The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of Bombyx mori (Latin: "ilkworm of the mulberry tree"), the domesticated silkmoth. A moth in the family Bombycidae, it is very important economically as the producer of silk. It is entirely dependent on humans for its reproduction and no longer occurs naturally in the wild. Sericulture has been practised for at least 5,000 years in China.