''Antithyra'' is a genus of

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

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 Taxonomic rank, superfamily Gelechioidea, and the family's taxonomy (biology), taxonomy ...

. It contains the species ''Antithyra vineata'', which is found in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is . The forewings are light ochreous-yellow, irregularly chequered throughout with undefined grey spots irrorated (speckled) with black. The hindwings are dark grey. The larvae feed on minute lichens and algae on the stems of various trees. At first in an hourglass-shaped case, but later constructing a supplementary tube extending in a straight line in both directions, with lateral triangular pointed projections disposed alternately at equal distances, all concealing valves through which the larva can protrude its head for feeding or observation. If disturbed at one point, it re-appears at another. The entire case is temporarily anchored at either end to the bark. When food is exhausted at one spot, the strands are severed and the case shifted to another situation. Pupation takes place in the centre, beneath the median pad.

References

Gelechiidae Taxa named by Edward Meyrick Monotypic moth genera Moths of Sri Lanka Gelechiidae genera {{Gelechiidae-stub