What the sources say
SilkwormBombyx mori
Every figure, record and mechanism on the Silkworm profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 31 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.
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Source
01
Fondazione Museo Civico di Rovereto
The silkworm (Display board 5, C'era una volta un filo di seta). Fondazione Museo Civico di Rovereto.
- The page saysA caterpillar that grows thousands of times heavier in a month, then wraps itself in one silk thread up to 1,800 metres long.
- The source says
over the period of a month, the larva has grown by 30 times its length and 9,000 times its weight ... The cocoon is made from a single, highly resistant thread which can be as long as 1,800 metres.
Note: tagline - The page saysno longer found in the wild
- The source says
no longer exists in a wild state
- The page saysMulberry leaves as a larva; the adult moth does not feed
- The source says
In its larval stage this lepidopteran feeds exclusively on mulberry leaves ... The adult insect does not feed
Note: stats.diet - The page saysSpins a single silk thread up to 1,800 metres long
- The source says
The cocoon is made from a single, highly resistant thread which can be as long as 1,800 metres.
Note: stats.superpower - The page saysA silkworm is the caterpillar of the silk moth Bombyx mori.
- The source says
Silk is produced by the larva of the Bombyx mori moth
- The page saysA newly hatched larva (the caterpillar stage) is dark, about 3 millimetres long and weighs about half a milligram.
- The source says
When just born the larva is dark, about 3 millimetres long and weighs about half a milligram.
- The page saysOn the figures of the silk museum display in Rovereto, Italy, it reaches 9 cm and 4 grams in about a month, growing 30 times longer.
- The source says
At its greatest size, the larva reaches 9 cm and weighs 4 grams. Therefore, over the period of a month, the larva has grown by 30 times its length
Note: scoped to the Rovereto board because the 2022 Iraq study's fifth-instar mean (5.25 g) exceeds its 4 g maximum - The page saysThe growth comes in stages separated by moults, also known as sleeps.
- The source says
takes place in stages separated by moults also known as sleeps
- The page saysThe larva feeds on mulberry leaves.
- The source says
In its larval stage this lepidopteran feeds exclusively on mulberry leaves
- The page saysIn the farmhouse kitchens around Rovereto where silkworms were once raised, the noise of their jaws just before they climbed to spin grew into a continuous, deep rumble that made the whole house vibrate
- The source says
In the big kitchens of these farmhouses ... In the period immediately preceding their climb to the mountages, the silkworms became more and more ravenous. The noise of their jaws grew to become a continuous, deep rumble which made the whole house vibrate ... once so important for the local economy
Note: farmhouse kitchens: 'In the big kitchens of these farmhouses, after the eggs hatched, the larvae were looked after' - The page saysSilk comes from two glands beneath the larva's mouth.
- The source says
The silk is produced by the larva through two glands beneath its mouth.
- The page saysAfter four moults, the larva's torpor gives way to a period of agitation known as "fury", and it tries to climb to find a support on which to attach its cocoon.
- The source says
After four moults, the torpor of the larva stage alters into a period of agitation and movement known as "fury", and the larva tries to climb to find a support on which to attach its cocoon.
- The page saysThe cocoon is made from a single, highly resistant thread that can be as long as 1,800 metres.
- The source says
The cocoon is made from a single, highly resistant thread which can be as long as 1,800 metres.
- The page saysIn three or four days the larva has completely wrapped itself in silk and turns into a chrysalis.
- The source says
In three or four days the larva has completely wrapped itself in silk and turns into a chrysalis.
- The page saysBombyx mori originated in east central Asia and no longer exists in a wild state.
- The source says
the Bombyx mori moth originating in east central Asia ... no longer exists in a wild state
- The page saysIts whole life cycle is complete in approximately 45 days.
- The source says
Its life cycle is completed in approximately 45 days.
- The page saysThe adult moth does not feed, and its only duty is to ensure the conservation of the species.
- The source says
The adult insect does not feed and its only duty is to ensure the conservation of the species.
- The page saysSilk is made of two very fine filaments of a protein called fibroin, which does not dissolve in water. A sticky coat of another protein, sericin, covers both strands.
- The source says
two very fine filaments of a protein substance called fibroin, not soluble in water. The two filaments/strands are coated with a sticky sheath of a protein called sericin.
- The page saysThe larva feeds exclusively on mulberry leaves. The adult moth does not feed at all.
- The source says
In its larval stage this lepidopteran feeds exclusively on mulberry leaves ... The adult insect does not feed
- The page saysOne thread, 1,800 metres long
- The source says
The cocoon is made from a single, highly resistant thread which can be as long as 1,800 metres.
Note: heading - The page saysIn the farmhouses around Rovereto, the noise of silkworm jaws grew into a continuous, deep rumble that made the whole house vibrate.
- The source says
In the big kitchens of these farmhouses ... In the period immediately preceding their climb to the mountages, the silkworms became more and more ravenous. The noise of their jaws grew to become a continuous, deep rumble which made the whole house vibrate ... once so important for the local economy
Note: vibe.reason; reuses the body claim
Source
02
Mohammed & Ayoub 2022
Mohammed & Ayoub (2022). Biology and Behavior of Mulberry Silkworm (Bombyx mori) in Northern Iraq. ISPEC Journal of Agricultural Sciences, FAO AGRIS record.
- The page saysStrains differ: in a 2022 rearing study in northern Iraq, final-stage larvae averaged 5.25 grams.
- The source says
Biology and Behavior of Mulberry Silkworm (Bombyx mori) in Northern Iraq 2022 ... The durations of larval instars (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th) ... Average weight of 4th and 5th instars larvae were 3.45 ± 0.90 g and 5.25 ± 1.25 g respectively
Note: fifth instar is the final one (five instars listed); 'strains differ' because this is the Bursa White strain against the Rovereto board's 4 g - The page saysCocoons in the Iraq study weighed 1.7 to 2.5 grams each.
- The source says
Biology and Behavior of Mulberry Silkworm (Bombyx mori) in Northern Iraq 2022 ... Weight of a single cocoon was 1.7 to 2.5 gm
Note: 2022 study in northern Iraq, Bursa White strain - The page saysThe Iraq study set out to revive rearing there after three decades without it, using silkworms imported from a sericulture centre in Bursa, Turkey.
- The source says
This study was aimed to revive the neglected valuable insect in Iraq after its absent for three decades ... Bombyx mori (Bursa White; ‘Bursa Beyazi’) were imported from Sericulture Center in Bursa, Turkey.
- The page saysIn a 2022 rearing study in northern Iraq, adult males lived an average of 115 hours and adult females 135.5 hours.
- The source says
Biology and Behavior of Mulberry Silkworm (Bombyx mori) in Northern Iraq 2022 ... Adult male longevity was 115.00 ... adult female longevity was 135.50
Note: 'average' is the mean in the +/- format
Source
03
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
Bombyx mori. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.
- The page saysNot Evaluated
- The source says
Bombyx mori is currently not an endangered or threatened species ... IUCN Red List [Link] Not Evaluated
Note: stats.conservationStatus. GBIF's Red List copy holds no category for Bombyx mori and the prefetch found no assessment DOI, so no IUCN reference is cited. The ADW page lists the species as Not Evaluated.
Source
04
Tong et al. 2022
Tong et al. (2022). High-resolution silkworm pan-genome provides genetic insights into artificial selection and ecological adaptation. Nature Communications.
- The page saysReared by people for silk
- The source says
the domestic silkworm ( B. mori ) is a completely domesticated economic insect entirely dependent on humans for survival
Note: stats.habitat; 'for silk' is the economic use the Rovereto board describes (Silk is produced by the larva of the Bombyx mori moth); the no-longer-wild half is the Rovereto claim below. The ADW 'silk industry in Asia and Australia' line was dropped: page last updated 2001, citing Savela 1998 - The page saysIt was domesticated from its wild ancestor, Bombyx mandarina, about 5,000 years ago.
- The source says
was domesticated from its wild ancestor, B. mandarina , ~5000 years ago
Note: ~5000 years ago written as about 5,000 - The page saysCompared with its wild ancestor, the domestic silk moth has lost the ability to fly.
- The source says
behavior differences between B. mori and B. mandarina , such as larval ability to withstand crowding and handling, relatively docile feeding (without a strong drive for finding food), and loss of flight ability
Note: 'wild ancestor' is B. mandarina per the domestication claim above (same paper); flight is an adult trait - The page saysA genome study calls the domestic silkworm a completely domesticated insect that is entirely dependent on humans for survival.
- The source says
the domestic silkworm ( B. mori ) is a completely domesticated economic insect entirely dependent on humans for survival
Source
05
University of Notre Dame College of Science
Hybrid silkworms spin stronger spider silk. University of Notre Dame College of Science.
- The page saysGenetically engineered silkworms carrying both silkworm and spider silk proteins spun fibres tougher than normal silkworm silk and as tough as the dragline silk spiders make, according to a 2012 report from the University of Notre Dame.
- The source says
Published: January 06, 2012 ... transgenic silkworms with both silkworm and spider silk proteins ... Results showed that the fibers were tougher than typical silkworm silk and as tough as dragline silk fibers produced by spiders
How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.