''Asaphodes cataphracta'' is a
moth in the family
Geometridae. It is
endemic to
New Zealand and is found in the
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
. This species prefers grassy or tussock covered mountain side slopes as habitat. The adults of this species are on the wing from December until March. The larvae of ''A. cataphracta'' is known to consume native mountain buttercups (''
Ranunculaceae'').
Taxonomy
This species was first described by
Edward Meyrick in 1883 as ''Larentia cataphracta'' using specimens collected at Arthur's Pass at 3,000 feet, Lake Guyon, and Lake Wakatipu at 4,000 feet.
Meyrick gave a fuller description of the species later in 1884.
discussed the species in his 1898 volume ''New Zealand moths and butterflies'' and referred to it as ''Xanthorhoe cataphracta''.
In 1971
J. S. Dugdale placed this species in the genus ''Asaphodes''.
This placement was reaffirmed by Dugdale in 1988.
The female
lectotype, collected at
Arthur's Pass, is held at the
Natural History Museum, London.
Description
Hudson described the species as follows:
Distribution and habitat
''A. cataphracta'' is endemic to New Zealand and can be found in the South Island.
It prefers grassy mountain side slopes as habitat.
Specimens of this species have been collected in the North Canterbury (NC) and Westland (WD) specimen collection localities as described by Crosby et al.
The species was collected in February in the
Mount Cook
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...
district by
Alfred Philpott
Alfred Philpott (15 December 1870 – 24 July 1930) was a New Zealand museum curator, entomologist and writer. He was born in Tysoe, Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The ...
as well as at
Arthur's Pass to
Lake Wakatipu up to 1200m by Meyrick.
Hudson stated the species occurred in abundance in the
Humboldt mountains.
Specimens were also collected in Tussock grasslands of New Zealand, tussock country near the Homer Tunnel, Homer saddle by George Howes (entomologist), George Howes.
Behaviour
The adults of this species are on the wing from December until March.
Host species
The larvae of this species is known to consume native mountain buttercups (''Ranunculaceae'').
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asaphodes cataphracta
Moths described in 1883
Moths of New Zealand
Larentiinae
Endemic fauna of New Zealand
Taxa named by Edward Meyrick
Endemic moths of New Zealand