Dysphania militaris (Linnaeus, 1758) - False Tiger Moth

Taxonomic Information

Dysphania Hübner, [1819] species known from the Indian subcontinent (Kirti et al. 2019 and Lepindex).
Dysphania andamana (Moore, 1877). India: Andaman Is. 
Dysphania alloides Prout, 1916. India: Andaman Is. (Port Blair).
Dysphania glaucescens glaucescens (Walker, 1862). Indian Himalayas.
Dysphania flavidiscalis Warren, 1895. Myanmar.
Dysphania jessica (Swinhoe, 1908). India: Nicobar Is. (Nancoury), Andaman Is. (Port Blair).
Dysphania malayanus recessa (Walker, 1862). India: West Bengal (Darjeeling).
Dysphania militaris (Linnaeus, 1758). N. India. Uttarakhand east to NE. India. 
Dysphania nelera (Swinhoe, 1891). Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala.
Dysphania palmyra (Stoll, [1790]). India: Maharashtra, Karnataka; Sri Lanka. 
Dysphania percota (Swinhoe, 1891). India: Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala. 
Dysphania porphyroides Prout, 1917. India: Andaman Islands.
Dysphania prunicolor (Moore, 1879). Sri Lanka. 
Dysphania subrepleta excubitor (Moore, 1879). India: Meghalaya (Khasi Hills), Assam.

Photo Gallery and Species Biology

Separating Dysphania militaris (Linnaeus, 1758) and Dysphania subrepleta excubitor (Moore, 1879) based on Han & Xue, 2011, Fauna Sinica

D. subrepleta: antemedial line of forewing complete except the interruption between CuA and anal fold: hind wing with discal spot connected with the patch below, or the latter obsolete or absent. 

D. militaris: antemedial line of forewing composed of discontinuous patches: hind wing with discal spot not connected with the patch below, the latter not obsolete. 

StateJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNo date
Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Andhra Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh1
Assam21112
Bihar
Chandigarh
Chhattisgarh
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Daman & Diu
Delhi
Goa
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu and Kashmir
Jharkhand
Karnataka
Kerala
Lakshadweep
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Manipur1
Meghalaya2
Mizoram
Nagaland2613
Odisha
Paschimbanga
Pondicherry
Punjab
Rajasthan
Sikkim12
Tamil Nadu
Tripura12
Uttar Pradesh
Uttarakhand
West Bengal211
Total487413132
  1. Hampson, G. F. 1895. The Fauna of British India including Ceylon and Burma. Moths, Vol.3. Taylor & Francis, London. Noctuidae (cont.) to Geometridae . Pg. 468, # 3989
  2. Holloway, J. D. 1998. The Moths of Borneo. Part 9. Geometridae: Oenochrominae, Desmobathrinae, Geometrinae. http://www.mothsofborneo.com/part-9/dysphaniini/dysphaniini_1_2.php accessed 9 April 2016

Page citation

Anonymous 2024. Dysphania militaris (Linnaeus, 1758) – False Tiger Moth. In Sondhi, S., Y. Sondhi, R.P. Singh, P. Roy and K. Kunte (Chief Editors). Butterflies of India, v. 3.72. Published by the Indian Foundation for Butterflies. URL: https://www.mothsofindia.org/dysphania-militaris, accessed 2024/03/29.