Eudonia gyrotoma facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Eudonia gyrotoma |
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Eudonia
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E. gyrotoma
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| Eudonia gyrotoma (Meyrick, 1909)
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The Eudonia gyrotoma is a small, fascinating moth that belongs to the Crambidae family. This family includes many different types of moths, often called "snout moths" because some have a snout-like mouthpart.
This particular moth was first officially described in 1909 by a scientist named Edward Meyrick. He was a very important entomologist, which is someone who studies insects.
Meet the Eudonia Moth
The Eudonia gyrotoma is a special kind of moth because it is endemic to New Zealand. This means you can only find it living naturally in New Zealand and nowhere else in the world! It's like a unique treasure of the New Zealand ecosystem.
What Does It Look Like?
This moth is quite small. Its wingspan, which is the distance from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other when spread out, is about 20 mm. That's roughly the size of a small coin!
- Forewings: The front wings of the Eudonia gyrotoma have a cool mix of colors. They are a light brassy-yellowish-fuscous. "Fuscous" means they have a brownish-grey color. These wings are also "irrorated" with white, meaning they have tiny white speckles, and "sprinkled" with dark fuscous, adding darker brown-grey dots.
- Hindwings: The back wings are a bit simpler in color. They are mostly grey-whitish. The edges of these wings, called the "costa" (the front edge) and "termen" (the outer edge), are slightly darker, suffused with light grey.
These colors help the moth blend in with its surroundings, which is a great way to stay safe from predators.
