Symptoms of damage:

• Young larvae feed gregariously mostly on the under surface of the leaves
• A caterpillar of later stages defoliates the field completely

Identification of the pest:

• Egg: Laid in clusters of 50-100 on the lower side of leaves
• Larvae: Orange coloured with broad transverse band with tufts of yellow hairs that are dark at both ends
• Pupa: Forms a thin silken cocoon by interwoven shed hairs of the larvae
• Adult: Crimson coloured moth with black dots and a red abdomen. Wings are pinkish with numerous black spots

Management:

• Collection and destruction of eggs and early stage larvae
• Spray NSKE 5% to kill early stage larvae