''Dasyuris partheniata'' is a species of
moth in the family
Geometridae. It is
endemic to
New Zealand. It is classified as "At Risk, Declining" by the
Department of Conservation
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
.
Taxonomy
This species was first described by
Achille Guenée in 1868 from a specimen collected by
Richard William Fereday
Richard William Fereday (c.1820–30 August 1899) was a New Zealand lawyer, entomologist and artist. He was born in Ettingshall, Staffordshire, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders wit ...
in
Canterbury.
George Vernon Hudson
George Vernon Hudson FRSNZ (20 April 1867 – 5 April 1946) was a British-born New Zealand entomologist credited with proposing the modern daylight saving time. He was awarded the Hector Memorial Medal in 1923.
Biography
Born in London, Brit ...
discussed and illustrated the species in 1898
and again in 1928.
He states that Fereday's specimens were collected at the foot of
Mount Hutt.
The
holotype specimen is held at the
Natural History Museum, London.
Description
The eggs of this species are yellowish-white in appearance, elliptical in shape and have hexagonal depressions on the surface.
Larvae are coloured pale yellow-brown on their dorsal side and a dull ocherous shade on their lateral side.
They have 16 legs and are extremely thin.
The pupa is approximately cm long and is initially coloured pale yellow but darkens to golden then dark brown.
Hudson described the adults of the species as follows:
Distribution
''D. partheniata'' is endemic to New Zealand.
This species has occurred at
Waiouru,
the
Tararua Range including at Mount Holdsworth,
,
,
Mount Hutt,
,
,
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 ...
,
,
,
and at the
Hump Ridge.
The species can occur from sea level
up to approximately 1500m in altitude.
Behaviour
''D. partheniata'' larvae are nocturnal and when their safety is threatened drop to the centre of the plants they are feeding on. The larvae of this species has been observed, in the present of an Ichneumon wasp, gripping the blade of its foodplant with its prolegs and beating it with its body, causing the blade to move from side to side.
The adults of this species are day flying moths and are on the wing during the months of October to March.
Habitat
The species occurs in open grassy areas. In Wellington the species prefers coastal cliffs and at Mount Hutt specimens have been collected in tussock grass.
Host species
The host plants of this species are in the genus ''
Aciphylla'' and include ''
Aciphylla subflabellata''.
Conservation status
This moth is classified under the
New Zealand Threat Classification system
The New Zealand Threat Classification System is used by the Department of Conservation to assess conservation priorities of species in New Zealand.
The system was developed because the IUCN Red List, a similar conservation status system, had some ...
as being At Risk and Declining.
References
External links
Image of larvae
{{Taxonbar, from=Q13547354
Larentiinae
Moths of New Zealand
Endemic fauna of New Zealand
Endangered biota of New Zealand
Moths described in 1868
Taxa named by Achille Guenée
Endemic moths of New Zealand