Aponotoreas synclinalis

Aponotoreas synclinalis (also known as the Wirerush looper) is a moth of the family Geometridae.[2][3] It is endemic to New Zealand.[4]

Aponotoreas synclinalis
Male specimen
Female specimen
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Geometridae
Subfamily: Larentiinae
Tribe: Hydriomenini
Genus: Aponotoreas
Species:
A. synclinalis
Binomial name
Aponotoreas synclinalis
(Hudson, 1903)[1]
Synonyms[1]
  • Notoreas synclinalis Hudson, 1903

Taxonomy edit

This species was first described by George Vernon Hudson in 1903 as Notoreas synclinalis from a type specimen discovered by Alfred Philpott at Seaward Moss near Invercargill on 4 January 1900.[5] In 1986 R. C. Craw described the new genus Aponotoreas and included A. synclinalis within it.[4]

Distribution edit

This moth is common in upland areas of the Catlins, Longwood Range and Stewart Island.[6] It is also present in south-west Fiordland.[6] It is unusual as it is only one of two species in its genus where specimens have been collected at sea level.[6]

Behaviour edit

This species is day flying and is on the wing from January until March.[7]

Host plants edit

The host plant of the larvae of A. synclinalis is Empodisma minus, the lesser wire rush,[4] and in alpine areas of Stewart Island is Dracophyllum politum.[8]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Aponotoreas synclinalis (Hudson, 1903)". www.nzor.org.nz. Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  2. ^ Dugdale, J. S. (1988). "Lepidoptera – annotated catalogue, and keys to family-group taxa" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 14: 170–171. ISSN 0111-5383. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 January 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  3. ^ "Taxon: Aponotoreas synclinalis (Hudson, 1903) | Collections Online – Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa". collections.tepapa.govt.nz. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Craw, R. C. (1 January 1986). "Review of the genus Notoreas (sensu auctorum) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Larentiinae)". New Zealand Journal of Zoology. 13 (1): 131–140. doi:10.1080/03014223.1986.10422654. ISSN 0301-4223.
  5. ^ Hudson, G. V. (1903). "On some new species of Macro-lepidoptera". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 35: 243–249 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  6. ^ a b c Patrick, B. H. (1994). "Lepidoptera of the Southern Plains and Coast of New Zealand". Otago Conservancy Miscellaneous Series. 17: 11.
  7. ^ Crowe, Andrew (2017). Which New Zealand insect?. Penguin Books. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-14-100636-9.
  8. ^ Emerson, Brent C.; Wallis, Graham P.; Patrick, Brian H. (1 January 1997). "Biogeographic area relationships in southern New Zealand: a cladistic analysis of Lepidoptera distributions". Journal of Biogeography. 24 (1): 89–99. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2699.1997.tb00053.x. ISSN 1365-2699.

External links edit