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Animal profile

Domestic Silk Moth

Bombyx mori

InsectaRearing houses and trays; entirely dependent on human care

Field profile

Bombyx mori is the domesticated silk moth, reared for at least five thousand years and now incapable of surviving without people. The larva spins a cocoon from a single continuous filament, and the adult moth cannot fly or feed. Its wild relative, Bombyx mandarina, still lives on mulberry in East Asia.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-12-19

Domestic Silk Moth

One silkworm cocoon is a single unbroken thread

A silk moth larva spins its cocoon from one continuous filament, commonly cited at 900 metres or more. Reeling it intact requires killing the pupa before it emerges, because an emerging moth dissolves its way out and severs the thread.

Read with evidence →

Domestic Silk Moth | Daily Animal Facts