long. Pupation takes place in a thin brown cocoon under a leaf or petal of the foodplant.