Wockia

Wockia
Wockia mexicana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Urodidae
Genus:
Wockia

Heinemann, 1870
Synonyms
  • Patula Bruand, 1851
  • Wockea Reutti 1898
  • Wockeia Spuler 1910

Wockia is a genus of moths in the family Urodidae containing around 10 described species.[1] Individuals are small and relatively dull gray in color.

Larvae (caterpillars) are known to feed on plants in the family Salicaceae, with W. asperipunctella feeding on species of willows (Salix) and Populus, while W. chewbacca feeds on the leaves of the Casearia, albeit it avoids the veins to prevent any indigestion.[2] The species in the Wockia genus do not have a long development time, which allows for multiple generations to occur. Specifically, the W. chewbacca takes typically two weeks to develop from egg to pupa and then another ten days in a cocoon to become an adult.[2]

  1. ^ Sohn, Jae-Cheon (2014). "Morphology-Based Phylogeny and Biogeography of Wockia (Lepidoptera: Urodidae) with Description of a New Species from Japan and South Korea". Zoological Science. 31 (4): 258–265. doi:10.2108/zs130199.
  2. ^ a b Adamski, David; Boege, Karina; Landry, Jean-FranÇois; Sohn, Jae-Cheon (2009). "Two New Species of Wockia Heinemann (Lepidoptera: Urodidae) from Coastal Dry-Forests in Western México". Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 111 (1): 166–182. doi:10.4289/0013-8797-111.1.166.