Mengshan Mulberry Silkworm

Mengshan Mulberry Silkworm

Also known as the domestic silkworm, it is one of the economically important insects that feed on mulberry leaves and spin cocoons. It belongs to the order Lepidoptera, family Bombycidae, and its scientific name is Bombyx mori Linnaeus. The mulberry silkworm originated in China, with a development temperature range of 7–40°C and an optimal breeding temperature of 20–30°C. It is mainly distributed in temperate, subtropical, and tropical areas.

The mulberry silkworm is an oligophagous insect. While it prefers to feed on mulberry leaves, it can also consume leaves from other plants such as Cudrania, Broussonetia, elm, Allium victorialis, dandelion, and lettuce. However, mulberry leaves are the most suitable natural food for the silkworm. The silkworm is a holometabolous insect, going through four distinct developmental stages in both morphology and physiology: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Under suitable temperatures, the larval stage—from hatching to cocoon spinning—takes about 22–26 days. A single silkworm consumes approximately 20–25 grams of mulberry leaves in its lifetime. It generally undergoes four molts and sleep stages, and by the time it reaches its maximum growth, its weight increases by about 10,000 times. During the final instar, it consumes more than 85% of its total mulberry leaf intake. The cocoons spun by the mulberry silkworm can be reeled into silk, which is an excellent textile fiber and the raw material for making silk fabrics. The silkworm pupae are edible, and both the silkworm moths and their droppings have various comprehensive uses, serving as raw materials in multiple chemical and pharmaceutical industries.