Erechthias crypsimima

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Erechthias crypsimima
Erechthias crypsimima 259124068.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Tineidae
Genus: Erechthias
Species:
E. crypsimima
Binomial name
Erechthias crypsimima
(Meyrick, 1920) [1]
Synonyms [2]
  • Hectacma crypsimimaMeyrick, 1920

Erechthias crypsimima is a species of moth in the family Tineidae. [3] It was described by Edward Meyrick in 1920. This species is endemic to New Zealand and has been observed in the North Island. This species inhabits native forest and has been observed in Nothofagus fusca forest. The larvae likely feed on either deceased plant detritus or tough leaves of plants such as palms or flax. Adults are on the wing commonly from January to March. During the day, adults are known to rest on tree trunks where the moth's colouration helps provide protection by camouflaging the moth.

Contents

Taxonomy

This species was first described by Edward Meyrick in 1920 using a specimen collected by George Hudson in Wellington in February and originally named Hectacma crypsimima. [4] [2] Hudson noted that he collected the type specimen of this species from the black trunk of a beech tree. [4] Hudson discussed and illustrated this species in his 1928 book The butterflies and moths of New Zealand. [5] In 1988 John S. Dugdale synonymised Hectacma with the genus Erechthias and thus since that date this species has been known as Erechthias crypsimima. [5] The male holotype specimen is held at the Natural History Museum, London. [2]

Description

Illustration by Hudson. Fig 11 MA I437908 TePapa Plate-XLVII-The-butterflies full (cropped).jpg
Illustration by Hudson.

Meyrick described this species as follows:

♂. 10 mm. Head grey mixed with whitish and blackish. Palpi dark fuscous. Thorax dark fuscous slightly speckled with whitish. Abdomen dark fuscous. Forewings elongate, rather narrow, costa gently arched, apex tolerably pointed, termen hardly rounded, extremely oblique; bronzy-brown, irregularly speckled with whitish except in posterior part of disc, with some scattered blackish scales; a very oblique blackish wedge-shaped streak from basal part of costa reaching half across wing; oblique blackish wedge-shaped spots from costa before middle and towards apex, and one from middle of dorsum; a small round blackish apical spot : cilia grey, whitish-tinged round apex, with two blackish lines. Hindwings and cilia dark fuscous. [4]

Hudson pointed out that the colouration of this species provides protection by helping this species camouflage itself on the trunks of trees. [5]

Distribution

This species is endemic to New Zealand. [1] This species has been observed in the North Island.

Habitat and hosts

Protective colouration of E. crypsimima. Erechthias crypsimima 258500260.jpg
Protective colouration of E. crypsimima.

This species is known to inhabit native forest and has been observed in Nothofagus fusca forest. [5] Larvae of species in the genus Erechthias feed on dead plant debris or the tough leaves of plants such as palms. [6]

Behaviour

Adults are on the wing from January to March. [5] [7] During the day adults are known to rest on the trunks of trees. [5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Erechthias crypsimima (Meyrick, 1920)". www.nzor.org.nz. Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Dugdale , J. S. (23 September 1988). "Lepidoptera - annotated catalogue, and keys to family-group taxa". Fauna of New Zealand. 14. Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: 61. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.14. ISSN   0111-5383. Wikidata   Q45083134.
  3. ↑ Gordon, Dennis P., ed. (2010). New Zealand inventory of biodiversity: Kingdom animalia: chaetognatha, ecdysozoa, ichnofossils. Vol. 2. p. 464. ISBN   978-1-877257-93-3. OCLC   973607714. OL   25288394M. Wikidata   Q45922947.
  4. 1 2 3 Edward Meyrick (1920). "Descriptions of New Zealand Lepidoptera". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 52: 31. ISSN   1176-6158. Wikidata   Q110309972. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hudson, G. V. (1928), The butterflies and moths of New Zealand, Illustrator: George Hudson, Wellington: Ferguson and Osborn Limited, pp. 334–335, LCCN   88133764, OCLC   25449322, Wikidata   Q58593286 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  6. ↑ Dong-June Lee; Bong-Woo Lee; Young-Min Shin; Tak-Gi Lee; Yeong-Bin Cha; Yang-Seop Bae (December 2020). "A review of the genus Erechthias Meyrick (Lepidoptera, Tineidae), with two newly recorded species from Korea". Journal of Asia-Pacific Biodiversity. 13 (4): 625–630. doi:10.1016/J.JAPB.2020.10.005. ISSN   2287-884X. Wikidata   Q131613958.
  7. ↑ "Erechthias crypsimima". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2025-01-02.
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