A nest of a paper wasp, Polistes (Gyrostoma) sp., infested by the pyralid Hypsopygia mauritialis was dissected and examined in detail. The nest was found in Kagoshima, southern Japan, and collected in mid-September, 2021. Cell walls of the nest comb had many holes, and no brood or meconia remained, probably because of destruction from the feeding activities of the larval moths. The nest had a strange structure (fecal dangler) suspended from the nest comb: the fecal dangler was about 10 cm long and mainly comprised fecal grains of the moth mixed with pupal exuviae of the moth and fragments of wasp cocoons woven together with silk. The nest comb and fecal dangler contained 43 live moth larvae (only 13 of which were vigorous) and 8 live pupae. A total of at least 123 pupal exuviae were present. The feeding behavior and the function of the fecal dangler are discussed, and compared with other cases of Polistes nests infested by Hypsopygia species previously reported.

A schoenobiine species, Scirpophaga tripunctalis sp. nov. is described from Central Honshu, Japan. Some morphological features of this new species are revised based on the terminology previously used in the genus Scirpophaga. The DNA barcode of the species is given and compared with the known barcodes of the other related schoenobiine species, including S. incertulas. Egg-laying habit and the morphology of the 1st instar larva are briefly described. The habitat of the new species is discussed referencing those of other Scirpophaga species.

In the Japanese archipelago, more than 100 species of stray butterflies originating from across the sea have been recorded. Investigation of the origin of these stray butterflies is important in the area of insular biogeography because their migrations can provide opportunities to expand their habitat and affect the biological communities of the islands. An Achillides butterfly was collected in February 2020 as a stray butterfly in the Miyako Islands, where no Achillides butterflies are distributed. Achillides is a subgenus of the genus Papilio, commonly called swallowtail butterflies, and one of the most diverse clades of swallowtails. Since the subgenus consists of many similar species and subspecies, both genetic and morphological analyses were carried out to identify this specimen and to investigate the origin of the stray butterfly. Phylogenetic network analysis based on the ND5 sequence revealed that the butterfly is a member of the bianor-polyctor group. On the basis of fine-scale morphological comparison with the subspecies in the bianor-polyctor group, the stray butterfly was identified as the Chinese peacock Papilio bianor bianor Cramer, (1777), which originates from mainland China with the closest known records being found at a distance of 550 km from where this specimen was collected.

Following up on many eyewitness reports of Eastern Pale Clouded Yellow (Colias erate) in the Alpine Clouded Yellow (C. palaeno) habitat in the Asama mountain range as well as several reports of C. erate ♂ mating with C. palaeno ♀, distribution surveys and feeding and mating studies were conducted to clarify the presence and effect of C. erate in the C. palaeno habitat. The results confirmed mating interference of adult C. erate ♂ with C. palaeno in C. palaeno habitats of Mt. Yunomaru and Mt. Eboshi but that geneticintrogression was unlikely. Measures for the conservation of C. palaeno were discussed.