Black-banded Crest-moth
S1, Male, dorsal
Black-banded Crest-moth
S2, Female, profile, wings wrapped
Animals
Plants
Info
| Black-banded Crest-moth S1, Male, dorsal | | Black-banded Crest-moth S2, Female, profile, wings wrapped | | ||
Animals Plants Info |
 | Class: | Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) | ||||||||||||
| Order: | Butterflies & Moths (Lepidoptera) | |||||||||||||
| Family: | Geometer (Geometridae:Ennominae:Nacophorini) iNaturalist Observation | |||||||||||||
| Species: | Black-banded Crest-moth (Harpagocnema eremoplana)| This Photo: | S2, Female, dorsal, wings spread | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying and Cathy Powers & Marilyn Hewish for helping with the id of this species for us General Species Information: Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA) and elsewhere ~36mm wingspan, ~14mm long. Originally thought to be Capusa senilis, then Chlenias stenosticha was suggested, when finally Axel was able to provide an appropriate name. The black blotches on it's forewings are more obvious to the naked eye. The sharply pointed, forward facing, thoracis crest can be receded by the moth at will. Possibly a defense mechanism to make it appear more aggressive or larger? Gender can be differentiated by their antennae, with females being thread-like (filiform) & males being shortly bipectinate. Axel said "Seems to fly later, has a heavier body."
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