Austramathes fortis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Austramathes fortis |
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Austramathes fortis is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae. It was first described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1880 from a specimen collected in Marlborough. It is endemic to New Zealand.
Description
The wingspan of the male A. fortis is 29 – 37 mm where as the wingspan of the female is 29 – 41 mm. George Hudson described the species as follows:
The expansion of the wings is a little over 1 in. The fore wings are dull brownish-ochreous finely speckled with black; there is a conspicuous hook-shaped black mark close to the base, a sharp black mark on the costa at about 1/4, a clouded wavy line near the middle of the wing, darker on the costa, a sharp black mark on the costa just beyond this, followed by a wavy band of dark brownish-black, very much broader on the costa than on the dorsum, and bordered with a pale wavy line towards the termen. The hind wings are dark brownish- black. The cilia of the fore wings are brownish-ochreous, of the hind wings dark - grey. The head and thorax are brownish-ochreous, and the abdomen grey. There are two conspicuous black marks on the anterior portion of the thorax.
Distribution
A. fortis is found in both the North and the South Islands but has yet to be recorded at Stewart Island. Adults can be found on the wing during the months of July to March.
Host species
The larvae of this moth has been shown to feed on several Melicytus species including M. crassifolius, M. alpinus, M. macrophyllus and M. novae-zelandiae.
