| It's possible 20 different species can look identical (needing dissection to differentiate); as such many id's here don't go to species level |
| Stat' | Notes | Thumbnails: 2315. 360 native species listed, with 304 from Ellura |
| Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta) | ||||||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Fairy Moth :Adeloidea Adelidae | Dapled Fairy Longhorn Moth Ceromitia cf iolampra | Na a | Head & body ~7mm, wingspan ~15mm. Very long antennae at ~16mm long. As you can see this one is very deformed. We'd suggest the wings didn't form properly in the begining, rather than being crushed later, as they both appear to be very restricted at certain points. Due to it's poor condition, it's difficult to be sure of our id. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Fairy Moth :Adeloidea Adelidae | Black-headed Fairy Longhorn Moth Nemophora laurella iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Ethan Beaver for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Anthelid Moth :Bombycoidea Anthelidae | Toothed Anthelid Anthela basigera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you RattyExplores
for confirming the id of this species for us Id was arrived at by matching on-line photo's. In future we will raise those we find to improve the id. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Anthelid Moth :Bombycoidea Anthelidae | Urticating Anthelid Anthela nicothoe iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Ethan Beaver & Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body ~25mm, wingspan ~70mm. This is a fairly worn specimen. Found in February. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Anthelid Moth :Bombycoidea Anthelidae | Eyespot Anthelid Anthela ocellata | Na a | Found on the ground dead. Wingspan ~45mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Anthelid Moth :Bombycoidea Anthelidae | Ruby Anthelid Anthela rubeola iNaturalist | Na e m r | Thank you Ethan Beaver & Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body of adults is ~20mm, natural wingspan ~57mm, measured wingspan up to ~75mm. Larvae reach up to ~50mm long. While called "Ruby" these can be anything from pale brown/grey through to ruby. Colour variation is not associated with gender. Their legs & palps always seem to have ruby highlights, regardless of wing colour. While males & females have bipectinate antennae, the females have much smaller pectinations. As is typical, the female bodies are much larger (longer & wider) than the males. Notice the contrasting white hairs/scales on the knees. Some larvae were found on Acacia hakeoides & others on Senna artemisioides. The larvae have 5 pairs of prolegs and 3 "real", or thoracic, legs (these are kept to adult, whereas the prolegs are lost). Notice also the spiracles (breathing holes) on their sides which are white, vertical ovals just above the prolegs. We captured a larva in October 2021, which pupated soon after. It then emerged mid-June 2022, providing our first female; ie 8 months pupating. It's interesting to see the cocoon completely obscurs the pupal case. After she emerged we extracted the cocoon and cut it in half to show the solid pupal case inside; which was ~20mm long. The hole they emerge from is tiny, ~5mm round, compared to their body & wing size. We didn't see an adult until May 2018 and suddenly we found around 20 males coming to night lights. We have now photographed 20 adult specimens in May, Jun, Jul & Aug. We have photographed 5 larvae in Oct. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snout Moth :Bombycoidea Lasiocampidae | Gum Snout Moth Entometa guttularis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us ~25mm long, with starkly contrasting red to orange hind wings. Pretty rare in SA. Can be separated from the more usual Entometa fervens by the lack of a dark patch under the hind wing. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snout Moth :Bombycoidea Lasiocampidae | Clear Winged Snout Moth Genduara subnotata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Peter Marriott, Prof Victor W Fazio III† & David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long, ~33mm wingspan. The caterpillars have variations in colour (from grey to brown). The adults reflect blue in artificial light that isn't visible in sunlight, which are camera artefacts Males loose their scales easily to show clear wings. Even the female wings are quite translucent. Both Males & females have large bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments) On 25th April 2017, we caught specimen 8 as a caterpillar and raised her to adult. She was found on Leafless Cherry (Exocarpos aphyllus) and was ~34mm long (ignoring hairy horns). She pupated pretty quickly so was in her final stage as a caterpillar. Notice she is quite white compared with other on-line photo's; which indicates this isn't just wear but a local variation. Possibly due to her food source. Our caterpillars also have a white streak on the back, which is less prominent in most other on-line photo's. The eggs depicted here are assumed to be this species, we didn't raise them to prove they are this species. They were on Exocarpos aphyllus that the caterpillar was found on. We've added photo's of a new larva that was damaged. It turned out to be parasitised by a bristle fly: Fleshfly-mimicking Bristle Fly (Exorista sp) You can see it's injured on the middle of it's back. It exhibited strange behaviour, rearing up bending at the "bruised" area. We suspect it was in pain :-( It started cocooning that day. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snout Moth :Bombycoidea Lasiocampidae | Dryland Sheoak Moth Pernattia chlorophragma iNaturalist | Na r |
Thank you RattyExplores for confirming the id of this species for us ~30mm long. Found in a She-oak area. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snout Moth :Bombycoidea Lasiocampidae | Rusty Snout Moth Symphyta MoV1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~18mm long, ~35mm wingspan. They have very finely scoloped trailing wings, with the points highlighted in black. A very buff looking moth. Usually they sit with their antennae tucked away under their wings, but we got one with it's antennae protruding. We've photographed 15 males that came to night lights in Nov, Dec & Jan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snout Moth :Bombycoidea Lasiocampidae | Black Striked Snout Moth Symphyta MoV2 iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 1 as Symphyta sp. (2) The female was larger with head & body ~17mm, wingspan ~38mm. Males have head & body ~15mm, wingspan ~31mm. While both genders have bipectinate antennae, you can see from the photo's the males have much larger antennae (in proportion to body size) than the females. Also notice the males have a much more contrasting colour scheme with blacks & whites, rather than the more drab greys & browns of the female. Very similar to Symphyta oxygramma; the differences are unclear. It seems S. oxygramma has brown antennae pectinations while this one has black pectinations. S. oxygramma is known from Broken Hill NSW & WA, indicating NW Victoria & the arid regions of SA are also likely locations for it to be found. Similar to the Genduara subnotata above, these have thin, translucent wings. We photographed 10 specimens (1F, 9M) from April to May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Emperor Moth :Bombycoidea Saturniidae | Helena Gum Moth Opodiphthera helena | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Hawk Moth :Bombycoidea Sphingidae | Convolvulus Hawk Moth Agrius convolvuli iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Dianne Clarke for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Hawk Moth :Bombycoidea Sphingidae | Vine Hawk Moth Hippotion celerio iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Stewart Tomlinson (Stomlins701) & Dr Bostjan Dvorak for confirming the id of this species for us ~40mm long & ~72mm wingspan. Note the fine hairs on the antennae making this a male. Also not the stunning hot pink hindwings & orange racing stripes down the side of the thorax. One specimen found in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Hawk Moth :Bombycoidea Sphingidae | Scrofa Hawk Moth Hippotion scrofa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Matt Campbell, Prof Victor W Fazio III†, David Muirhead & Dr Bostjan Dvorak for confirming the id of this species for us ~35mm long & ~70mm wingspan. Came to night light. Female as it has no hairs/pectinations/filaments on the antennae. While not obvious, the male does have tiny ones as can be seen in the photo's here. Stunning red or orange (depending on specimen) hind wings. Two specimens found in Jan & Mar. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Hawk Moth :Bombycoidea Sphingidae | Desert Hawk Moth Hopliocnema brachycera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III†, Stewart Tomlinson (Stomlins701) & Dr Bostjan Dvorak for confirming the id of this species for us These are small for Hawk Moths. ~20-23mm long & ~41-49mm wingspan. Female antennae are bipectinate, but easily mistaken for filiform as the pectinations/teeth are so short. Males have a strange antennae structure. Officially they are bipectinate (2 "teeth" off each antennal segment, with larger "teeth" than females), but compared with other bipectinate antennae they are very complex; as can be seen in the photo's. We would actually class them as quad-pectinate (4 main "teeth" per antenna segment). The pectinations are more like fans rather than individual teeth or filaments. The latin "pectin" means comb, implying the bipectinate antennae are like combs with two rows of teeth. The antennae also appear to be two coloured; with white scales covering on top, and ochre brown under. In fact the ochre brown is the colour of the antennae and the white scales can wear off. They are nearly impossible to distinguish from the other species in the genus. Their hindwings are diagnostic and are basically white (to pale grey) with some possible horizontal striping. H. ochra has a deeply coloured, orange, discal spot on the forewings. While H. brachycera's spot can be grey to beige, it's not orange. H. lacunosa is harder to separate from H. brachycera with a darker strip on the inner margin of the hind wing. H. lacunosa seems restricted to a small area in the South of WA. H. ochra is in the north of SA, as well as WA & NT. H. brachycera is found in all mainland States. There is a chestnut/red tinge to the ventral abdomen scales. The body has a black tuft behind the shoulders, between the wings, that shows in the profile shots. The forewing lines look somewhat variable in shape. When the scales wear off on the their abdomen, their skin looks green. We have included a large number of photo's to show the differences between individuals; as well as when worn. We have photographed 13 specimens, 11 Males (Nov, Dec & Jan), 2 Females (Nov & Dec) plus eggs. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Hawk Moth :Bombycoidea Sphingidae | Australian Striped Hawk Moth Hyles livornicoides iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Stephen Fricker for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Sun Moth :Castnioidea Castniidae | Orange-spotted Sun Moth Synemon parthenoides ssp parthenoides iNaturalist | Na a |
Similar Species: Klug's Xenica (Geitoneura klugii) Thank you Ethan Beaver for confirming the id of this species for us A very special thank you to Rusty Ryder for taking us to their location and pointing them out to us. In flight they looked very much like the brown butterflies around at the time. If Rusty wasn't there to point them out to us, we wouldn't have noticed them, just thinking they were fast flying brown butterflies. A most unusual moth in that their antennae are the same as a butterflies, clubbed on the end; plus never sits with it's wings vertically together like butterflies. As we weren't able to catch one, we have no size information, but they were smaller than the Klug's Xenica. Similar to Synemon sophia (another sun moth species). We suspect the 4th photo shows a female as the body is fatter & not as elongated as the other 3 (possibly males?). Notice the iridescence on the leading edge of the forewings (which disappears easily with a slight tilt) as well as along the trailing edge of all wings. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Undescribed Wood Moth Archaeoses ANIC1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us This is figured on Bold as Archaeoses ANIC1 We've photographed 14 specimens, varying in size between 14mm up to 21mm head & body length. It seems the larger ones have fatter bodies and suspect them to be females; with the shorter, slimmer ones males. All were found in March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Tufted Wood Moth Archaeoses pentasema iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Leon Crang for confirming and Don Herbison-Evans & Peter Marriott for helping with the id of this species for us A most unusual species, ~20mm long. While it seemed this was a northern species we have now shown it exists in the south; along with A. polygrapha. We had 4 specimens come to a night light over a couple of days. We asked Don Herbison-Evans for his thoughts and he agrees it looks more like A. pentasema than A. polygrapha. He then gave us some reading to do from the original descriptions by Lower. It was hard going and to be honest the only diagnostic we felt we could be truly certain of as a reliable difference was the antennae "base beneath sharply white". You can see this on both ventral & anterior photo's. The abdomen is generally darker with this one as well. Surprisingly the ventral abdomenal black stripe wasn't mentioned anywhere. Peter Marriott (who heads up the "Moths of Victoria" team and has helped us in the past), saw this page and kindly told us that they have records of A. pentasema in North Western Victoria. We share a lot of species with North Western Victoria; suddenly it's not such a surprise to have them at Ellura now Peter also showed us 3 specimens collected there and ours match up beautifully with those Further Peter let us know they feed on Myoporum, common trees on Ellura. We photographed 11 specimens in Feb, March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Southern Wood Moth Culama australis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~18mm long | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Singed Wood Moth Culama crepera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us ~15mm long, ~36mm wingspan. Very Dark Grey. 1st image attempts to show correct colour, others are lighter to highlight the lines & patterns. It came to a night light & sheet. Found one specimen in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Wood Moth Endoxyla amphiplecta iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying, Axel Kallies for confirming and Mark Ridgeway for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Marie found this large moth being attacked by small ants. Unsure of what was going on, we put her in a container, but couldn't get the ants off (being those tiny minute ones). Brought her back to the van and found eggs in the container. Using tweezers we got the ants off, which gave her some relief. Realising she was gravid took her out into a big pot full of local soil. She immediately started to push her ovipositor into the soil and "rippled" as she pushed eggs out (we assume). Clearly she can't fly, but has wings. A more technical term for reduced winged, flightless insects is "Brachypterous". Finding the female takes a keen observer and is a rare find, while males are not so rare. A very worn and battered specimen making 100% identification impossible. But given her body & head size of ~60mm and being in SA, E. amphiplecta seems to fit the best. She's not as dirty as she looks; the "dirt" is actually her only remaining scales she has left. Her damaged wings were ~25mm long, body width approx 10mm, giving a wingspan of ~60mm. Since Ethan id'ed the female, we found a male of what we think is this species. Again, it's difficult to be sure with this genus and the amount of wear they endure; possibly extracting themselves from the pupal tube. The male has head & body ~26mm, wingspan ~45mm (under half her size). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Wood Moth Endoxyla coscinophanes | Na m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us As with all these Endoxylas, id to species for amateurs is nearly impossible; due to wear & the variable nature of their patterns. We are lucky to have experts help us with our id's for these difficult to id species. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Witchetty Grub Endoxyla leucomochla iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~190mm wingspan. One huge female found in November | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Arid Wood Moth Endoxyla punctifimbria iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying and Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us We found 2 Males, one was ~45mm long, wingspan ~90mm; the other ~35mm long & wingspan ~62mm. A huge difference in size. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Ellura's Wood Moth Endoxyla sp iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Ethan Beaver & Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body ~73mm, wingspan ~140mm or wider (hard to say as she lost her wing tips) A number of Endoxyla females are flightless with reduced wings (brachypterous). But with this species the female has fully developed wings. Notice how the female has brown & white striped hindwings, where as the male has all white hindwings. Neither Axel nor Ethan recognised this species we get regularly on Ellura. We originally thought it was close to E. encalypti, but Ethan said "I have never seen E. encalypti in SA, I doubt that occurs here." Axel also said "Pretty sure that is not E. lituratus" We have photographed 15 specimens (4 females) in Nov, Dec & Jan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wood Moth :Cossoidea Cossidae | Small Wood Moth Sympycnodes arachnophora | Na e m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us Head & body ~22mm, wingspan ~40mm. We previously thought this was Sympycnodes epicycla. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Fringe-tufted Moth :Epermenioidea Epermeniidae | Shark moth Epermenia cf exilis | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Seed Borer :Gelechioidea Cosmopterigidae | Cosmet Moth Limnaecia camptosema iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you David Akers for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Seed Borer :Gelechioidea Cosmopterigidae | Burnt Cosmet Moth Macrobathra cf alternatella | Na e m | We didn't get to catch this one, so didn't get size details nor ventral shots. Small It's white striped antennae are very distinctive, while the white wing patches are quite variable. Found in November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Seed Borer :Gelechioidea Cosmopterigidae | Lined Cosmet Moth Macrobathra harmostis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dion Maple for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Seed Borer :Gelechioidea Cosmopterigidae | Tufted Moth Trachydora sp | Na e m |
Estimated wingspan from the flyscreen is ~12mm. A small moth with a number of tufted scales on the back, with orange bases, and the trailing forewings are turned up when at rest. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Black-spotted Moth :Gelechioidea Ethmiidae | Black-spotted Moth Ethmia anthracopis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Black-spotted Moth :Gelechioidea Ethmiidae | Black-spotted Moth Ethmia eupostica iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Twig Moth :Gelechioidea Hypertrophidae | Southern Twig Moth Thudaca calliphrontis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Head & body ~7mm, wingspan ~20mm. Known as an SA species, it has also been found in Perth. This is the most easterly location we can find, which suggests it might also exist in Victoria. 2 specimens found in October & November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Twig Moth :Gelechioidea Hypertrophidae | Satin Twig Moth Thudaca campylota iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Head & body ~7mm, wingspan ~20mm. The first example is a very worn and old specimen. It is normally much more yellow, as can be seen by the following shots. We've photographed 3 specimens, all in November | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tropical Longhorned Moth :Gelechioidea Lecithoceridae | Tropical Longhorned Moth Crocanthes glycina iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long with antennae slightly longer than the body, ~18mm wingspan. Seems to be completely out of place in this parched semi-arid environment. They are found all along the Eastern Seaboard. There are some near Perth, which makes it look cosmopolitan (ie human transported) but they actually have different DNA. We've never seen a moth with palps that are actually rolled up! Came to night light sheet. Found one in April | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Brown Concealer Moth Barea codrella iNaturalist | Na e m | Tiny little moth, it's sitting on a 22" computer screen and the squares in the background are screen pixels. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Colourful Timber Moth Brachybelistis blackburnii iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying and Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long, ~37mm wingspan We thought this might be Brachybelistis pentachroa, but Axel said these "dont have yellow hindwings" | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Calico Stem-borer Moth Cryptophasa ochroleuca | Na e m a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Ladder-marked Twirler Moth Diapatela semophanes iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Pink-edged Modest Moth Garrha absumptella iNaturalist | Na e m | ~9mm long, wings eged with a pink ting, with the inner area covered in brown with dark brown dapples. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Plain Modest Moth Garrha carnea | Na e m | Head & body ~8mm, wingspan ~24mm. Like most Garrha, a flattened moth at rest, with very large up-curved palps, large eyes and scales that look like eyelashes above. A vague dark brown dappled on pale brown appearance. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Pink Modest Moth Garrha pudica iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Brown House Moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella iNaturalist | If a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | 3 Lined 3 Spotted Moth Meioglossa pentochra | Na e m |
A small but distinctive moth. We haven't caught one as yet, but estimate to be around 4-5mm. The palps are long and upcurved, with a dark base and light brown top. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Wirling-marked Concealer Moth Oenochroa dinosema iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for identifying this species for us Peter said "The small posterior crest on the thorax is a feature of Oenochroa and nicely shown in your photo. Specimens of dinosema from the Mt Lofty Ranges typically have more orange-brown scales on the forewing but I can see a smattering of them in this specimen." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Spotted-body Concealer Moth Pachybela maculisarca iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you D H Fischer (dhfischer) for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Purple-sheen Concealer Moth Philobota ancylotoxa | Na e m |
Similar Species: Small Concealer Moth (Philobota sp ES05) According to Don Herbison-Evans, the wingspan of these is ~25mm where as the very similar Isomoralla curriculata (which we thought this was) has a wingspan of ~15mm. These look satiny with a purple sheen on the dark markings. Philobota ancylotoxa is in the same Bold BIN as P. biophora, meaning they are the same species. But that hasn't been picked up th AFD yet. Measured wingspan of 3 we captured, ~23-28mm . We found these in September & October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Pale Concealer Moth Philobota partitella iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Head & body is ~8mm long, with a wingspan of ~24mm. We have found specimens in May, Sept & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Dash Dot Concealer Moth Philobota sp ES01 | Na e m a | Head & body is ~8mm long, with a wingspan of ~21mm. We have found specimens in Apr, July, Aug (most), Oct & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Brown Ground Moth Philobota sp ES02 | Na e m | Thank you Glenn Cocking for identifying and Peter Marriott for helping with the id of this species for us Head & body ~10mm, wingspan ~13mm. Peter said "I have just got an email from Glenn Cocking in Canberra about our flightless gelechioid. He says there was a similar image from a local up there and he tracked down some similar things, also from Canberra, in the ANIC collection. They were from the 1940s to the 1960s, all collected in May, unnamed and placed in the Philobota." Marie found this flightless female, with reduced wings, walking around the floor of the annex. While we knew it was a Gelechioidea from it's upcurved pointy palps, we hadn't relised they had flightless females. After searching extensively on-line we found nothing like it. Very excited we asked Peter, who responded with the above. The reduced wings make the legs look very long. Initially though it was a long legged fly running around. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | White Ground Moth Philobota sp ES03 | Na e m | After Marie found the amazing flightless female above, I couldn't let her have all the fun! So within a week found one myself (couldn't believe I got so lucky!). Turns out it's a different species. It looks much larger, but is the same size at ~10mm long and ~13mm wingspan. We couldn't find any hindwings however. They must exist, but one assumes are so reduced that they are not visible (even though the forewings can be seen clear of the body). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Ellura's Ground Moth Philobota sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m | Eagle eyed Marie spied these two moths mating on the ground. We realised she had found another different species of female Ground Moth, but this time with the male to now tie the two gender descriptions together. These two have gone off to ANIC where Glenn Cocking is comparing them to other specimens to see if the male can give us a genus / species; with more confidence than the previously assumed Philobota. Male: ~12m long, ~27mm wingspan. Female:~8mm long, ~7mm wingspan We believe this one to be a different species to the other two. While similar pattens to Philobota sp ES03, the female has shorter wings here. We were keen on seeing if she'd lay eggs. After a night in a large enclosure filled with damp soil & various plants, fungi & lichen she was exhaused and had worn off all her scales. When we did see her moving it was to try to dig into the soil. The lack of scales showed an amazing horn on her face, previously hidden by scales. It seems P. sp ES03 has this as well, but it's not clear. One can only assume the horn aides her in digging in soil; again assuming that's where she lays her eggs. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Small Concealer Moth Philobota sp ES05 iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Purple-sheen Concealer Moth (Philobota ancylotoxa) Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying and Dr Bevan Buirchell for helping with the id of this species for us Philobota ancylotoxa looks very similar but has a wingspan of ~25mm. These look quite dull, without any glossy/satiny sheen. Given the flyscreen is ~1.25mm, this is much closer to 15mm wingspan. We thought this was Isomoralla curriculata (which is very variable), but after much discussion we decided Axel was correct; primarily because pinned examples of Isomoralla curriculata don't have the dark costal band. We photographed 5 specimens in Aug, Sept & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Streaked Concealer Moth Phloeograptis obliquata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Thomas Mesaglio for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long and ~18mm wingspan. Black streaked on beige/grey background. The underside of the palps are black. While we often find Victorian & WA species not recorded on Atlas in SA before it's very unusual & surprising to find a predominantly a Qld species here. We have found a Qld fly, due to human factors; so wonder if similar factors have bought this species down to SA. Or if it's just rare here? It does seem pretty rare any way with only 12 sightings on Atlas. Found 3 specimens in Sept & Feb. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Crawling Concealer Moth Pilostibes serpta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying and Ian McMillan for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oecophorid Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae | Bud Borer Moth Stathmopoda sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for identifying this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Shadow Wingia Moth Catacometes hemiscia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Record in SA on Atlas: ~8mm long. We photographed 2 specimens in Jan & Mar. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Shaded Wingia Moth Eochrois sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for identifying this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Rusty Wingia Moth Euchaetis ANIC34 | Na e m | This is figured on Bold as Euchaetis sp ANIC34. Head & body ~8mm, wingspan ~11mm. A very attractive little moth, with pink edged, rust coloured wings. As is typical with Gelid moths, the palps are upturned finishing in a point. The antennae are quite unusual; nearly invisible bipectinate, but more hairy rather than the normal twig like, visible structure. Found in June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Gall Wingia Moth Euchaetis metallota | Na e m | Head & body ~7.5mm, wingspan ~20mm; quite small compared to the 25mm stated elsewhere, but sizes can vary significantly with moths. Caterpillars of this moth are found in Eucalypt stem galls. It's hard to say if the pink highlights are artificial (due to flash), or an angle specific trait. Different photo's of the same specimen show high variations of this highlight colour. The antennae of the male have very long, fine, nearly invisible pectination pairs (quad-pectinate) per segment. A species complex with two known DNA different colonies, one in Perth, with the other on the East Cost. We don't know if this is a third, or belongs to one of the two mentioned. Found in early October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Pale Wingia Moth Euchaetis sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for identifying and Rog Standen for helping with the id of this species for us We thought it was a Large Concealer (Ptyoptila matutinella). Peter said "A reasonable fit is to the genus Euchaetis. These are robust oecophorids with the costa of the forewing often outlined in pinkish red and some pinkish tones on the forelegs. Some are rather plain but others are patterned. It looks like less than half the "species" are formally named." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Hollow Twig Wingia Moth Hemibela hemicalypta iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Ken Harris for identifying and Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Using a similar strategy to case moths, the caterpillars of this genera hollow out a twig and carry it around. As you can see in the photo's they then pupate inside it. The twig is much smaller than the moth that emerges from it. We found a hollow twig on a small grass tip (thought it was an insect) and realised it was a case glued to the grass, with the grass growing through it. A few days later we found another, thinking it was a case moth, with the end stuck to our poly rainwater tank. We put them in a container and couldn't believe what came out when they emerged. Body ~7mm, wingspan ~17mm. The twigs are 11-12mm long, ~2mm outside diam & ~1.5mm inside diameter. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | White Wingia Moth Ocystola sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long, wingspan ~19mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Wingia Moth :Gelechioidea Oecophoridae Wingia | Red-bodied Wingia Moth Tortricopsis semijunctella iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body is ~10mm, with a wingspan of ~13mm. Very red body, with pale orange highlights and hind-wings. The fore-wings are pale brown, darkening at the edges with red speckles in the trailing margin. The red scales around the base of palps give this species a wedge-nosed appearance. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Glorious Bark Moth Cleora injectaria iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for identifying this species for us Matt said "I followed a lot of the lines on various RG sightings and while it appears to be highly variable, the spots are always in the same spot." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Bark Moth Cleora MoV3 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying this species for us Wingspan ~33mm, head & body length ~13mm. This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 7 as Cleora sp. (3) We thought this was Cleora displicata, but Marilyn said "more likely to be Cleora sp. (3) in MoV7. It's plainer and paler and has straighter lines than the other possibilities. Sp. (3) is a desert species." The under-wing patterns are reminiscent of the red-line Geometrid; without the red-line. But the dorsal wing patterns are quite different. Photographed 5 Males in Jan, Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Thick-lined Bark Moth Didymoctenia exsuperata iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Cryptic Bark Moth Gastrinodes argoplaca iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Males ~12mm long, ~34mm wingspan The hindwings mimic the forewings along the inner margin (body edge), with dark scalloping along the outer margin (trailing edge), but then fade to plain brown in the middle. We photographed 4 males in Mar, Apr & Aug. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Undescribed Bark Moth Gastrinodes MoV1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm Long with Wingspan ~42mm. Wingspan can be a subjective measurement. We measure the wing length + body width to arrive at our wingspans. eg here 19mm wing length x 2 + body with of 4mm. However, the natural wingspan here is 31mm, ie it's naturally sitting with it's wings open. That's a HUGE difference. Yet the wing span of dead specimens is measure with their wings fully outstretched; as they are "set" to show the hindwings. Plus the majority of moths don't sit with their wings open, naturally. Usually they are closed, with wings "wrapped" around the body. As such, to compare one species of moth to another, the "naturally" sitting wingspan is of little use. The individual wing lengths + body width meathod, should also compare favourably with those measurements of dead specimens with wings fully outstretched (which is where most official wing span measurements derive). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Grey Bark Moth Lipogya eutheta | Na e m | Head & body ~11mm, wingspan ~14mm. Males have obvious bipectinate antennae, where as females have filiform. Has 2 scale tufts on the back of it's neck. One specimen found in September. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Grey Bark Moth Lipogya exprimataria iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long and wingspan of ~22mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Tufted Bark Moth Lipogya leucoprosopa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying and Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm head & body length, with approx 22mm wingspan. Most interesting with this species is the raised scale tufts behind the head. Almost impossible to see in dorsal view without a flash reflecting off them. The flash shows them to be metallic and a dark gold colour. In some views it appears to be a single horn, but elsewhere you can see it's two distinct tufts leaning toward each other. As the smaller scales wear down, the tufts become more visible. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Undescribed Bark Moth Lipogya MoV1 | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for confirming the id of this species for us This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 7 as Lipogya sp. (1), from 2011 It is also figured on Bold as Lipogya EF01, from 2012. ~11mm long & wingspan ~26mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Dark Desert Bark Moth Psilosticha loxoschema iNaturalist | Na e m |
Similar Species: Spider-mimicking Moth (Zermizinga sinuata) Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body is ~9mm long, with a wingspan of ~28mm. Very similar wing patterns to our Spider-mimicking moth males, but the antennae are very different. Here they are weakly bipectinate, and the females are not flightless; looking like the males. Photographed 11 in Jan, Mar, Apr, May & Jul. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Dryland Bark Moth Scioglyptis sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying and Axel Kallies for helping with the id of this species for us ~10mm long & 28mm wingspan. Males have very large bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae, where as the females have thin thread-like antennae. We thought this was Scioglyptis loxographa, but Marilyn Hewish kindly advised otherwise. They are quite similar, and MoV (Moths of Victoria) Part 7 has excellent images of the diagnostic differences. This is a worn specimen making id difficult. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Looper Moth Syneora AH06 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us An undescribed species, but still included in the CSIRO database; the initials AH refer to Axel Hausmann. Males have bi-pectinate antennae, females have filimorm. Axel said "Clearly the same species, "Syneora" sp Ah06. However, I have no doubt that it is misplaced. I dont think it is even vaguely related to Syneora." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Boarmiini | Spider-mimicking Moth Zermizinga sinuata iNaturalist | Na e m |
Similar Species: Dark Desert Bark Moth (Psilosticha loxoschema) Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying, Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Karen Weaving for confirming and Dr Ken Walker for helping with the id of this species for us The flightless females are ~8mm long, wingspan ~10mm; more grey on top, browner underneath. Unlike female clouded footmen, these do have wings. They are reduced and can't produce flight. When we first saw her the fore-wings were resting along the side as well as the hind-wings, but they stayed out the whole time we were photographing. At first we thought we saw a spider on the flyscreen, but were stunned to find it was a moth. We have found 11 males (so far), in every season, with most over winter (June/July). We've only found 2 females in October. Males are quite variable in colour. Body & head length is up to ~10mm, wingspan up to ~30mm We find the process of identification easier to start with a darker one and work back to the paler / worn specimens. Males also have an unusual "scarf" around the neck, which was most evident on S7, which was also one of the paler specimens. The scarf stands up as the head is bent down. A more technical term for reduced winged, flightless insects is "Brachypterous". The males of these are very similar to Ectropis excursaria males. The antennae here seem to have longer pectinations. The females are easy to separate out as Ectropis females have wings. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Lithinini | Bracken Moth Idiodes apicata | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Lithinini | Acute Point Moth Unplaced biplaga | Na a |
Interesting situation. It's been taken out of the taxon tree because someone believed it didn't belong where it was; but then didn't place it somewhere else. Currently under "Lithinini" on Atlas, and Azelina biplaga on iNaturalist. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Macariini | Flame Geometrid Paramelora lychnota iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you LifeIsAmazing for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body ~11mm, wingspan ~14mm. Males are obviously bipectinate (ie very long pectinations), while females are filiform and have a tendancy to loose antennae. This species is very variable in both line shape and colour. Notice in S7 the dark line towards the back of the wing is much flatter than the other specimens. Similarly S8 appears almost hairy compared to the others. Looking at the DNA bin for this species on Bold, we can see that a number of different species (even Dichromodes) are found in this bin (ie so close to be considered one species). As such, the variation is extensive; far more than shown here. Atlas still shows P. ammophila as a species, yet no records for it. Perhaps the DNA work has thrown into question their placement and work needs to be done to properly understand what is going on. Found 8 males & 2 females, from June to mid September. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Macariini | Dusky-barred Geometrid Paramelora zophodesma | Na e m | Head & body ~12mm, wingspan ~14mm. Male antennae are bipectinate, females filiform. Like their close relations, the Flame Geometrid, these have small red flecks; individual scales that are red. S2 has an unusual line which runs around most of the of the wing edges. Found 2 females on one night in October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Macariini | Dodonaea Moth Parosteodes fictiliaria iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us Head & body ~13mm, wingspan ~32mm. A HIGHLY variable moth, making id for ameteurs like ourselves difficult. The MoV books have helped us immensely with separating these out from other unidentified Geometrids Males have very finely bipectinate antennae, nearly invisible, which makes the antennae look thicker in males. As such, gender determination is very difficult with less than macro photography or a ventral view. These are one of the few species where colour can change with age as a pinned specimen. Colour & pattern variations are not gender based. 10 Specimens found in Jan, Feb, Apr, May, Sept & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Orange-ribbed Cape-moth Amelora ANIC17 iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: ~25mm wingspan & ~10mm long. Males have bipectinate antennae, females have filiform antennae. This is figured on Bold as Amelora sp ANIC17 An undescribed, yet known about, moth. All the mainland amelora need work and this may finish up under another genera when it's eventually described. We have photographed 2 of these on consecutive night, both females; in late March & early April. The 2nd laid eggs in the pot which were a little over 0.5mm in diameter. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Banded Cape-moth Amelora ANIC6 iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Broken-banded Cape-moth (Loweria platydesma) Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~28mm wingspan & ~10mm long. Males have bipectinate antennae, females have filiform antennae. This is figured on Bold as Amelora ANIC6 This is very similar to Rusty-banded Cape-moth (Amelora mesocapna), but notice the wing tips are rounded here. With A. mesocapna the wing tips are more pointed. With many of the Amelora genera, there are very similar species with cross over in appearance. Plus they have not been described on the mainland. Other gerera are also very similar and worth looking at; Androchela, Furcatrox & Loweria (which in time will all be presented in this web-site). As such, many of the names here use "cf" to indicate it "looks like" but can't be sure of it's labelled identity. We have photographed 6 of these with only 1 male, the other 5 females; in April & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Ribbon Cape-moth Amelora belemnophora iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Peaked Cape-moth (Amelora cf ceraunia) Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Specimens 3 & 4, shown here, are rather different. S4 is probably fresh, with little scale loss. Whereas S3 is quite worn. Regardless, S4 is a darker morph which also shows in the darker edging under both wings. S3 is also quite a bit smaller at ~10mm body & head length (~26mm wingspan), with S4 at ~12mm body & head length (~32mm wingspan). S7 is in-between and showed it's hindwing rather nicely. We present S3 & S4 fully to help show the normal variations you can see with moths within one species. In profile, you can see the missing scales of S3 make them look quite different. We found 9 male specimens between late April & early June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Peaked Cape-moth Amelora cf ceraunia | Na e m | Similar Species: Ribbon Cape-moth (Amelora belemnophora) Head & body ~12mm, wingspan ~25mm. Very similar to Ribbon Cape-moth (both the forewing lines & DNA on Bold). These also have a crest which isn't normal for Amelora. It's possible these are just pale Ribbon Cape-moths, but they do seem to have a discal spot; hence our presumption they are different. We have found 6 specimens, all males, between mid May & early June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Crescent Cape-moth Amelora idiomorpha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~11m long & 27mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae, where as females have thin thread-like antennae. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Gold-lined Cape-moth Amelora MoV5 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 5 as Amelora sp. (5) | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Variable Cape-moth Amelora MoV8 | Na e m | This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 5 as Amelora sp. (8) Head & body ~10mm, wingspan ~31mm. Males have bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments), while females (shown here) have thread-like antennae (filiform). There is no horn projection on it's face. The MoV books stress that mainland Amelora species need work and will probably be moved into new genera, as Dr Peter McQuillan did for Tasmanian in 1996. One female found in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Orange-spotted Cape-moth Amelora sp ES01 | Na e m | Common names with moths can often be important descriptors. Here we thought this was Pointed Cape-moth (Amelora demistis). However, the wings aren't pointed, ruling that species out. NB: none of the identifications on this web site have been determined scientifically (ie by dissection). They are based on visual clues, which can be very missleading with invertebrates. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Fine-veined Geometrid Amphicrossa hemadelpha | Na e m | Similar Species: Tufted Double-spot Moth (Epicyrtica cf MoV3) Males & females have bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae; however the female antennae pectinations are so short they look filiform. Above their shoulders are 2 rows of scales that form a crest. Behind there neck is a tuft of scales forming another crest. They seem to wear easily so these crests & tufts are often not easy to distinguish. The patterns also wear adding to our confusion. Generally their forwings have a wing pattern that reminds us of an elongated/stylised map of Australia. They have varying amounts of white highlights outlining the black lines & streaks. The black lines also vary in intensity, and quantity; with usually 2 main ones forming the "map" and at times a 3rd in-between, with less occationally only one. They often have 2 brown patches, and other brown streaks and flecks confusing the patterns. Their hindwings always have 2 dark discal spots underneath (which isn't visible above), but can have more forming a jagged line towards the outer margin (which is visible above and below). Their hindwing outer margins are also mildly scalloped, with the forewings less so. With this amount of variation it always concerns us we have different species. Without disecion we can't be certain, but on balance and a lot of consideration we think these are all one and the same. These are also a surprise for us, as they're very common in Autumn here, but rare on-line. We recorded 39 sightings between 15th April & 20th June (over 5 years). 33 males, with 6 females scattered through the flight time. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Four-spot Cape-moth Androchela milvaria iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~11 to ~16mm long & wingspan ~21 to ~28mm. Males have bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae, females have filiform. Their colour can vary from brown to red The 2 lateral lines are made up of spots, that can be joined with dark shading. Between the lines can be the same colour as the rest of the wings or a darker band. Often each of the trailing spots are shadowed by a light spot. As the name suggests, there is supposed to be a large central black spot on all four wings, however, this can be quite small. Incredibly variable. We found 10 specimens (2 Female, 8 Male) in April & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Pale-bordered Cape-moth Authaemon stenonipha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | White-winged Wedge-moth Capusa cf cuculloides | Na e m f | Head & body ~18mm, wingspan ~32mm. The lack of black on the trailing edge of the hind wing means this isn't C. senilis | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Grey Crest-moth Chlenias banksiaria | Na e m | Head & body ~15mm, wingspan ~43mm. This is a species complex; meaning there are different species in the group that match the known diagnositcs. A revision of the species needs to be done to determine new diagnostics to split the group into separate species. Both genders have bipectinate antennae, however the pectinations are tiny on the female looking like filiform antennae to the naked eye, or the wrong angle. The Nisista MoV3, shown below, is our most common crest moth. It's difficult to find the few of these rarer species amongst the hoards of the others. We found 2 specimens, both in May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Black-banded Crest-moth Chlenias stenosticha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying and Cathy Powers & Axel Kallies for helping with the id of this species for us ~36mm wingspan, ~14mm long. 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. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Forked Grass-moth Ciampa arietaria iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Anthony Paul & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us A common moth which has some unique characteristics. The larva curl up at the base of plants looking like new, unfurled leaves. The adults have a forked horn projection out the front of it's head. It's hairless and not part of the palps; a separate structure. Males & females have bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae. The male pectinations are very long, while the female's are very short. We have photographed 17 specimens. 4 Larvae in July & Aug, 5 males in Apr & May and 7 females in Apr (one indeterminate gender in May). This indicates they "hibernate" as eggs over winter, spring & summer, hatching in early autumn and finishing their life cycle before winter sets in. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | White-lined Grass-moth Ciampa heteromorpha | Na e m |
Head & body ~12mm, wingspan ~28mm. Note that, like the related Forked Grass-moth, this species also has a facial horn; diamond shaped. As with others in the genus, both genders have bipectinate (2 rowed) antennae, where the males pectinations are long & the females are short. One specimen found in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Black-twisted Grass-moth Ciampa melanostrepta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Notice these have a small knobbly horn. Males & females have bipectinate antennae, with the males having very long pectinations. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Ash-grey Geometrid Corula geometroides iNaturalist | Na e m |
Similar Species: Stippled Line-moth (Smyriodes trigramma) Thank you Ralph Foster, Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 2 specimens photographed in Apr & Aug. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Black-edged Geometrid Cycloprorodes melanoxysta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Andy Young & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Photo on Atlas 1st Sighting in SA since 1891: Male ~14mm long & ~35mm wingspan. Female ~12mm long & ~35mm wingspan. So similar size, with females have a shorter stout body. Males & females are both bipectinate, however, the male pectinations are noticably long than the females. Note the colour variation from rust red, through orange to pale brown. This is not gender specific, just individual variation. All these were photographed at Ellura, so it's also independant of location. We've photographed 10 specimens from early May to early June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Dry-country Line-moth Dysbatus sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies & Craig Polkinghorne for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long. Bipectinate antennae, with the females having smaller pectinations than the males. We thought this was Dysbatus singularis, but Axel said "This is an undescribed species, also common in NW Victoria" Found one Female in Jan | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Orange-hooded Crest-moth Fisera eribola iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Stephen Fricker for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long, ~46mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate anetennae, females have filiform antennae. We photographed 4 Males in April | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Russet Crest-moth Fisera MoV2 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Craig Polkinghorne for confirming the id of this species for us This is figured in Moths of Victoria part 5 as Fisera sp. (2) The hindwings trail with a dirty purple band underneath. A brown speckled cream body. Males have bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments), while females (shown here) have thread-like antennae (filiform). The front legs are brown, while the rear 4 are white. A fairly large moth with a wingspan of ~50mm and body & head length of ~16mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Pale Crest-moth Fisera phricotypa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long, ~45mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate anetennae, females have filiform antennae. Note the black line on the edge of the thoracic crest. Not all have the dark zig-zag line on the forewings. We photographed 1 Male & 1 Female in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Maroon-spot Cape-moth Furcatrox serrula | Na e m | Head & body ~11mm, wingspan ~28mm. Males have bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments), while females (shown here) have thread-like antennae (filiform). We have been surprised to discover so many Geomotrids with horns on their faces; which can be diagnostic. This one looked like it had a horn but on closer inspection looks like scales associated with the palps; we can't be sure as we are looking at things so small they are on the limits of our camera resolution. One female found in April (which may be significant as the MoV records indicate January). Also MoV indicates NSW, Vic & Tas distribution (wet regions), so perhaps we have this wrong? | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Frosty Cape-moth Hypsitropha ANIC1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Glenn Cocking for identifying, Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming and Peter Marriott & Matt Campbell for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~25mm wingspan. Males have thinner body & bipectinate antennae. Females have filiform antennae. They have a very distinctive. Top of body is pale orange/brown which is a bit unusual. There are 4 specimens shown on bold, all of which were found on the 30th Apr 1968. As such, they are rarely seen, or not well known and not recognised in collections. It's also possible they have a very short adult life. We've only seen them on one night in a season, and if not looking on that night they'd be missed. Photographed 15 specimens (9 males, 4 female) at the night light in April & early May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Brown-marbled Geometrid Lophosticha psorallodes | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying this species for us While we got to genus with these, we couldn't quite assign the correct species. When Marilyn kindly id'ed them for us she said "S6 is obvious. The others are trickier." In her determination she used the marbled background on the forewings (plain with distinct fine lines in S1), the line shapes and the distinctly banded cilia, dark-brown and white. As a general mothing guide; she also said "wing shape, size and the antennae" need to match. "Forewing cilia, thorax markings, hindwing, underside, can be helpful". Once these are in place, Ted Edwards of the ANIC told her "Follow the lines." By this he means "Trace the shape of each line." Marilyn notes in MoV5, colour forms are not gender based. "Cilia" refers to the trailing forewing scales (along the termen). These moths are ~12mm long, with wingspan of ~32mm. The males & females we measured are about the same size. Males have bipectinate antennae; female's are filiform. The hard-to-see upper body is brown (nearly orange) striped. Hindwings are white with an indistinct fuscous trailing band. NB: the scalloped edge (termen) of the hindwing. Ventrally, the body white with dark flecks and a slight ochre tinge darkening toward the posterior. Under the hindwing, there is a vague dark line preceding the terminal dark edge. There also seems to be an ochre patch or line under the forewing (we only managed to see the edge of it). We've seen adults from May into June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Smoke-spotted Cape-moth Loweria capnosticta | Na e m | While it's not very obvious, Loweria sp have a square horn projecting out the front of it's head. This horn is often covered in hairy scales from above, and is best seen ventrally (if you are looking for it). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Black-spotted Cape-moth Loweria haplochroa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Malki for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: 1st Specimen for SA: ~13mm long & ~28mm wingspan. Males with Bipectinate Antennae Notice Loweria frons has the square horn. Small black spotting mainly on the costa. Orange flecks forming 2 indistinct lines. 2 Sold black spots on forwings. We didn't see hindwings, but ventrally indications there are 2 spots there as well, possibly more faded. Very similar to Smoke-spotted Cape-moth (Loweria capnosticta) which we also get. However, this has more small black spotting all the forewings. MoV says Loweria capnosticta is also similar to Loweria tephrochroa. We may get that one as well, but haven't recognised them. Notice the thoracic crest. We see this alot in species that aren't supposed to have one and surmise it's associated with putting the specimens in the fridge to cool down to keep still while we photograph them b4 release. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Broken-banded Cape-moth Loweria platydesma iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Banded Cape-moth (Amelora ANIC6) Thank you Rog Standen for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long & ~26mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, females have filiform antennae. The facial horn shown here separates these from Amelora. It can be hard to see dorsally as it's often covered in scales. In profile it's still difficult as it's small & thin. But ventrally, it's much clearer. We've photographed 18 specimens, with only 1 female, from early April to early June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Fine-lined Cape-moth Loweria stenoscia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: A variable species with thin orange longitudinal marks that form a horizontal line; sometimes with a dark spot on the forewing | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Arid Gum Moth Mnesampela arida iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us A rarely recorded largish moth. The males are smaller than the females and have bipectinate antennae; compared with females having filiform. The male we measured was ~13mm long, ~38mm wingspan. The female was ~15mm long & ~44mm wingspan The black & white thoracic crest differentiates these from other Mnesampela species. They have a beige hindwing bleeding to plum coloured towards the trailing half. Their forwings are a dapled mustard colour that mimics a drying gum leaf perfectly. There are even raised scales scattered across the wing that mimic the blisters in the surface of drying gum leaves. There is a faint/indistinct wavy rust coloured line across the middle of the forewing. 4 specimens came to a night light & sheet over 4 days in April. 2 males & 2 females. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Serrated Crest-moth Nisista serrata | Na e m | Head & body ~15mm, wingspan ~34mm. Males & females have bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments), with males having longer pectinations as shown here. A male found in August. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Black & White Crest-moth Paralaea atralba iNaturalist | Na e m |
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| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Red-tracked Geometrid Plesiolaea maritima iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans, Prof Victor W Fazio III†, Axel Kallies, Ben Kurek & Craig Polkinghorne for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long & wingspan 28mm. The female has 3 very distinctive red streaks (2 lateral & one diagonal) on a grey dapled background. It has a small tuft on each side above the head, and 2 black spots under it's hind wings. It tends to sit with it's wings wrapped around it's body like a cylinder, but can sit with it's wings out flat. It plays dead easily making photography of it's underneath nearly impossible. Thanks to Don Herbison-Evan for confirming our 2nd specimen is the male of this species, based on the forewing tip markings | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Stippled Line-moth Smyriodes trigramma | Na e m | Similar Species: Ash-grey Geometrid (Corula geometroides) Head & body ~13mm, wingspan ~35mm. Males have bipectinate antennae, females have filiform. There are brown & grey forms, with the black lines varying considerably in strength. They are not easy to photograph, with different angles giving quite different colours. Identification difficulty is compounded as they wrap themselves with their wings, looking very different to their spread out state - making the indiscriminate lines difficult to follow. We found 4 males & 4 females between mid April & early June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Grey-caped Line-moth Stibaroma melanotoxa | Na e m | ~16mm long, ~33mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, while females have filiform antennae. We photographed 8 males, no females, in Mar, Apr & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Angled Satin Moth Thalaina angulosa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us ~16mm long & ~40mm wingspan. Genders are very similar and difficult to separate in the field. Getting a detailed shot of the antennae shows the male with bipectinate antennae; having short pectinations. The female antennae is filiform, but hairing underneath. We have photographed 10 adult specimens in April & May with more males (6m, 3f & 1unknown). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Ennominae Nacophorini | Grey & White Satin Moth Thalaina kimba iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Female ~45mm wingspan, ~16mm long. Females & males both have filiform antennae, so have to determine gender from body shape. Found this BEHIND the bottom of the night sheet. It's nose and a tiny bit of it's front wings (costa) was showing. Almost didn't see it! How lucky was that! Found 1 Female in April | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Red-lined Geometer Crypsiphona ocultaria iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~40mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, reducing to filiform about 3/4s along. Females have fully filiform antennae. They have a thick black stripe running through their face, that generally goes unnoticed. But when it's pointed out becomes very obvious. When on a window, with a lite backdrop, their underwing patterns show through. Their dorsal patterns/black lines can be very weak. A number of specimens are shown here to show the variation. Their ventral patterns are what they are named after, with red lines and black blotches that need to be seen to be appreciated. We have photographed 7 specimens (1 female, 6 male), in Nov, Mar, Apr & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Emerald Moth Euloxia ochthaula | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us Males have bipectinate antennae, females like here have filiform antennae. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Undescribed Grey Hypobapta ANIC2 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dominic Funnell
for identifying this species for us ~16mm long and ~37mm to ~43mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, while females have filiform. We thought this was Hypobapta percomptaria. The line at the front of the wing is in a slightly different place, and the scalloping on the trailing edge of the wings is not as deep here. Dominic id'ed S6 for us, we extended that id to our other 5, including S3 here. 6 males were photographed in April & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Arid Grey Hypobapta ANIC3 | Na e m | This is figured on Bold as Hypobapta ANIC3 Yet another undescribed species that is known. So annoying for such a magnificent species. This species varies considerably from most other Hypobapta as the black lines are straighter and angled to the back more. This one also sat with it's forewings almost closed, where as others seem to rest with them fully spread out. As you can probably tell, our usual ventral shot failed miserably so used a couple of under shots with different views to try to show the underneath wing & body colours. Will update if we find another. Found in December. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Barnard's Grey Hypobapta barnardi iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us The males were considerably smaller (~12mm long, wingspan ~29mm) than the female @ ~14mm long, wingspan ~37mm. Males are bipectinate, females filiform. We were excited to get a named Grey, to compare with our undescribed one earlier. These still sat with the wings closed generally. Interestingly they were very flighty, until on the last one (S4) we put it on a small stick. It suddenly settled right down, and wrapped it's wings around the stick. We have found this with other inverts, particularly crane flies, where they cann't grip to the plastic surfaces; but haven't noticed an issue with moths before this one. Photographed 7 (6M, 1F) in Jan & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Grey Hypobapta diffundens iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you David Muirhead & Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us One male found in November | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Geometrinae | Webbed Grey Rhuma argyraspis | Na e m | Similar Species: Tufted Double-spot Moth (Epicyrtica cf MoV3) ~14mm long, wingspan ~29mm. Male antennae are bipectinate, females filiform. It took a long time to id this one (hours) because we thought it was a type of double spot (albeit with no spots , which is in a totally different family. Only when we went to the geometrids as a last resort did we find it. One male found at lights in November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Insigillated Carpet Moth Chloroclystis insigillata iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body ~7mm, wingspan ~20mm. Males have obvious deformations covered in scale tufts on the forwing costa (leading edge). The deformations are also visible underneath. Both males & females have filiform antennae. A male found in May and a female in August. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Sharp-angled Carpet Moth Chrysolarentia actinipha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Gypsum Carpet Moth Chrysolarentia gypsomela | Na e m | ~8mm long & 23mm wingspan. So far we have only found females. Males are very similar but have thicker antennae | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Undescribed Carpet Moth Chrysolarentia sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for helping with the id of this species for us The females we measured were slightly larger @ ~19mm (S2) & ~20mm (S3) wingspan compared to the male @ ~17mm (S4) wingspan. Males have thick antennae compared with females, but it's not very obvious. There are a few similar looking moths that are quite variable; C. arachnitis, C. severata & C. squamulata. We thought these were C. severata, but Axel lifted our id to genus level. The lines on these are straighter than the others. We haven't encountered them very often photographing only 6 specimens, with 2 males, 2 females & 2 indeterminate in March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Red-spotted Delicate Epicyme rubropunctaria iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Subidaria Moth Epyaxa subidaria | Na e m | Head & body ~9mm, wingspan ~12mm. Males have very obvious bipectinate antennae, where as females are filiform. This genus has 2 distinct forms, one where the whole wing is patterned normally and the other (like this one) where the wing only appears to have half a pattern. It makes it look as though it has 6 wings instead of 4! Very similar to E. sodaliata, but the MoV books tell us the angle of the widest band here is not 90 degrees as in E. sodaliata. One specimen found in September. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Funeral Moth Horisme mortuata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long & ~28mm wingspan. The lighting has been bumped up to the wazzoo to highlight the lines/patterns/colours. Otherwise it would just appear like a black moth, not very diagnostic. While not actually black, it's very dark. As such, several similar shots showing different perspectives; lighting, wing placement & focus. These are all of the same specimen. It's quite worn, with a lot of missing scales over the wing. The hindwings are also damaged/missing pieces at the posterior. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Grey Carpet Moth Hypycnopa delotis | Na e m | Head & body ~7mm, wingspan ~18mm. Males have bipectinate antennae (2 rows of filaments), with very long pectinations, while females have thread-like antennae (filiform). Males also have a pale yellow patch on the hindwing, which is difficult to see with live specimens. A male & female found in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Pome Looper Moth Pasiphilodes testulata iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Wattle Looper Phrissogonus laticostata iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Karen Weaving & Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm body & head, ~20mm wingspan Males are easily identified by the costal wing tufts (tufts on the front of the open wing). Both males & females have very scaloped bodies when viewed in profile. It helps confirm female id, but makes it hard to get dorsal shots fully in focus as the body is considerably higher than the wings. They often sit upside down; some photo's here have been rotated to make it easier to compare with other moths. Some moths, like this can be quite variable. It's unusual for us to find green colours on anything at Ellura, however, specimen 9 was the only one found at Ellura with some green in it; compared with Adelaide Hills specimens we found. NB: the very different body shapes between the 2 male ventral shots. Normally we would consider this a sign of gender variation, but it just goes to show you have to be careful of what one assumes. We have seen similar bloating in moths that have been drowning in puddles, etc. Photographed 17 in Jan, Apr, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Tan Carpet Moth Unplaced cryeropa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us Not recognised on Atlas anymore, they seem to be unplaced in the Hydriomenini tribe. An unusal species for a moth in that they often hold their wings vertically; perhaps when walking or threatened. It was difficult to get the dorsal shots with the wings held out flat. The hindwings are a paler copy of the forewings near the trailing & inner margins, fading to plain grey/brown in the middle. ~9mm long, wingspan ~24mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Larentiinae | Vacuaria Carpet Moth Xanthorhoe vacuaria iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Streaked Heath Moth Aglossophanes pachygramma iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~8mm (head & body) & ~20mm wingspan Males have mildly bipectinate antennae, females are filiform (thread like). The hindwing can be plain or have paler lateral stripe matching the forewing. Of the few images available on-line, it appears the females have more of a hindwing stripe than males. Over 10 years, the 7 sightings we've recorded (2 f & 5m) have all occurred within ~ one week: 21-28 March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Pink Arhodia Arhodia lasiocamparia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long for both genders. Males have large bipectinate antennae, while female's are filiform. Peter McQuillan said "Is a complex of multiple species yet to be resolved". We've photographed a male & female in Nov (M) & Feb (F) | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Laced Grey Heath Moth Dichromodes cf sp ES02 | Na e m | Thank you Peter Marriott for helping with the id of this species for us We feel it is important to post specimens here that aren't described; at least people can stop looking. While Peter isn't sure what this one is, he's inclined to think it's Dichromodes. He said Taxeotis was also a possibility, however it's resting position fitted Dichromodes better. Dichromodes males have unipectinate antennae. If a Taxeotis, the males will have filiform antennae like the female here. We can see this is a female due to body shape. Head & body ~9mm, wingspan ~25mm. We find these snippets of diagnostic information so important to the identification of moths. Size, wing & body shape, antennae style, flight times, crests, horns, tufts, stance & wing resting postion. It's easy to rely on forewing patterns too much (we do!). With specimens like this the patterns are not as easily discernable. Then of course there are hindwing patterns (normally obscured, we didn't photograph here) and ventral wing patterns; requiring a crystal glass to photograph clearly. The forewing pattern here looks a very close match to Chlenomorpha sciogramma, however, the shape of the wing doesn't match. The costal margin (leading wing edge) has a slight inward curve and the trailing edge (outer margin) is nearly straight compared with C. sciogramma. The lace pattern of the trailing scales on the forewings (termen) doesn't fit either, but Peter said this pattern is seen on other Dichromodes. One female specimen found in September. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Dark Leaf Moth Monoctenia smerintharia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us A fairly large moth at ~28mm long & 60mm wingspan. While they can have dark stripes (and/or patches) & vary from russet red to grey, ours didn't have any stripes. It appears the specimens with heavier striping are female. Note the unusual wing shape with a scaloped outer margin (trailing edge) and shaped more like a Ghost moth (Hepialoidea) than most geometrids. Male antennae are also unusual as it is monopectinate (ie only one row of filaments comming off the main thread). Most large antennae like this are bipectinate (2 rows) or even tripectinate (3 rows). We have photographed 3 males in March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Desert Nearcha Moth Nearcha aridaria iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Head & body ~11mm, wingspan ~27mm. As with all Nearcha's, the males have bipectinate antennae while females have filiform. It's possible we have found females but not been able to id them. Nearcha's are very variable and only the males have the under-hindwing tufts to differentiate them. If we post any females, they'll be estimates based on patterns. We won't post any females unless we find a male; proving that species is at least found on Ellura. 4 males found in Sept, Oct & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Grey Nearcha Moth Nearcha dasyzona iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long & ~36mm Wingspan. A very pretty moth with a wavy line of black dots, shadowed with a brown band. They have a stunning black face, that isn't always visible. Males have a couple of elongated patches of long, backward facing scales under the hingwings. There can be variations in the intensity of the black dots such that they can join into a line. As well as how black the brown shadow is (from darker to ours, to almost non-existant). The same is true for the wavy line on the hindwings. According to Peter Merriot, in Moths of Victoria, digital supplement "Comparision of Nearcha", the pattern of this tuft is diagnostic. We have photographed 23 speciemens (3 females) in Jan, Mar, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Ragged-leaf Moth Nycticleptes lechriodesma iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us Large moth at ~63mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, whereas females have filiform. We shone the torch at the old growth mallee & bushes around in front of the carport when checking the night light; to help attract inverts in our direction. We saw her comming in via the torch light & thought, "that's a bit bigger than usual"; yep classic understatement | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Bold Phrataria Phrixocomes hedrasticha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you BaronSamedi
for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long These are quite unusual in that the males have mono-pectinate, or uni-pectinate antennae. While female's are filiform. They have tufts of their forewings, which look like black spots in the dorsal views. We think of these as Nola mimics; probably because we discovered Nola moths first We've photographed 4 specimens in Jan, Feb & Mar | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Bronze Heath Moth Tapinogyna sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Peter Marriott, Ethan Beaver, Marilyn Hewish & Axel Kallies for helping with the id of this species for us Marilyn kindly let us know this was not Amelora catacris; emergence time is important in moth identification. Peter then said "... Taxeotis only have threadlike antennae - females and males. Nearcha - males pectinate on both sides and females threadlike". As such, it is most likely an undescribed species. We found & captured 15 specimens of this species on 10 Sept 2017; equally males & females. They were quite variable and photo artefacts played havoc. eg notice the white spots hide easily depending on the camera/lighting angle. The bronze colour also washed out easily in flash light. The females we found appeared to have stronger markings than males; this may not always be the case. These beautiful moths range from plain, pale brown to a magic bronze colour. We have grouped the photo's by male & female, to show differences between specimens. Males are ~10mm long, with wingspan of 25mm. Female bodies are a bit shorter at ~8mm long, but with the same wingspan as the male. The under-wings don't appear much different between the genders, but the ventral shots show the significant difference in the body shapes; with males being long & thin, females short & fat. They are a difficult lot and all the males we have are missing a diagnostic ventral tuft of Nearcha. Ethan recently found & id'ed similar moths as Tapinogyna perichroa. While some of these here look very similar to that species, the hind wings of our specimens look too rounded. It's possible there are different species shown in this sequence of photo's. Axel has kindly suggested S17 is Tapinogyna perichroa, but we feel the wing shapes don't much up well. The patterns certainly do and he may well be correct. But we'll wait for further research to better understand the differences with these. The bipectinate antennae of the males makes separation of species easier; not so for the females. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Undescribed Heath Moth Tapinogyna sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Orange-spotted Taxeotis (Taxeotis xanthogramma) Thank you Axel Kallies for helping with the id of this species for us Originally thought this was Taxeotis, but over time become uncomfortable with this id. Axel kindly suggested it's Tapinogyna perichroa; but the wings are too rounded in our opinion. This group of moths is in bad need of revision and with luck research will be conducted on them one day to clearly differentiate them all. Until then we are suggesting this is undescribed, but of course Axel is quite possibly correct. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Ochre-headed Taxeotis Moth Taxeotis exsectaria | Na e m | ~7mm long, wingspan ~20mm. Taxeotis moths are notoriously difficult to id. We've gone with T. exsectaria due to the ochre head, which is diagnostic, but the ochre wing bands are not seen on other examples. As such, this may be an undescribed species, which also has an ochre head. Hopefully it's just a local variation of T. excectaria. We found one in Sept, 2013, and all the others on one night in October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Grey Taxeotis Taxeotis intextata | Na e m | ~8mm long, wingspan ~22mm. We found one in October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Spring Taxeotis Taxeotis perlinearia iNaturalist | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Oenochrominae | Orange-spotted Taxeotis Taxeotis xanthogramma iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Undescribed Heath Moth (Tapinogyna sp ES02) Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us We got these mixed up with our undescribed Oenochrominae sp. Unusually, for a moth, the dorsal patterns are almost the same; with varying degrees of darkness (ie sometimes spots, etc, are not visible). However, the shape of the wings separates these out. A note of caution though. We've included 2 photo's of the same female specimen here to highlight how, with photo's, wing shape can change dramatically. Take a careful look at the right wing. In the first shot it's sitting up on a clear pot and looks a different shape to the second where it's resting on the table more naturally. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | White-edged Wave Idaea costaria iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Mike Burrell for confirming the id of this species for us ~14 to ~17mm natural wingspan. These moths are very distinctive with a pale band across the leading edge of their wings and brown-red edging to the trailing edges of all wings. These are very similar to Idaea inversata. These have the pale stripe between the antennae, where as I. inversata has a single coloured head with no stripe. We photographed 6 specimens in Jan, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | Flecked Wave Idaea philocosma | Na e m | ~4mm long, wingspan ~16mm. Our only specimen in October escaped after 1 photo. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | Tree-ring Moth Scopula episcia iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo On-line: Head & body ~8mm, wingspan ~28mm. We questioned Axel over the different shaped dark band. He pointed to a conversation he had on someone else's observation, that matches ours, where he said "There is actually DNA data available on BOLD and you can download a tree. Specimens like yours group nicely with others from WA under episcia." Axel says the moth referred to in the MoV books as Scopula sp 3 is also this species. 3 specimens found in Aug, Dec & Jan | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | Lydia's Wave Moth Scopula lydia iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Matt Campbell & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Males have antennae filaments, and are browner with less distinct markings than females. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | Varied Wave Moth Scopula optivata iNaturalist | Na e m a | Similar Species: Wavy Noctuid (Ericeia subsignata) Thank you Axel Kallies & Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us ~25mm wingspan. These seem quite fragile. It is difficult to be sure, but we think males have finely hairy antennae (very difficult to see even in photographs), while we think female antennae are smooth. Both are filiform. We have photographed 8 specimens in Feb, Mar, Sep & Oct. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Geometer :Geometridae Sterrhinae | Plantain Moth Scopula rubraria | Na e m a | Note the dark and white striped antennae in this species, it's quite noticable. Males have reasonably obvious filaments. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Leaf Miner :Gracillarioidea Gracillariidae | Blackbutt Leaf Miner Acrocercops laciniella iNaturalist | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Leaf Miner :Gracillarioidea Gracillariidae | Echium Leaf Miner Dialectica scalariella iNaturalist | If a | Thank you Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Swift Moth :Hepialoidea Hepialidae | Silvery Ghost Moth Abantiades cf argentata | Na m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying this species for us Ethan said he's not sure of the ID on this one as the markings aren't 'classic' for the new species. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Swift Moth :Hepialoidea Hepialidae | Faded Ghost Moth Abantiades marcidus | Na r a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Swift Moth :Hepialoidea Hepialidae | Rain Moth Abantiades sp | Na m |
Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying this species for us Very large moth that emerge after early autumn rains. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Swift Moth :Hepialoidea Hepialidae | Eastern Pale Rain Moth Abantiades tembyi iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Very large moth ~55m long, with a wingspan of ~115mm Dark grey with light grey lightening pattern on the wings After discovering the horn on the Forked Grass moth recently, we wanted to clearly show the projections out the front of this species were in fact part of the palps, and not an additional appendage. Ethan told us "tembyi" is in honour of Nick Temby who collected several critical specimens out near Ceduna. The pupal case is not necessarily the same species as the moth; but this is the only Abantiades we've found on Ellura and Ethan says they are very specific about where they live. The second specimen we just loaded was considerably smaller than the first. The new one was ~50mm tip to tail with a wingspan of ~90mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Swift Moth :Hepialoidea Hepialidae | Chequered Ghost Moth Fraus polyspila iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long & 32mm wingspan. Typically Ghost moths are amoung the larger moths in Australia, spanning the width of a large hand. So it was a complete surprise to us to realise this little moth was in the same family as the giants Apparantly the scales fall off very easily so on-line photo's look very different to each other as the pattern dissapears. Thanks Ethan for letting us know the one we found is a male. We have photographed over 10 males & 1 female in April & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Undescribed Tussock Moth Acyphas cf sp | Na a | This doesn't look like either of the two Acyphas species (larvae) above we get in SA. It's possibly A. pelodes but the larvae for that species hasn't been photographed on-line. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | White Tussock Moth Acyphas chionitis iNaturalist | Na e m a | ~10mm long, ~32mm wingspan. These are very difficult to separate from A. semiochrea. We have used the lack of any orange on the face & legs to put them in this group. They seem to inhabit the same regions. The females use their orange/yellow ventral tuft to cover their eggs for protection. When we caught S5, she laid some eggs in the pot as shown here. They are <1mm diameter each. The larger egg mass shown is ~4mm wide. We have photographed 5 specimens, 4 adults (3 female, one laid eggs) and one larva in Apr, Oct (eggs), Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Crescent-marked Tussock Moth Acyphas pelodes iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 2nd On-line Sighting in SA ~11mm long, ~27mm wingspan. A very pale version compared to other live photographs, but matches well with Bold specimens. The orange tufted body and wing markings line up. One male found in April at the night light. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Omnivorous Tussock Moth Acyphas semiochrea iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Anthony Paul & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Males were ~10-11mm long, ~28-30mm wingspan. Larvae ~20mm long b4 pupating. These seem to be a species complex as they are so highly variable. Some adults have a dark spot on their forewings which is an easier characteristic to id them, but we've not seen it on the few we've have photographed. Notice many others have black antennae. Ours are always pale/brown. We found S8, larva, on Acacia sclerophylla var sclerophylla. We raised S6 (on Acacia myrtifolia in Lobethal), which turned out to be a male, and show the progress here; linking larva/caterpillar to pupa to adult. The caterpillars get a grey fungal growth like appearance on them. This turns out to be hair like scales that matt over each other. This is clearly visible in the "3 day" image. Also note the larva have 2 red tubercle structures near their rear end. These are sack like and enlarge when they feel threatened. One assumes the fungal appearance & orange & red colours suggest to predators they are not good prey. We've now photographed 9 specimens, 7 larva & 2 adults, in Jan, Feb (Raised, Male), Mar, Apr, Aug, Oct (Adult) & Dec (Adult Male). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Wasp Moth Amata aperta | Na e m |
Similar Species: Wasp Moth (Amata xanthura) Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying this species for us We haven't seen them on Ellura until this one flew past one evening. A week later and we were happily inundated with them. These species within the Amata genus are very difficult to distinguish; with even experts & the Australian National Insect Collection have trouble. They have a lot of varition within species, with A. Aperta generally having more orange head, and the area on the wing between the outside 2 patches being oranged, or an another blotch of orange. They all have orange patches on wings, with Black & orange striped body and a longitudinal orange stripe on each leg. Males are larger & have a thinner body, compared with females. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Wasp Moth Amata xanthura iNaturalist | Na e m |
Similar Species: Wasp Moth (Amata aperta) Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying and Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us These tend to have orange shoulders and black head, compared with Amata aperta | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Clouded Footman Anestia ombrophanes iNaturalist | Na e m a f c | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III†, Dee Petersen & Dion Maple for confirming the id of this species for us Flightless Female is ~5mm long, 0mm wingspan. Males have a wingspan ~25mm. Males are While the male moth is rather drab with his wings closed, the interest starts to peak when you see his wings open; such an orange flash. The caterpillars feed on lichen. Then to discover that both male & female caterpillars make their cocoon out of their own hair. They then pupate inside this and their gender can be determined at this early stage. The female is an incredible array of pink, black & white AND she doesn't have any wings when she emerges. She waits for a male to fly to her. They mate and then she deposits her eggs on the hairs of her cocoon. She then spends the rest of her short life (~2 weeks) tending to her eggs. What an interesting species! A more technical term for wingless insects is "Apterous". It's hard to know if shes wingless, or has reduced wings, which would make her "Brachypterous". | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Cryptic Snout Moth Arrade destituta iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long with a wingspan of ~22mm. A stunning moth with various tufts giving it real presence, yet it's quite small. Found in November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Cryptic Crest Moth Brachycyttara crypsipyrrha | Na e m | A very rare moth, originally only found in WA. MoV8 reports it has since been discovered in SA (once), Vic (once) & NSW. The 1st thing we noticed about this moth was the irregular "gold" line running laterally near the back of the forewing. It's not so obvious with the camera and turns out to be a pale line with orange highlights, giving it an illusion of "gold". ~18mm long with a wingspan of ~35mm. The males have many more lines along the trailing edge of the forewing (outer margin), but both have filiform (thread like) antennae. The forewings are scalloped along the outer margin and have 3, equally spaced, lateral, pale lines spattered with orange flecks. The shape of the palps is also quite unusual. The hindwings have a spot in the middle. It's not obvious unless you look for it. The antennae base and legs joints are all highlighted by orange scales. Those at the antennae base almost look like coloured eyelashes We found our single specimen near the end of June. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Doubleday's Footman Castulo doubledayi iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us The female was ~8-9mm long with wingspan of ~28mm. Males have bipectinate antennae, females have filiform. The only 2 specimens we found were very worn & damaged. The white marks on the males forewing, eg, are damage not patterns. Fortunately one was male & one female to show the differences. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Old Lady Moth Dasypodia selenophora iNaturalist | Na e m a f r |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us These moths have a propensity for buildings. We often find them in the patio, and when they can't get out they die which is rather sad. Fortunately they are very common and can be found everywhere in spring & autumn. A beautiful large moth with a large "eye" on each forewing. The proper name for each "eye" is Reniform Stigma (thanks Mark ). Ian Gibbins reminded us that "Reni" is latin for "Kidney"; hence Reniform means "Kidney Shaped". These Stigma are useful protection from predators that think twice before attacking such a huge "face". They are quite shiny and perceived colours vary considerably depending on lighting angles & intensity. They have a zig zag pattern on both fore & hindwings, but the forewing lines are much more well defined. Both wings also have a trailing line of small white dots at the top of each fold in the wing. Underneath each wing also has a black spot (with a couple of black lines/patches on each side). The orange ring surrounding the Reniform Stigma does seem to vary in thickness, as does the inner pale blue/white line. Wingspan is ~80mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Spotted Noctuid Moth Diatenes gerula iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Orange Noctuid Moth Diatenes igneipicta iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | White-spotted Owl Moth Donuca spectabilis iNaturalist | Na f | Thank you David Muirhead for confirming the id of this species for us ~25mm long, ~60mm wingspan. These are a large moth with an orange tip to the last third of it's abdomen and orange hair underneath. One female found in November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Tufted Double-spot Moth Epicyrtica cf MoV3 | Na e m | Similar Species: Fine-veined Geometrid (Amphicrossa hemadelpha) : Webbed Grey (Rhuma argyraspis) This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 8 as Epicyrtica sp. (3) ~11mm long & wingspan 28mm. While it appears to have 3 tufts, the front two are from the head & body, while the hind 'tuft' is actually created by the edge of the forewings. We have found 3 specimens in April & May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Lichen Double-spot Moth Epicyrtica sp ES01 | Na e m | ~9mm long & 22mm wingspan. We found these very difficult to differentiate with other Double-spot moths, so many lines to compare. One difference that stands out with this species vs the other Epicyrtica we've published is their very hairy look around the legs. We found 2 on one night in April this year. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Wavy Noctuid Ericeia subsignata iNaturalist | Na e m | Similar Species: Varied Wave Moth (Scopula optivata) Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us Wingspan ~25mm. Very similar to the Varied Wave Moth (Scopula optivata), but the head is different with large palps. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Inconspicuous Eublemma Eublemma inconspicua iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Lyn Craggs for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Undescribed Lichen Moth Eutane ANIC1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long females. The females both dropped eggs in the pot. Both genders had filiform antennae. A good id match, except for the body colour, which appears black on Bold. They were day flying, around a Westringia rigida bush, not in flower. However they had a habit of being on the ground. So the Westringia rigida may be a furphy; or may support a particular type of lichen. There's plenty of lichen on the ground, and on the bush; but different types of course. Each Lichen species depends on a certain substrate type (timber, ground/rock, etc). This genus is known from coastal Qld & NSW. We photographed 2 females & 2 males in Feb (on the same day, same spot) | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Large-eyed Box-owlet Grammodes ocellata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Rock Lichen Moth Halone sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans, Axel Kallies & Donald Hobern for helping with the id of this species for us ~22mm wingspan. We suspected this was H. sinuata. Has orange hind wings which we were unable to photograph. Has the orange tip on the abdomen. Antennae are very finely pectinate. There are 2 records of Halone consolatrix in SA in the bold bins, so on location, H consolatrix would be the choice. But doesn't look right. Halones do seem variable though. Donald questioned our id, saying "Halone as a whole is challenging". Axel lifted it to genus saying "Not sure what it is, but I dont think sinuata is right." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Senecio Moth Nyctemera amicus iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans for identifying and Alan Melville for confirming the id of this species for us Adult females have a wingspan of ~44mm, and are ~15mm long. We haven't measured a male as yet. Larvae measured up to ~24mm long, generally black (or grey) with 3 orange longitudinal stripes. Young instars are black & white with no orange stripe, nor tufts (but still hairy). Intermediate instars have black & orange with areas of white patches which confuse the overall pattern. They are very hairy with 2 tufts of hair at the front which look like antennae or horns. You can see the hairs also have barbs/hairs on them. They feed on various varieties of senecio (hence their species common name) A day flying moth, the adult wings are mainly black with white/cream blotches making a diagonal, thick line on the wings. Their bodies are orange & black horizontally striped (leading to the "tiger moth" common name of the family). They have orange highlights behind the head and on the wing tips (cilia). Male & female adults can be differentiated by their antennae. While both are bipectinate (2 rows of filaments), the male pectinations (filaments) are longer and more spread than the females; as shown in the photo's. We have seen adults in Apr, May, Jun, Aug, Oct, Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Gold Threaded Panty Moth Pantydia MoV1 | Na e m | This is figured in Moths of Victoria, part 8, as Pantydia sp. (1). It is also on Bold as Pantydia ANIC4. ~17mm long with wingspan of ~38mm. The ventral pattern on the hindwing separates this from other Pantydia species. Males have slightly thicker antennae and are more difficult to id (vary more) than the females; which (females) also have a thicker body. Interestingly this perfect specimen (very fresh?) shows a medial spot under each hindwing which isn't very obvious in other resources. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Edward's Praxis Praxis edwardsii | Na e m | Head & body ~16mm, wingspan ~45mm. Came to a night light in July. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Western Praxis Praxis marmarinopa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Black & White Tiger Moth Spilosoma glatignyi | Na a p |
~21mm body & head length, ~55mm wingspan. This is one of those species that "plays dead" very well. A spectacular moth with bright orange upper-body, legs & highlights. The upper-body orange is interrupted with a transverse black line/blotch on each segment; with a white tail tuft. The wings are black or brown & white, with varying patterns. The under body is white with 5 dashed black longitudinal lines/blotches. Males & females are very difficult to separate. While females are generally larger, this is not always so (both male & female specimens shown here have the same wingspan, with the male having a slightly longer body). They both have bipectinate antennae. The male pectinations, however, are slightly longer. Of the few ventral photo's we can find, the females are missing a front, central black blotch as well. This could be a random colour variation, like the wings. We would be keen on hearing from anyone that can link/send ventral photo's of females with all the black blotches to us We have sighted the adults in April only. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Double Yellow-patched Footman Termessa zonophanes iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long, ~28mm wingspan. A highly variable species. Males & Females have filiform antennae, so the only way to separte them is with ventral shots. Of the two we photographed ventrally, they both appeared to be males. Photographed six at a night light sheet in March & April. After we saw the first at the end of March, they were abundandant until ~ mid April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Desert Footman Thallarcha rhaptophora iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us Males ~8mm long, ~25mm wingspan & have bi-pectinate antennae (but the pectinations are quite short) Females ~6mm long, ~20mm wingspan and have filiform antennae. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tiger Moth :Noctuoidea Erebidae | Halgania Moth Utetheisa pulchelloides iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long, with a wingspan of ~35mm. Very colourful moth close up, but the colours are not visible when flying. Males & females cannot normally be distinguished. At rest it wraps it's wings around the body, making it very difficult to get a full wing pattern from one side. It's best to get profile from both sides and dorsal shots to see the whole forewing. Another insect with a common name associated with a weed, but is a native insect. It's larvae eat Boraginaceae, with the most dominant plant in the family on Ellura being Halgania White moth, with black and red swatches (almost an art deco fabric design). There are 5 red marks along the inner margin (but they can be grey or even missing) that match the 5 red marks along the costa. The size of the red marks varies considerably. They can also join together or be very segregated. Has varying degrees of mustard highlights around the head & shoulder. There is another very similar moth, the Salt and Pepper Moth (Utetheisa lotrix), that is usually further north. We have found adults in Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Oct & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Euteliidae | Brown Eutelin Moth Pataeta carbo iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying, Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming and Dr Ken Walker for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Record in SA on Atlas: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Spotted Owlet Moth Athetis tenuis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long with 25mm wingspan. Filiform antennae, with no visible difference between the genders we can find. A common moth found all over the country. Difficult to id though as it's relatively plain looking and very shiny in a camera flash. In the middle of their forewings they have a small dark spot or line within a slightly pale longitudinal line which can also have some pale spots toward the rear. In the right light you can see an irregular lateral row of dots about 3/4 along the forewing. In the same light, some irregular spots form another zigzag line about 1/4 the way along the forewing. The feature that stands out the most are the 3 scale tufts on the back of the thorax that look like a shield. These are not clear on pinned specimens but can be seen in the photo's here. This scale formation is not unique to this species, but did help in collating different specimen photo's. The ventral view shows an interesting pattern under the hindwings (which are quite a bit shorter than the forewings). They are pale off white, with dark speckles on the leading edge, fading to plain quickly towards the inner margin. Note the robust palps and huge hind legs! For such a plain moth, it has some very interesting features We have found them in Mar, May & Sep. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Red Flecked Owlet Moth Hypoperigea tonsa | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Mini Owlet Moth Mataeomera sp iNaturalist | Na e m | S1 ~8mm long, ~18mm wingspan S2 ~7mm long, ~15mm wingspan S3 ~8mm long, ~22mm wingspan S4 ~7mm long, ~20mm wingspan All 4 sightings have different wing patterns & varying palp length. When we checked the MoV cds (Moths of Victoria) and found how variable they are, and need reworking, we couldn't work out which was which; they could all be one, or 4 different species. We couldn't tell the genders apart either. Bodies look similar. It seems the male antennae may have thicker "hairs" than the female. We found them in Feb (S1), Sept (S2), Oct (S3) & Nov (S4). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Black Noctuid Neumichtis nigerrima iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Cathy Powers, Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Dion Maple for confirming the id of this species for us ~16mm long. These are a VERY black moth, so have raised the lighting on the example we caught to highlight features and generally hidden patterns. We've left the lower quality images to indicate their more realistic colour. Cathy said "The black moth caught in the spider web has all the lines and markings of Neumichtis nigerrima". However, there is an undescribed species that looks the same with bi-pectinate antennae. Neumichtis nigerrima only has thread like antennae. So if you find a moth like this with bi-pectinate antennae, please let us know here, or contact Cathy. She'd be very keen to see it. We'll be keeping our eye out too | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Green Cutworm Neumichtis saliaris iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Cathy Powers for identifying this species for us The common name is based on the green caterpillar. Originally we identified this as N. archephanes They are an incredibly variable species going from this dark blue morph through to very pale brown. The subterminal line is the key, and on N. archephanes it's straight, not curved like this one. The subterminal line is the line between the blue band at the back of the forewings and the brown brown area torwards the middle of the forewings. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Spotless Proteuxoa Proteuxoa acontoura iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~11mm long & 30mm wingspan. Based on body shape, we assume females have an ochre tint to the posterior end of their abdomen. What we assume to be males are off-white. There didn't appear to be any other variations we could see. They have a faint racing stripe behind their head, which is not visible on pinned samples as the pin-head interferes. We weren't able to capture their satin texture in photographs. An elegant moth to the naked eye. And due to the lack of crescents & spots, not obviously a proteuxoa. While Thoracolopha acontoura is the currently accepted name (as of late 2017), we use the names on the ALA and lists this under Proteuxoa. In fact, as of now (early 2021), it seems Thoracolopha hasn't been accepted. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Undescribed Proteuxoa Proteuxoa ANIC6 iNaturalist | Na e m | This is figured on Bold as Proteuxoa ANIC6. ~10mm long with wingspan of ~25mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Ragged-banded Owlet Moth Proteuxoa atmoscopa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying and Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long with ~25mm wingspan. Marilyn told us "Proteuxoa was split into two genera. Proteuxoa and Thoracolopha, in a publication by Bobbie Hitchcock et al", in late 2017. Many of these Noctuid's are very shiny and difficult to photograph. We've been experimenting with turning the flash off and using external light sources to highlight the lines and reduce glare. You can see the differences here. The no flash photo's are out of focus more, little depth of field and very yellow. Cathy Powers has shown us a home made diffuser made from foam which we are now experimenting with to improve these issues while reducing flash glare / sparkle. We found 2 specimens in March & April. While Thoracolopha atmoscopa is the currently accepted name (as of late 2017), we use the names on the ALA which lists this under Proteuxoa and Thoracolopha as a synonym. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Herringbone Caterpillar Proteuxoa cf sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Herringbone Caterpillar Proteuxoa cf sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Herringbone Caterpillar Proteuxoa cf sp ES05 iNaturalist | Na e m | This specimen was ~17mm long. Any larvae (caterpillars) we have identified without raising to adults we tag with a question mark, like here. As such, id is quite unreliable, a best guess of what it will turn into. From now on we will capture all caterpillars we find and haven't id, raise them and post photo's showing the various stages. Perhaps even manage to breed them to get male, female & egss; there by linking all forms together. Caterpillars can vary in shape & colour as they grow in roughly 5 stages (instars). It'll also be interesting to see any variations between male & female larvae. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Blunt Noctuid Moth Proteuxoa chrysospila iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us The solid rectangular wing mark is a diagnostic feature with these. We originally thought these were Y-barred Noctuid Moths (Proteuxoa epiplecta), but Moths of Victoria part 9 CD has a page on the P. tortisigna group; which showed the id to be incorrect. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Noctuid Moth Proteuxoa cinereicollis iNaturalist | Na e m | This matches exactly to a specimen on Bold. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Red Blooming Proteuxoa Proteuxoa florescens iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish for confirming the id of this species for us The male was ~12mm long & 29mm wingspan. Females were slightly larger at ~13mm long & 30mm wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Sun Spot Proteuxoa Proteuxoa heliosema iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long & 28mm wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Blotched Noctuid Proteuxoa passalota iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~11mm long, ~26mm wingspan We'd never have thought this was a Proteuxoa, generally they have some sort of moon shaped, crescent, mark on their wing. We have photographed one that doesn't have any mark though. So only reasonable that there's one with a large one. What attracted us to it was the gold sheen coming from the row on the back of the forewings. Not obvious here, just looking a yellowy brown. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Red Spotted Noctuid Moth Proteuxoa rubripuncta iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Marilyn Hewish & Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Found dead. ~20mm long & 25mm wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Owlet Moth Proteuxoa sp ES03 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Marilyn Hewish, Axel Kallies & Dr Paul Whitington for confirming the id of this species for us We thought this was Proteuxoa marginalis, but Marilyn Hewish kindly advised otherwise. Axel also said "I dont think it is oxygona. That one has white veins along the middle of forewing which are missing here. This specimen has a white speck near the forewing base (missing in oxygona)." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Undescribed Owlet Moth Proteuxoa sp ES04 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying this species for us Head & body length ~10mm, wingspan ~22mm. We thought this was Agrotis porphyricollis, but Marilyn kindly advised us of the correct id. While Thoracolopha is the currently accepted name (as of late 2017), we use the names on the ALA which lists these under Proteuxoa. All four female specimens were found on one night, 2nd April 2018 | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Black Crescent Owlet Moth Proteuxoa sp ES06 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Marilyn Hewish for identifying and Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long with winspan of ~28mm. As both genders of Proteuxoa & Thoracolopha have filiform antennae, it makes determining their genders more difficult. The body shapes, shown here, are used to guess the different genders. While Thoracolopha is the currently accepted name (as of late 2017), we use the names on the ALA lists these under Proteuxoa. Marilyn said "This is labelled as an undescribed Proteuxoa species in the Aust. National Insect Collection. My research has found 25 Vic. specimens from the west of the state. It can be distinguished from P. verecunda by the very broad black crescent mark and the lack of wavy cross-lines on the forewing." Axel said "This one really does not seem to have a name (yet)". | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Dark Noctuid Moth Proteuxoa sp ES07 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us We thought this might be P. restituta, but Axel said "P. restituta has a light grey collar". | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Acronictinae | Black Spotted Owlet Moth Proteuxoa spilocrossa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying and Marilyn Hewish for helping with the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: 1st Record in SA on Atlas: We thought this was Proteuxoa flexirena, but Marilyn thought Thoracolopha verecunda. Then Axel finally found the correct name While Thoracolopha spilocrossa is the currently accepted name (as of early 2023), we use the names on the ALA, which lists this as P. spilocrossa. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Agaristinae | Grass Day Moth Apina callisto iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming and Don Herbison-Evans for helping with the id of this species for us While larvae vary greatly in size, these are ~45-50mm long. The female is ~25mm long & ~55mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, will females are filiform. We Id'ed this species from the first photo of a Larva some time ago. Unfortunately we didn't keep records of this (still learning). But then we recently found the adult and was double checking on Don Herbison-Evan's site when we realised our larva looks different to the photo's on his site. We almost pulled the photos from our site, but thought we'd ask the man himself. Don is incredibly helpful and has a reputation of being a nice bloke. So he happily responded back with "Yes those look like the 3 prothorax stripes of an Apino callisto caterpillar. Of course the real test is to rear it to the adult moth and compare that with the holotype. Individual caterpillars do vary in colour, depending on instar, food, microclimate, genetics, etc (like humans do)." There's a big lesson here. We can't rely on Larva for a confident id. So in future we will always put a "?" against a species based on larva alone. Also, to re-iterate, identification from photos alone is fraught with difficulty & errors Notice the strange horn extrusion on it's face. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Agaristinae | Mistletoe Moth Comocrus behri iNaturalist | Na m a | Similar Species: Hibbertia Moth (Phalaenoides glycinae) Thank you Terra Occ for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Agaristinae | Crimson Beauty Cremnophora angasii iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~14mm long & 35mm wingspan. The pink colours in this species are quite spectacular, even it's palps are pure pink! A black & white moth, with a row of crimson spots along the outer margin (trailing) of it's forwings. These spots are visible underneath, but are missing on it's hindwings. It's front legs also have splashes of crimson around the joints. To add to the contrast, the antennae are a pale orange / yellow colour. The female has thread like antennae (as shown here) while males have bipectinate antennae. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Agaristinae | Crow Moth Cruria donowani iNaturalist | Na m | Similar Species: Hibbertia Moth (Phalaenoides glycinae) Thank you Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Agaristinae | Hibbertia Moth Phalaenoides glycinae iNaturalist | Na a |
Similar Species: Mistletoe Moth (Comocrus behri) : Crow Moth (Cruria donowani) Thank you Thomas Mesaglio for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Heliothinae | Ruby Owlet Moth Australothis rubrescens | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Heliothinae | Australian Native Budworm Helicoverpa punctigera iNaturalist | Na e m a r |
Thank you Rog Standen & Jack Crosbie for confirming the id of this species for us Without seeing the hindwings (looking for a pale patch in the trailing black band in H. armigera), it's not possible to differentiate between the introduced H. armigera & this one. None of the specimens, where we have hind wing shots, have been H. armigera on Ellura | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Heliothinae | Lesser Budworm Heliothis punctifera iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you LifeIsAmazing for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Bogong Moth Agrotis infusa iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us ~22mm long, wingspan ~45mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Brown Cutworm Moth Agrotis munda iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III†, Karen Weaving & Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us ~16mm long, wingspan ~36mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Tasmanian Cutworm Moth Dasygaster padockina iNaturalist | Na e m a | S1 was ~17mm long with wingspan of ~44mm. It's hard to believe these two specimens are the same species. Thanks to Peter Merriott for identifying the 2nd specimen for us Quite possibly a species complex. Notice the orange side tufts in S1, that were visible to the eye. On closer inspection we notice more orange scales on the face. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Pale Cutworm Ectopatria cf virginea | Na e m | Thank you Peter Marriott for identifying this species for us Peter said it's a tentative id at this stage. The only specimen we found, in October, was already dead and appears to have been killed by a parasite in it's side (see the ventral view). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Saltbush Cutworm Ectopatria horologa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Black Striped Grey Moth Ectopatria paurogramma iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us Length ~24mm, wingspan ~30mm. It seems male & females have filiform antennae, but find anywhere that states this. Very silvery grey moth with black longitudinal lines. The cost has 2 dark patches which seem more consistent (in other photo's) than the black lines. Each wing has an almost imperceptible trailing dark band. The trailing hindwing has a wavy edge. Not commonly seen nor collected, but found around the country (including Tasmania), the only specimen we found was in January. University specimens have been found between Nov to May. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Undescribed Cutworm Ectopatria sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us ~18mm long, with wingspan ~40mm. We thought these were Ectopatria horologa; some where but these weren't. We assume the ventral photo's showing fat & thin bodies is due to different genders Axel said "Undescribed (according to ANIC)". | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Single-lined Noctuid Leucania stenographa | Na e m |
~15mm long, with wingspan ~34mm. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Armyworm Mythimna convecta iNaturalist | Na e m | ~22mm long, winspan ~46mm. We haven't been able to differentiate the genders. These appear to be female based on body shape/roundness. We've started noticing some moth species with hairy eyes, like here. We've seen this many times before with flies, but not with moths. We'll see if we can get better shots of the hairy eyes in the future. Found 4 specimens in Jan, Oct & Dec | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Inland Armyworm Persectania dyscrita iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us Nearly identical to P. ewingii, except here in the middle of the forewing there are two pale ellipses that are separated. With P. ewingii they form into one shape (often described as a dagger). Differences between the genders is difficult. Females have black dash lines on their body and are slightly larger (23mm to 18mm for the males). Males have plain bodies, their antennae filaments are slightly longer, but not hugely so and are smaller. We found 4 females and 2 males between Sept & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Noctuinae | Southern Armyworm Persectania ewingii iNaturalist | Na e m | We found 3 females + 2 males in Oct, Nov, Dec & Mar. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Plusiinae | Woolly-bodied Golden Moth Chrysodeixis eriosoma iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us ~20mm long. Both genders have filiform antennae. "Green looper", what a lame common name for such an exquisite beast! It's referring to the larval stage. The translated name is much more spectacular, Woolly-body Golden Moth! As you can see, these moths have strong gold reflections. And what a magnificent Thoracic Crest! Notice the little tuft further back along the body, as well as at the end/posterir? The wings actually have "spurs" along the inner margin that create these tuft; as such they're not moveable (up & down) like tufts in other moths. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Owlet moth :Noctuoidea Noctuidae Plusiinae | Green Looper Plusiinae cf sp | Na a | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans for confirming the id of this species for us Marie found this in a lettuce bought from a shop in April. It was damaged and died 24 hrs later when we tried to raise it. Plusiinae is a sub-family, and may be raised to a family status in the future. We were worried it was a new invasion of an exotic, Silver Y (Autographa gamma), yet to be found in Australia Don said "As a green smooth semi-looper feeding on Asteraceae: I agree that it is likely in Plusiinae, but sadly the larvae like this of species in Plusiinae are variable and nearly indistinguishable." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tuft Moth :Noctuoidea Nolidae | Tactile Tuft Moth Aquita tactalis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you RattyExplores
for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long, ~32mm wingspan | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tuft Moth :Noctuoidea Nolidae | Pale Earias Earias chlorodes | Na e m | It is similar to some Phytometra, but they have thicker legs, longer palps & more triangular wings. As the name suggests (chlorodes) they can be green, but generally seem to be pale yellow/off white. Difficult to id with no lines or patterns whatsoever, id has to be made via physical attributes (large eyes kicking off the diagnostic filters We found 3 specimens in March & December. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tuft Moth :Noctuoidea Nolidae | Western Tuft-moth Nola celaenephes | Na e m | ~7mm long, ~22mm wingspan. Males & females both have filiform antennae Found one in October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tuft Moth :Noctuoidea Nolidae | Well-beaked Tuft-moth Nola eurrhyncha iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dezmond Wells for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tuft Moth :Noctuoidea Nolidae | Gumleaf Skeletoniser Uraba lugens iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Rog Standen for confirming the id of this species for us The main diagnostic features of the larvae are: Small (around 4mm), very hairy (long), 4 rows of yellow dots and they eat / live on the surfaces of gum leaves Very variable skin colour; as can be seen. As well as orange or black heads. The adults have a distinctive, mid-wing, horizontal line that separates them from any close relatives. They are generally a dull (ie not shiny) looking grey moth, with males & females looking similar. Males have bipectinate antennae, with females having filiform. Note the various scale tufts on the female's wings. In fact much of the mid-wing line look raised. These are also present on the male, just weren't as visible in our photo's. We have photographed 4 adult species (3 males at Ellura in Nov & a female in March in the Adelaide Hills). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Patterned Notodontid Aglaosoma cf variegata iNaturalist | Na m | Thank you Ethan Beaver & Peri Coleman for confirming the id of this species for us ~63mm long, found on Bullock Bush (Alectryon oleifolius). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Prominent Zig-zag Moth Commonia hesychima iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Streaked Notodontid Moth Destolmia lineata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us ~22mm long | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Ochre Rough-head Hylaeora dilucida iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~82mm wingspan. This is a very large moth, so spent quite a bit of time hunting through the Ghost moth family looking for it. Of course it's in a totally different family. We found one male specimen in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Undescribed Rough-head Hylaeora MoV1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us This is figured in Moths of Victoria (MoV) part 2 as Hylaeora sp. (1) ~30mm long, ~70mm wingspan. Males have bipectinate antennae, while females have filiform antennae. These have a complex of colour shades on the forewing. A stark white streak near front of the inner margin. At the back is a large triangular dark patch separated from the rest of the dark grey wing by a thick, very pale, line. It's almost indistinguishable, but definately there to the naked eye; photographing it is another matter. As with other Rough-heads the back of the neck is a complex array of large bluish scales. The overall colours & patterns are reminiscent of sap on bark of a Mallee Tree; the body matching the ochre colour of a broken limb. As with other members of this family, it plays dead a lot, curling up & exposing it's ochre body. Came to night light, but was on the ground. One male specimen found in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Oakworm :Noctuoidea Notodontidae | Bag Shelter Moth Ochrogaster lunifer iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Tony and Jenny Dominelli for confirming the id of this species for us Thank you Ethan Beaver for noting special characteristics of this species for us See individual photo's for more information. Head & body ~18mm, wingspan ~45mm (ours all seem to be similar size). Males & females have bipectinate antennae, with males having much longer (obvious to the naked eye) pectinations. Caterpillars in our area seem very green to most other images. While male adult wing patterns vary considerably, they generally seem to be a subset of the most heavily marked specimens. At most a black transverse wavy line, with many white longitudinal lines; with at the least a tiny white spot. Females seem to only have a white spot, not white stripes. All our specimens have the same dull brown background, where as others vary between nearly black to ochre coloured backgrounds (Ethan's collection indicates strong geographic variation of the background colour, as well as size). It is considered these are a species complex. He even has a specimen with no orange on the abdomen! Gender cannot be reliably determined from their posterial white scales, as these wear off and possibly vary in colour (in males). Ethan told us that these white scales are used to protect the eggs. He said "they form such a dense coating that ants and other small creatures cannot dislodge them to reach the eggs". The antennae, which are often well hidden, are the only reliable form of separation (but a striped specimen is most likely a male and a specimen with bulbous white "tail" will be a female). Regularly seen inhabitants of Ellura with larvae sightings between Jan & June. 5 female & 14 male adults (9 adults in one night) in October. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snub Moth :Noctuoidea Oenosandridae | Bat-eared Snub-moth Discophlebia ANIC1 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for identifying this species for us ~17mm long, ~37mm wingspan. Orange tail, white hindwings with dark scales & dark long hairs on the costa & inner edge. Notice the "fork tipped scales". These sit with their head folded down & in, making it very difficult to see their eyes. They have 2 crests, which resemble bat-ears. While we recognised these as Discophlebia, Alex kindly matched them to the ANIC sp 1 specimens. As such, it's known about but undescribed. We photographed 3 specimens in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Snub Moth :Noctuoidea Oenosandridae | Boisduval's Autumn Moth Oenosandra boisduvalii iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Matt Campbell & Geoffrey Cox
for confirming the id of this species for us The males & females of these are VERY different, you wouldn't recognise them as the same species. The female has a very white base colour, where as the male is more grey; and the orange flecks on the spread out rather than being in the narrow black region like with the females. We have photographed 10 specimens in Mar, Apr & Aug. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Plume Moth :Pterophorioidea Pterophoridae | Spotted Wide-winged Plume Moth Platyptilia celidotus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & BaronSamedi
for confirming the id of this species for us There were 2 specimens on the night that came to a night light. Based on body shape we assume the 1st is a female, and the 2nd specimen a male. While the antennae look the same, the male has less dark banding and much longer wing hair like scales. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Plume Moth :Pterophorioidea Pterophoridae | Xerodes Plume Moth Stangeia xerodes iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dee Nolan for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm Wingspan, ~4.5mm long. Donald Hobern said "The easiest way to tell them apart" from Megalorhipida leucodactylus " with fresh specimens is to look at the black and white (or brown and white) lines down the hind legs. On xerodes, they run parallel along the top edge. On leucodactylus, they corkscrew near the joints." Photographed 6 in Jan, Feb & Oct. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Plume Moth :Pterophorioidea Pterophoridae | Dowdy Plume Moth Stenoptilia zophodactylus iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Greg Bellion for confirming the id of this species for us ~23mm wingspan & ~8mm long. There doesn't seem to be a way to visually separate the genders. Photographed 1 in Feb. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Plume Moth :Pterophorioidea Pterophoridae | Horehound Plume Moth Wheeleria spilodactylus iNaturalist | If e m | Thank you Donald Hobern for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long, ~17mm natural wingspan. It has striped legs and striped wings. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Saltbush Web Spinner Achyra affinitalis iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Dianne Clarke for confirming the id of this species for us It's interesting that the brown morphs were photographed in the Adelaide Hills. The Red Morphs were photographed in the Murray Mallee, with a propensity for red sandy loam; suggesting a camouflage variation for local areas. Body & head length ~10mm & wingspan ~24mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Black-stigmata Moth Achyra nigrirenalis iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Small-kite Moth Autarotis milvellus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~6mm long, ~14mm wingspan. They look like small Metallarcha thiophara & some Hednota sp moths. We photographed 4 specimens in March, at a night light sheet. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Delicate Pearl Moth Criophthona finitima iNaturalist | Na e m | 1st Live Photo on-line: Came to Victor's Memorial Night Light Photographed 2 in Jan & Feb. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Eastern Black Tabby Diplopseustis perieresalis iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long, ~20mm wingspan. We photographed one specimen in Feb. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | White Patched Crambid Eclipsiodes homora | Na e m | Similar Species: Bird-wing Moth (Uresiphita ornithopteralis) ~7mm long & ~17mm wingspan. Very shiny scales, so difficult to get photo's to highlight the white patch as oposed to reflective glare. It has stunning orange hindwings, with a thick black trailing border. While this superficially looks like a Wattle Moth, it is much smaller. The body has an orange band as well, but this doesn't seem to be consistent across on-line images. In Bold BINS there are 4 records describing this species, which indicates it's a species complex. Eurhythma sp. ANIC6 & Eurhythma sp. 6 (as figured on Bold V3) have the same DNA markers. We found one specimen in in October, which had a black bald patch on it's back (behind it's head). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Azolla Caseworm Elophila responsalis iNaturalist | Na e m |
2nd Record in SA on Atlas: ~7mm long & ~17mm wingspan. A very pretty moth with indistinct white lines separating black & orange patches. It seems to be very variable. Originally found in Qld, but has travelled down the Eastern seaboard and along the Murray into SA. This is only the second specimen found in SA that we can find. Two specimens found at night lights in Jan & March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | White Streaked Crambid Eudonia cleodoralis iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Abbey Throssell for identifying, Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Michael Keogh for confirming and David Akers for helping with the id of this species for us The usual diagnostic feature of having different antennae does not seem to separate out the genders with this species. We have assumed the fatter body is female. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Yellow Striped Crambid Glaucocharis dilatella iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us A stunning little moth on screen, yet nondescript to the naked eye. Generally sits with it's legs forward and antennae laid back over it's body. Large scaly palps held out forward making quite a snout The forewings wings trail with longitudinal short yellow stripes separated by black marks. Followed by metallic silver, black, then silver transverse stripes. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Double-striped Grass Moth Hednota bivittella iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us Very large specimen. Considered to be ~30mm wingspan, this one is ~42mm wingspan Based on body shape, we think it's a female. You can understand why we thought this one was a cousin of Angled Satin Moth (thalaina angulosa), a Thalaina tetraclada. We were quite exited as we thought it was the most Eastern record of this species. But no, it's not even a Geometrid; you can tell by the massive, great big hooter! It's a Crambidae, a totally different family. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | White-marked Webworm Hednota crypsichroa iNaturalist | Na e m | ~12mm long, ~25mm wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Round-marked Grass Webworm Hednota cyclosema iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Karen Weaving for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Wingspan ~20mm We have photographed 24 specimens in March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Grass Webworm Hednota enchias | Na e m |
~10mm long, ~21mm wingspan. White & brown striped with black bars on the trailing forewings, with dark speckles receding towards the front. It is very similar to Hednota koojanensis, but that species has a straighter mid-line. Found one specimen in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Metallic Grass Webworm Hednota eremenopa | Na e m |
Wingspan ~20mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Grass Webworm Hednota grammellus iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Matt Campbell for identifying this species for us Wingspan ~30mm Looks very similar to Hednota opulentellus; which we thought it was originally. Ken Harris said "The white stripe just inside the leading edge is continuous. In H. opulentellus, there are two white striped overlapping half-way along the wing". We have photographed 10 specimens in March & April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Serrated Antennae Webworm Hednota impletellus iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~12mm long, ~27mm wingspan. Found 1 in March. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Long-palped Webworm Hednota longipalpella iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you CPye3381 for confirming the id of this species for us ~13mm long, ~26mm wingspan. Note the difference between the 2 profile shots. They are of the same specimen, just one is reversed. We always prepare photo's with the head to the left. However, the side that is most "worn" also has a lot more black scales near the rear of the forewing than the other side. Possibly a strange wear pattern, or possibly asymetric. This is also evident from the dorsal shot. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Broken Line Grass Webworm Hednota panteucha | Na e m |
~12mm long, ~27mm wingspan. Bipectinate antennae. Very long palps & legs. It's almost spider-like. Found one specimen in April | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Black Grass Webworm Hednota pedionoma | Na e m |
Wingspan ~24mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Grass Webworm Hednota relatalis | Na a |
Wingspan ~27mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Beautiful-skinned Snout Moth Hednotodes callichroa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura for identifying and Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long, ~22m wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Cabbage Centre Grub Moth Hellula hydralis iNaturalist | Na e m a r | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us We are staggered with the variations in the colours of some moths. We indicate they are different morphs in our site here to help people id them, but it's possible they fade. Fading is different to wearing. Some moth scales wear off and you can see their "skin" were all the scales have worn. This can make id difficult where the scale with patterns don't exist. Others can loose large chunks of their trailing wings, which can hold diagnostic patterns. And then, like here, they can have massive variations in the darkness of the scales, but the lines are just visible to id the moth; barely. Having changed all our common names of moths whose larvae feed on agricultural plants to their native plant food, we are unable to do this with this species. It caterpillars feed on Brassicaceae, with no natives in this plant family in the region. As such, we can assume we only see them due to the copious infestations of Ward's Weed, etc, throughout the Murraylands. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Pond Moth Hygraula nitens iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dion Maple for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long, ~15mm wingspan. A small, typical crambid shaped moth. The one we found was quite pale compared to some other on-line photo's. Basically brown with white lateral streaks. We found one specimen in December (in a semi-arid region in drought, not sure about the 'pond' name?) | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Metallarcha Moth Metallarcha beatalis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: It seems there are two types of this species. It's possible it's gender, but that's not clear. Our "Type 1" doesn't have solid bars on the fore-wings. Our "Type 2" does. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Metallarcha Moth Metallarcha calliaspis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: Wingspan ~24mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Golden Metallarcha Moth Metallarcha diplochrysa iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Ken Walker for identifying and Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Western Metallarcha Moth Metallarcha pseliota iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Mark Hura & Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long, ~18mm wingspan. Typical looking metallarcha with orange & black hingwings. Forwings are black with 3 large rectangular white patches and 7 trailing orange spots. One specimen found in Feb | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Metallarcha Moth Metallarcha thiophara | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | White Dashed Crambid Metasia capnochroa iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Antler Moth Nacoleia rhoeoalis | Na a |
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| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Spotted Crambid Nomophila corticalis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us We haven't been able to separate genders out, both looking the same. These are highly variable in shade & colour, from VERY pale grey (but not worn), through darker browns, to having a touch of orange patching on some. We've seen them during the day, walking around Ellura, as well as night lights. Photographed 14 in Jan, Feb, Mar, Aug, Sep & Oct. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Solanum Moth Sceliodes cordalis iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Leon Crang for confirming the id of this species for us ~9mm long & ~20mm wingspan. A very peculiar moth. They are an Australian native, also found overseas. Two specimens photographed in Oct & Feb. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Black & White Crambid Scoparia exhibitalis iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Don Herbison-Evans for identifying this species for us ~9mm long, wingspan ~20mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Stunning Crambid Syntonarcha sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for identifying and Peter Crowcroft for helping with the id of this species for us ~12mm long. Very rare as there is only one other photo of this species we've seen; so undescribed. Photographed 1 in Jan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Crambid Snout Moth :Pyraloidea Crambidae | Bird-wing Moth Uresiphita ornithopteralis iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Similar Species: White Patched Crambid (Eclipsiodes homora) Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us A deceptively large moth, ~18mm long & ~34mm wingspan. They have two colour forms. The ones we've seen have a general reddish brown colour with thick white legs being the most distinguishing feature; until you see their windwings. Brilliant orange, offset by a thick black trailing band. Underneath their wings are generally pale yellow with a pink section along the costa of both wings, much thicker on the hindwings extending to almost half the wing. We have photographed 7 specimens in Jan, Apr, May, Aug, Sep & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Variable Bent-wing Araeopaschia cf sp | Na e m | This has been a very difficult species to id. As always, please only take our id's as a starting point for your own reseach. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | White Streaked Pyralid Assara holophragma | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Mourning Pyralid Moth Catamola funerea iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Almella Frass Moth Ctenomeristis almella iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ned Fisher for confirming the id of this species for us ~10mm long & ~23mm wingspan. The males antennae are uni-pectinate, females are filiform. The lines are often very "broken" or patchy making id difficult as the missing areas of line are not diagnostic. It has very short upturned palps. The front of the main lines, towards the head & middle of the wing, can be turned up in tufts as shown here. The hindwings are pale yellow from under, but we couldn't get a top shot of the hindwings which are plain with a simple line running along the trailing edge. Ten specimens photographed, one female (in Apr), in Sep, Oct, Nov, Jan, Mar & Apr. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Steaked Pyralid Moth Enchesphora ANIC11 iNaturalist | Na e m |
~15mm long, ~29mm wingspan. Notice these have very unusual antennal joints to the head; it's like a forked projection. We suspect they are scales wrapping the base of the antennae. Photographed one in Jan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Tufted Pyralid Moth Enchesphora brachypalpia iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Rog Standen for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~12mm long & ~28mm wingspan. Gender is not normally separated out with antennae with these Pyralid moths. As such we suspect this is a female by body shape, but aren't sure. What a spectacular moth with tufts going in all directions! This is a perfect example of why we need to take the profile shots. We even took 2 here to give slightly different aspects of the tufts. A pretty moth with white splashes under the tufts, mainly grey & brown mottling, with black scaloping lines towards the trailing of the forewing. Under the hindwings we see primarily cream coloured wings, each with a dark brown trailing band, a central spot and faint zig zag line between. Photographed 4 in Jan, Mar & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Unnamed Pyralid Moth Enchesphora sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m |
Photographed one in Jan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Small Tabby Etiella behrii | Na e m a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Striped Snout Moth Etiella chrysoporella iNaturalist | Na e m a | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Greater Wax Moth Galleria mellonella iNaturalist | If e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~14mm long, ~33mm wingspan. We found one in November | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Grey Snout Moth Meyrickiella homosema iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~8mm long & ~19mm wingspan. A very distinctive little moth where the palps turn up sharply making the face look quite square. A grey dappled appearance with indistinct pale yellow longitudinal stripes that look more like wear than scale colour (but they are coloured scales) Reasonably common, we've imaged 6 specimens in Mar, Jul, Sep, Oct & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | False-tongue Moth Mimaglossa habitalis iNaturalist | Na e m | ~18mm long, wingspan ~40mm | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | One-eyed Moth Mimaglossa nauplialis iNaturalist | Na e m a | Looks very similar to M. habitalis, but M. habitalis has a wingspan of ~40mm, M. nauplialis has a wing span of out 25mm, which is the size of those in these photos. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Red-blotched Pyralid Morosaphycita poliochyta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Paul Whitington for identifying this species for us ~12mm long We originally thought this was Morosaphycita oculiferella. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Teatree Web Moth Orthaga thyrisalis iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~12mm long | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Indian Meal Moth Plodia interpunctella iNaturalist | If e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~7mm long, ~17mm wingspan We found one in December | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Grass Moth :Pyraloidea Pyralidae | Black Pyralid Stericta carbonalis | Na e m a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Scruffy Case Moth Ardiosteres moretonella iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us These scruffy looking moths look almost spiky due to the number of scales randomly protruding from the body & wings. ~9mm head & body length, ~22m wingspan. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Faggot Case Moth Clania ignobilis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying and David Muirhead & Leonie Kirchmajer for confirming the id of this species for us It was previously considered the species could be identified by the unevenness (or evenness) of the sticks on the case; however this has been shown to be incorrect. Thanks to Nina Maurovic for letting use know a "faggot" means a bundle of sticks. These are parasitised by flies, as shown here: Parasitic Fly (Tritaxys sp) We asked Ethan how he was able to determine the id to species he said "C. ignobilis can only be identified as such in your sighting because the only other spp with similar structures (C. lewinii and Euneta spp) do not occur in the SA mallee regions and are instead restricted to higher rainfall areas along the coast and ranges" Further "Generally speaking C. lewinii selects rougher sticks and creates smaller cases on average, particularly the males, but it's not something easy to pick without the two side by side, and variation will be present due to host plant availability" | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Case Moth Lepidoscia cf euryptera | Na e m | ~8mm long & ~17mm wingspan, with filiform antennae We found 4 specimens in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Case Moth Lepidoscia heliochares iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Michael Keogh for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: We were very excited with this find as it was the first adult specimen of a case we had found. Yet were very family with seeing the cases hanging from bushes as we walk Ellura. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Case Moth Lomera sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying this species for us We suspected this is the Leaf Case Moth (Hyalarcta huebneri), but weren't sure. Ethan said "the pattern of the larva is different (to the other Lomera he id'ed) so I can't say for certain if they are different species or different ages". Since we found them in very different area's we have labelled as separate species, more for web site layout than any other reason. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Messy-case Moth Lomera sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na r | Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying this species for us The case is ~15mm. The larvae have very strong legs compared to most, as well as well developed antennae. We thought this was Metura sp. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Case Moth :Tineoidea Psychidae | Tiny Case Moth Psychidae sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Andy Young for identifying this species for us Wingspan ~8mm, body length ~3.5mm. Clear wings, with some dark scaly hairs. Body has some white scaly hairs as well. Notice the setae at the front of the hindwing, that goes into a "pocket" on the forewing. When we asked what that was Andy said: "That spur and reticulum arrangement that co-joins the wings is the frenulum. It's quite a handy taxonomic feature: if you look in Moths of Australia, it is often included in character matrix for diagnosing the various Families. " Andy highlighted these moths to us, which he & Richard Glatz found when surveying moths near Banrock at night sheets last year; using MV light source. It's undescribed and if studied will probably lead to a new genus to place it in. They come just after proper dark. Between 6:30pm & 7:00pm. We found 4 specimens in April. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tineid Moth :Tineoidea Tineidae | Yellow & Purple Clothes Moth Edosa meliphanes iNaturalist | Na a |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tineid Moth :Tineoidea Tineidae | Bird Nest Moth Monopis crocicapitella iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Rebecca Hamdorf for confirming the id of this species for us Tineids usually eat dead organic matter, like clothes, and in this case Bird's Nests | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tineid Moth :Tineoidea Tineidae | Tineid Case Moth Tineidae sp | Na e m | Thank you Ethan Beaver for helping with the id of this species for us This is a most unusual Case moth as it's case is made of sand. We thought it was a caddisfly, but they are aquatic and the head of this is not that of a caddisfly but of some type of caterpillar. We then thought it was a Case moth (Psychidae), but they don't make their cases out of sand. Finally we found this family makes cases out of all sorts of things, including sand. The most well known is the introduced clothes moth (Tinea pellionella) but would be surprised those could survive the semi-arid conditions. Many species in this family make cases. Ethan said "Sand and small pebble designs are not uncommon but are rarely recorded because they are so cryptic." | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Tortrix Moth Anisogona similana iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Red Leaf Roller Capua intractana iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Sida Tipworm Moth Crocidosema plebejana iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Matt Campbell for confirming the id of this species for us We have no cotton in SA, but this species is still found. It's caterpillars feed on Malvaceae. Limestone Sida & Clustered Lawrencia are the only Malvaceae plants we've found on Ellura so far. As is our general stance on common names, it's wrong to call something by the introduced plant it eats when it was surviving happily before European invasion. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Leaf Roller Moth Cryptoptila australana | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Yellow Cobblestoned Leaf Roller Dichelopa achranta iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Peter McQuillan for identifying this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: We thought this was Merophyas siniodes but Peter said "Dichelopa achranta is known from dry open woodlands including the mallee. Looks rather like a Clepsis/Merophyas but is more lustrous and with a "cobblestone" pattern." He also suggested it may use Beyeria as a food source, which we have plenty of. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Light Brown Wattle Moth Epiphyas postvittana iNaturalist | Na e m a |
~9mm long. The rear band on females is paler than on males. You can also see here this matches up with the ventral shots; the female having a more rounded abdomen. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Brown Tortrix Moth Epiphyas xylodes | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Patchy Leaf Roller Grapholita sp ES01 iNaturalist | Na e m | You can see the colour of this one specimen varies considerably depending on the angle of the flash light. From dark brown to almose white. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Patched Leaf Roller Grapholita sp ES02 iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Metallic Leaf Roller Grapholita sp ES05 | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Pink Tufted Moth Heliocosma anthodes iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: ~6mm long, ~15mm wingspan. Males have very thick antennae compared to females, both being filiform. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Black & White Tufted Moth Heliocosma melanotypa iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Trailing-spotted Tortrix Moth Meritastis polygraphana iNaturalist | Na e m | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Striking Tortrix Moth Meritastis pyrosemana | Na a | |||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Tortrix Moth :Tortricoidea Tortricidae | Eucalyptus Leafroller Moth Strepsicrates macropetana iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for identifying and Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us We thought this was a Diamond-backed Tortrix Moth (Oxysemaphora notialis). Partly our mistake came from a camera artifact that over exposed the back, making it look like a diamond; but they also vary in how white the pattern on their back is. We've now added other photo's of another, darker specimen we found that shows the same patterns, except where the first was over-exposed. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Sedge Moth :Yponomeutoid Glyphipterigidae | Sedge Moth Glyphipterix chrysoplanetis iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Sedge Moth :Yponomeutoid Glyphipterigidae | Metallic Sedge Moth Glyphipterix meteora iNaturalist | Na a | Thank you Ralph Foster for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Diamondback Moth :Yponomeutoid Plutellidae | Australian Diamondback Moth Plutella cf australiana iNaturalist | Na e m |
Thank you Alan Melville for confirming the id of this species for us Only discovered as being a separate moth this year (2018). It is not possible to differentiate them visibly from the introduced Cabbage Moth. However, the introduced moth is a cosmopolitan species, and seems to prefer cooler/wetter environments. As such, we are guessing this is the native one at Ellura, but the introduced one in the Adelaide Hills. Thanks to Donald Hobern for alerting us to this new species Unusually on iNat they are now calling this "Complex Plutella xylostella-australiana", it's not a proper taxon name or identifier and should really be left as Plutella genus, but it does a good job of quickly highlighting the situation. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Diamondback Moth :Yponomeutoid Plutellidae | Cabbage Moth Plutella cf xylostella | If a |
Thank you Alan Melville for confirming the id of this species for us This introduced species is highly variable in it's colours. The antennae always have banding, however, and point forward. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Cup Moth :Zygaenoidea Limacodidae | Tiger Cup Moth Anaxidia lactea iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Dr Bevan Buirchell for confirming the id of this species for us ~17mm long, ~38mm wingspan. Limacodidae (this family) males have bipectinate antennae & females have ciliated (fine, hairy); would look filiform to the naked eye. Interestingly we have never found a female Limacodidae, and can't find any photo's of a female of this species. A very distinctive moth with a "lighting flash" black line near the trailing edge of the wings; and very fury looking like other cup moths. The rest of both wings are a plain sandy brown; which makes sense as they are an arid species. The real surprise is underneath with bright orange & black striped legs, orange striped body & orange highlights around the face. The antennae bases are covered in an orange tuft. The short scales making the orange body stripes are covered with long sandy brown scales; making the orange stripes nearly visible. We found 6 males in Nov & Dec. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Cup Moth :Zygaenoidea Limacodidae | Wattle Cup Moth Calcarifera ordinata iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Don Herbison-Evans, Axel Kallies, Dr Bevan Buirchell, Karen Weaving & James Peake for confirming the id of this species for us Adult males ~13mm.The larva was ~20mm long. These seem to be a fairly rare moth, but we seem to have a good population of them. We have photographed 6 males & 1 larva in Dec, Jan & Feb (larva) | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Cup Moth :Zygaenoidea Limacodidae | Cup Moth Comana sp | Na e m | While we knew some people were sensitive to caterpillar hairs, we didn't realise they could be poisonous. Well this one is! Apparently it's worse than a bee sting. We were so lucky not to get stung, because the bush was full of them, and were pushing into it to get good angles for the photo's. You can be stung just by brushing passed them. You can see in the close up that it's feeling threatened, and the spines are protruding. If you look closely you can see a little edge on each one about half way along; that's where it retracts. They are hypodermic needles filled with poison! In future we'll be treating these with a lot more respect & distance | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Cup Moth :Zygaenoidea Limacodidae | Four-spotted Cup Moth Doratifera quadriguttata iNaturalist | Na e m a |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† for confirming the id of this species for us ~15mm long, wingspan ~34mm. Males have bipectinate antennae, females are filiform. The male pectinations are unusually thick and each look cupped & thicker at the end, almost spatulate. A "Cup" moth because the pupal case is in the form of a cup. A "Slug" moth because it's the only family who's larva don't have pro-legs and look more like a green slug (a snail without a house) from underneath. This is a very interesting species. We believe it's a spcies complex, as there are 7 Bold DNA bins, with differing numbers of spots. The common name is miss-leading .... 2 spots per side = 4 spots total, or 4 spots per side? As it turns out we've counted between 2 to 8 spots per side. There is also another species whose adult is visually indistinguishable from these, Doratifera casta; which strangely isn't represented in the Bold DNA bins. As such, we'll show the adult & larva together under one species here, even though the adult could be the other. The larva has retractable needle stingers discussed below. They have ordinary caterpillar heads, which is hard to see as it can be retracted and protected behind a thick layer of skin. We've only found one adult in November. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Cup Moth :Zygaenoidea Limacodidae | Golden Cup Moth Pseudanapaea sp iNaturalist | Na e m | Always surprises us to see moth playing dead. We were testing a new LED work light out as a moth light. Worked very well. Unfortunately this fellow sat on it (stuffing up the lighting), flapped about a lot and either exhausted itself or felt threatened by the camera. After a while it just keeled over and looked dead (when we got the ventral shot). It later "recovered" and flew away We've gone through the 21 Bold Bins related to Pseudanapaea. 3 are in SA. This is the only one not P. denotata by DNA testing, it's P. transvestita. It's right on the SA/NSW/Vic Border. ie River Murray: Bold Bin There is at least one sample "BC EF Lep 01466" that has no large white/pale patch behind the orange, as in most P. transvestita. Therefore, we don't think it's possible to visually differentiate between Pseudanapaea and it's not possible to assume id based on location. P. transvestita example with no large white patches | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Forester Moth :Zygaenoidea Zygaenidae | Mainland Forester Hestiochora continentalis iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line: A medium sized, spectacular moth. There are a few in this genera, but the orange head and location suggest H. continentalis; indicating it's restricted to the mainland (not Tasmania). It's a very rare moth with very few records. The female we found was ~7mm long, wingspan ~20mm. It has dark brown wings (fore & hind), a blue/black body with cream & white stripes. While the top of the head is orange, along with an orange collar, the face is black. The wings readily loose scales, making them become transparent with age. This can be seen here on the hind wings. It has smale white tufts above & below the "shoulders" (wing joins). | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Forester Moth :Zygaenoidea Zygaenidae | Wasp Mimicking Forester Myrtartona rufiventris iNaturalist | Na e m | Thank you Axel Kallies for confirming the id of this species for us 1st Live Photo on-line:These are also the 1st ever (dead or alive) female photo's of this species on-line, as well as the 1st ventral photo's of this species on-line. ~9mm long & ~21mm wingspan. Male antennae are bipectinate, while females are filiform. The top of the body is orange, which is very visible in flight. This, plus the long visible antennae, make them look very much like a wasp to the naked eye. Black/brown matt wings (unlike it's cousin the Green Forester) with white flecks (and can have a white spot on each wing, but we haven't seen this). They are white underneath, with the male having black stripes and the female having black & brown patches. They love our M. lanceolata bushes. Apparantly the caterpillers eat them, so the adults are attracted to them at mating time (December in our area). A quick note: These specimens are alive, just cold from being put in the fridge to calm down, and were released and flew away within the hour. We have photographed 8 specimens in Mid December. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Forester Moth :Zygaenoidea Zygaenidae | Satin-green Forester Pollanisus sp iNaturalist | Na m a f | Thank you David Muirhead & Bianca Giles for confirming the id of this species for us ~11mm long. An incredibly shiny, metallic moth. Almost every surface is reflective, with a base colour of green, but depending on lighting and reflection/refraction can look any array of colours; from black, blue through green & copper. The hindwing is a non-metallic plain brown. The different specimens here highlight the colour variations which is not gender specific. The female does have a non metallic, golden tuft on the tip of her abdomen. It's very hard to differentiate the male & female from the antennae. While they are dramatically different the male tends to hold the filaments close to the core making them look very similar most of the time. Where as the gold tip on the female can be readily seen from side angles. There are two species in this genus that can be easily confused; P. apicalis, which is generally smaller, & P. viridipulverulenta. Peter Marriott said that size is not a good separator of species indicating there are some very small P. viridipulverulenta. He said "Comparing the set specimens of apicalis and viridipulverulenta the wing shape is significant. P. apicalis has narrower wings in comparison to P. viridipulverulenta." As Peter also said, camera angle, etc, can make this difficult to distinguish. Note that the male shown here (S2) is a single specimen; showing a variety of apparantly different wing shapes & colours. Having looked at the specimens on Bold we don't have a good enough eye to differentiate, so have lifted our id to genus. We have photographed 8 specimens (2 female) in Oct & Nov. | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Skippers Hesperioidea: Hesperiidae | Mottled Grass-skipper Anisynta cynone ssp cynone iNaturalist | V e m |
Thank you Prof Victor W Fazio III† & Matt Endacott for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Skippers Hesperioidea: Hesperiidae | Southern Grass-dart Ocybadistes walkeri iNaturalist | L a |
Thank you Terra Occ for confirming the id of this species for us | ||||
| Butterflies & Moths Lepidoptera | Skippers Hesperioidea: Hesperiidae | Rare White-spot Rush-skipper Trapezites luteus ssp luteus iNaturalist | ||||||