Austramathes purpurea

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Austramathes purpurea
Austramathes purpurea male.jpg
Male
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Noctuidae
Genus: Austramathes
Species:
A. purpurea
Binomial name
Austramathes purpurea
(Butler, 1879) [1]
Synonyms [2]
  • Graphiphora purpureaButler, 1879
  • Xanthia ceramodesMeyrick 1887
  • Xanthia purpurea(Butler, 1879)

Austramathes purpurea is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae. It is endemic to New Zealand and can be found throughout the North and South Islands but has yet to be recorded at Stewart Island. It inhabits native forest. This species might possibly be confused with A. pessota, however this latter species does not have the purple hue to the forewings. The larvae of A. purpurea feed primarily on māhoe but have been recorded as feeding on, and have been reared on, narrow-leaved māhoe. The larvae pupate in a silken cocoon on moss covered ground. Adults can be found on the wing during the months of March to January but mainly occur during New Zealand's late autumn, winter, and spring. Light trapping may not be the most efficient technique for collecting this species.

Contents

Taxonomy

This species was first described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1879 and named Graphiphora purpurea. [3] In 1887 Edward Meyrick, thinking he was describing a new species, again named this moth Xanthia ceramodes. [4] Having realised his error, in 1888 Meyrick synonymised this name but placed the species within the Xanthia genus. [5] In 1906 George Hampson described the new genus Austramathes and placed this species within it so it is now known as Austramathes purpurea. [6] In 2017 Robert Hoare undertook revision of the New Zealand Noctuinae and confirmed this placement. [2] The male holotype specimen was collected by F. W. Hutton in Dunedin and is held at the Natural History Museum, London. [7]

Description

Larva of A. purpurea Austramathes purpurea 97901136.jpg
Larva of A. purpurea
A. purpurea showing the distinctive purplish hue to the forewings. Austramathes purpurea 121025146.jpg
A. purpurea showing the distinctive purplish hue to the forewings.

The larvae of this species are green with orange, black, yellow and pink markings. [8] George Hudson described it as follows:

The full-grown larva is about 1+1⁄4 inches long, moderately stout and of uniform thickness. The head is ochreous, with a black stripe on each side; the back of the larva is greyish-green, and the under surface pale greenish-ochreous;, there is a rather large, shining black mark above each spiracle; the dorsal, sub-dorsal and lateral lines are orange-yellow and very conspicuous, the two upper lines being very much broken; there are several minute black warts below the spiracles, and a series of very small black marks on the orange dorsal line. [9]

Butler originally described this species as follows:

Primaries above rich chocolate-brown shot with purple ; the central area limited by two undulated squamose lines of white and fulvous scales, a third similar but less distinct line across the base; a semicircular blackish spot edged with whitish near the end of the cell, its outer edge, together with a portion of the outer undulated line, indicating the reniform spot, its inner edge united at the extremity to an oblique black-edged whitish dash which replaces the orbicular spot; an indistinct series of black marginal dots ; secondaries chocolate-brown becoming pale brown towards the base ; fringe pale brown intersected by a darker line; head, collar, and centre of thorax rich chocolate-brown edged with fulvous scales; first joint of palpi tipped with fulvous; tegulae dark brown with a sericeous slaty-grey lustre; abdomen chocolate-brown with pale basal tufts; under surface pale sericeous red-brown with darker margins and fringe ; primaries with whitish interno-basal area ; secondaries with a lunule at the end of the cell and a bisinuated discal series of spots black ; body below darker than the wings, chocolate-brown. Expanse of wings 1 inch 7 lines. [3]

Hudson also described the species in his 1898 book New Zealand moths and butterflies (Macro-lepidoptera) as:

The expansion of the wings is 1+1⁄2 inches. The forewings are rich, glossy reddish-brown with several scattered whitish scales; there is a distinct yellow mark on the costa at about one-fourth, forming the beginning of a broken transverse line; the orbicular is small, round and yellowish; the reniform is small, crescentic and yellowish, the space between the orbicular and the reniform is very dark blackish-brown; beyond the reniform there is a conspicuous white mark on the costa forming the beginning of a second broken transverse line; a third shaded line is situated near the termen. The hind-wings are pale brown with a dark spot in the middle, very conspicuous on the under surface. [10]

The wingspan of the adult male A. purpurea is between 29 and 37mm where as the wingspan of the female is between 29 and 42mm. [2] This species might possibly be confused with A. pessota, however this latter species does not have the purple hue to the forewings. [2]

Distribution

A. purpurea is endemic to New Zealand, [11] and found in both the North and the South Islands but has yet to be recorded at Stewart Island. [2]

Habitat

This species prefers native forest as its habitat. [8]

Behaviour

The larvae of this species pupate in a silken cocoon on moss covered ground or alternatively within gaps in bark. [9] [8] Adults can be found on the wing during the months of March to January but mainly occur during New Zealand's late autumn, winter and spring. [10] [2]

Host species

Mahoe, the larval host of A. purpurea. Melicytus ramiflorus 60940420.jpg
Māhoe, the larval host of A. purpurea.

The larvae of A. purpurea feed primarily on māhoe but have been recorded as feeding on, and have also been reared on, narrow-leaved māhoe. [2]

Collection method

Although the adults of this species are nocturnal and are attracted to light, Robert Hoare has hypothesised that light trapping may not be the most efficient technique for collecting this species. [2] [8]

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<i>Meterana alcyone</i> Species of moth endemic to New Zealand

Meterana alcyone is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae. This species is endemic to New Zealand and is found in the North and South Islands. The larvae of this species feed on the leaves of Muehlenbeckia complexa and Corynocarpus laevigatus. Adults are on the wing every month of the year except January. They are attracted to light and have also been recorded as bycatch in the New Zealand National Fruit Fly Surveillance fly traps.

References

  1. ↑ "Austramathes purpurea (Butler, 1879)". collections.tepapa.govt.nz. Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Robert J. B. Hoare (23 June 2017). Illustrator: Birgit E. Rhode. "Noctuinae (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) part 1: Austramathes, Cosmodes, Proteuxoa, Physetica" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research. 73. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.73. ISSN   0111-5383. OCLC   1002177011. Wikidata   Q44893580.
  3. 1 2 Butler, Arthur Gardiner (1879). "On a small collection of Heterocerous Lepidoptera, from New Zealand". Cistula Entomologica. 2: 487–511 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  4. ↑ Edward Meyrick (1887). "Monograph of New Zealand Noctuina". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 19: 31. ISSN   1176-6158. Wikidata   Q104048034.
  5. ↑ Edward Meyrick (May 1888). "Supplement to a Monograph of New Zealand Noctuina". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 20: 46. ISSN   1176-6158. Wikidata   Q108276715.
  6. ↑ George Francis Hampson (1906), Catalogue of the Lepidoptera Phalaenae in the British Museum. Volume VI: Catalogue of the Noctuidae in the Collection of the British Museum, pp. 492–493, Wikidata   Q108276512
  7. ↑ John Stewart Dugdale (23 September 1988). "Lepidoptera - annotated catalogue, and keys to family-group taxa" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. 14: 198. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.14. ISSN   0111-5383. Wikidata   Q45083134. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 July 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Hoare, Robert J. B. (2014). A photographic guide to moths & butterflies of New Zealand. Ball, Olivier. Auckland: New Holland Publishers (NZ) Ltd. p. 125. ISBN   9781869663995. OCLC   891672034.
  9. 1 2 George Vernon Hudson (1928), The butterflies and moths of New Zealand, Illustrator: George Hudson, Wellington, p. 49, OCLC   25449322, Wikidata   Q58593286
  10. 1 2 Hudson, G. V. (1898). New Zealand moths and butterflies (Macro-lepidoptera). London: West, Newman & co. p. 8. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.32466.
  11. ↑ "Austramathes purpurea (Butlera, 1879)". www.nzor.org.nz. Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd. Retrieved 9 July 2017.

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