About Ardices canescens Butler, 1875
Ardices canescens, commonly called the dark-spotted tiger moth or the light ermine moth, is a species of moth in the family Erebidae. This species is found across most of Australia. It was originally classified as part of the genus Spilosoma, but researchers later confirmed that the genus Ardices is a valid separate genus. The larvae of Ardices canescens are polyphagous, and have been recorded feeding on Bidens pilosa, Helianthus annuus, Taraxacum officinale, Ipomoea batatas, Alcea rosea, Rosa odorata, Plantago, Ricinus communis and Tradescantia albiflora. The polyembryonic parasitoid wasp Copidosoma floridanum occasionally uses the caterpillars of this moth species as a host.
