Austramathes pessota

Austramathes pessota
Female
Male
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Noctuidae
Genus: Austramathes
Species:
A. pessota
Binomial name
Austramathes pessota
(Meyrick, 1887)[1]
Synonyms[2][1]
  • Miselia pessota Meyrick, 1887
  • Sympistis pessota (Meyrick, 1887)
  • Hypnotype pessota (Meyrick, 1887)
  • Andesia pessota (Meyrick, 1887)

Austramathes pessota is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae.[1] It is endemic to New Zealand and is found in Northland, in the southern North Island and in the South Island, mainly on the eastern side of that island but is also present in Fiordland. It is not regarded as being present in either Dunedin or the Southland district. This species lives in shrubland at altitudes ranging from sea-level up to subalpine. As at 2017, the larvae have yet to be described or photographed but it is known that they feed on Melicytus alpinus and it is likely that Melicytus micranthus is also a host. Adults of this species are distinctively patterned and coloured. Its appearance differs from its close relatives such as A. purpurea as it lacks the purple hue that can be seen on the latter species forewings. It also differs from A. coelacantha as it is much darker and has a distinctive small, round, pale mark on its forewing. Adults are on the wing from December to April.

  1. ^ a b c Hoare, R.J.B. (23 June 2017). "Noctuinae (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Part 1, Austramathes, Cosmodes, Proteuxoa, Physetica" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 73: 1–130. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.73. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 January 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dugdale1988 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).