''Kiwaia jeanae'', also known as the Kaitorete jumper or mat daisy jumper, is a species of

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

in the family

Gelechiidae The Gelechiidae are a family of moths commonly referred to as twirler moths or gelechiid moths. They are the namesake family of the huge and little-studied superfamily Gelechioidea, and the family's taxonomy has been subject to considerable d ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. This species is classified as "At Risk, Naturally Uncommon" by the Department of Conservation. Both the males and females of this species are

brachypterous Brachyptery is an anatomical condition in which an animal has very reduced wings. Such animals or their wings may be described as "brachypterous". Another descriptor for very small wings is microptery. Brachypterous wings generally are not functi ...

Taxonomy

This species was described by Alfred Philpott in 1930 using a specimen collected at Birdlings Flat, Canterbury.

George Hudson George Hudson (probably 10 March 1800 – 14 December 1871) was an English railway financier and politician who, because he controlled a significant part of the railway network in the 1840s, became known as "The Railway King"—a title conferr ...

also discussed and illustrated this species in 1939. This species is named in honour of Jean Lindsay, the first collector of the species. The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of sever ...

specimen is held at the Canterbury Museum.

Description

Philpott originally described the species as follows: It has been hypothesised that the hairs on the hind wings of the male may assist in the release of pheromones attracting the females of the species. Both the males and females of this species are brachypterous. This reduction in wing size is rare in male moths.

Distribution

This species is endemic to

. It is found in North and Mid Canterbury. As well as its type locality, this species has also occurred at Kaitorete Spit, Amberley beach, at Leithfield beach, both near Amberley.

Biology and behaviour

Very little is known of the biology of this species. The adult moths of this species jump like a flea. Adult moths have been collected from January to mid April.

Habitat and host species

This species has been collected on active sand dunes or shingle soils covered with cushion plants. The host plants for the larvae of this species are '' Raoulia'' mats and it has been hypothesised that the larvae are detritivorous.

Conservation Status

This species has been classified as having the "At Risk, Naturally Uncommon" conservation status under the New Zealand Threat Classification System. This species is at risk because of habitat damage caused by commercial shingle removal and stock trampling. The main threats to this species at Kaitorete Spit have been recorded as weed invasion, damage to habitat by recreational vehicles, housing development of habitat and predators.

References

External links

Image of male holotype specimen
Kiwaia Moths described in 1930 Moths of New Zealand Endemic fauna of New Zealand Endangered biota of New Zealand Endemic moths of New Zealand {{Gnorimoschemini-stub