Distribution and status: India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Burma, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, South East Asia, China, Korea, Japan and Indonesia.

Host range: Sorghum, maize, rice, wheat, sugarcane, bajra and ragi, barley, guinea grasses.

Bionomics: The adult moth is fawn-colored, with dark brown streaks on the fore wings and white hind wings. The female lays about 150 creamy-white and hemispherical eggs that are arranged in two or three rows between the leaf sheath and the stem of the host plant. Egg period 7 days. The fully grown larvae measures about 25 mm and is pale yellow with a purple pink tinge and a reddish-brown head. The larval period 25 days but in cold months it may be extended to 75 days. Pupation occurs in the larval tunnel in the stem and the adult emerges in 12 days. One generation may take 6-7 weeks. The life cycle is completed in 45-75 days.  There are 4-6 generations per year.