Scientific name: Erionota thrax
About banana skipper butterfly
- The banana skipper butterfly lays its eggs on the leaves of banana plants.
- The eggs hatch in 5-6 days and grow into caterpillars before maturing into butterflies.
- Several generations may be produced during a year.
- The caterpillars damage banana plants by shredding leaves and making numerous rolls of the leaf blade, up to 15cm long, to feed safely inside them.
- Damage of up to 60% of the leaf area of banana plants has been recorded during outbreaks.
- If the outbreak occurs at the time of fruiting, yields are lower due to delayed fruit maturity and reduce bunch size.
- Heavy infestations can lead to complete defoliation of banana plants.
Distribution
- South-east Asia
- Papua New Guinea
- Mauritius
- Guam
- Hawaii
Host plants
- Banana
- Musa species, including Manila hemp
What to look for
Look for rolled damaged leaves. The leaves may have white waxy powder inside.
The adult banana skipper butterfly
- is brown with 3 yellow-white areas at the front of wings
- has a wingspan of 7-8 cm
- is most active in the early evenings
- moves in fast, darting, skipping motion
- Is attracted to light.
The caterpillar
- has a shiny black head and pale green body
- is covered in white waxy powder
- grow to 6 cm.
How to protect your plants
- Regularly survey your banana plants for rolled up leaves and signs of the caterpillar.
What to do if you find it
- Contact your local biosecurity authority to report it and find out more about protecting your plants.