This is a video of an experiment conducted in Soen where a white female silkworm moth is put on a mulberry leaf and the pheromone that it emits attracts a black spotted male Bombyx mandarina moth, the ancestor of silkworm. An hour after the experiment started, the male Bombyx mandarina moth approaches and mates with the female silkworm moth. A second male Bombyx mandarina moth tries to mate with the same female silkworm moth but attached himself to the wrong part of her abdomen. A third male Bombyx mandarina moth flew about the female silkworm moth but quickly leaves without mating.
Both Bombyx mandarina and silkworm are diurnal. During certain time of the year, there are incidents where many Bombyx mandarina moths approach immediately after the pheromone experiment began. Silkworms cannot fly but Bombyx mandarina moths have high flying capability. Although Bombyx mandarina moth and silkworm have an ancestor-descendant relationship, the former is wild while the later is domesticated and there are differences between their behavior and habits. When a Bombyx mandarina moth mates with a silkworm, a future generation is produced. For your information the hybrid of Bombyx mandarina moth and silkworm, F₁, can fly.