''Mnesictena marmarina'', also known as the ''brown nettle moth'', is a snout moth in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Spilomelinae of the family Crambidae. It was first described by Edward Meyrick in 1884. It is endemic to

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 similar in appearance to ''

Mnesictena flavidalis ''Mnesictena flavidalis'' is a moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by Edward Doubleday in 1843. It is endemic to New Zealand. Taxonomy This species was first described by Edward Doubleday in Ernst Dieffenbach's book ''Travels in ...

'' but is distinguished by being larger in size and having a clear white spot on its forewings. Larvae of this species feed on plants in the genus ''

Urtica ''Urtica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Urticaceae. Many species have stinging hairs and may be called nettles or stinging nettles, although the latter name applies particularly to ''Urtica dioica''. ''Urtica'' species are food f ...

'', including '' Urtica ferox''.

References

Moths described in 1884 Moths of New Zealand Endemic fauna of New Zealand Taxa named by Edward Meyrick Mnesictena Endemic moths of New Zealand {{Spilomelinae-stub