Pterophorus monospilalis
Encyclopedia
Pterophorus monospilalis is a moth
of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in New Zealand
, where it is known from the North and South islands and Steward Island.
The wingspan
is 21-23 mm. The head, palpi, antennae, thorax, abdomen, and legs are white. The forewings are snow-white with a few brownish-ochreous scales, a blackish dot before the cleft and a minute one on the inner margin before the middle. The hindwings and cilia are snow-white.
The larvae feed on young new tips of Pseudopanax arboreus but have also been recorded on Raukaua
species and Schefflera digitata
.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, where it is known from the North and South islands and Steward Island.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 21-23 mm. The head, palpi, antennae, thorax, abdomen, and legs are white. The forewings are snow-white with a few brownish-ochreous scales, a blackish dot before the cleft and a minute one on the inner margin before the middle. The hindwings and cilia are snow-white.
The larvae feed on young new tips of Pseudopanax arboreus but have also been recorded on Raukaua
Raukaua
Raukaua is a genus of flowering plant of family Araliaceae. It includes 8 species, most of which are endemic to New Zealand. However, some authorities include two species endemic to Southern Chile and Argentina in Raukaua, namely R. laetevirens, a small tree, and R. valdiviensis, a woody vine from...
species and Schefflera digitata
Schefflera digitata
Schefflera digitata, Patē or Seven-finger, is a tree endemic to New Zealand belonging to the family Araliaceae. The Māori name is Patē or Patatē. It occurs in lowland to lower montane forests from sea level to 1200 m in the North Island, South Island, and Stewart Island, covering a latitudinal...
.