''Erechthias terminella'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

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

Tineidae Tineidae is a family of moths in the order Lepidoptera described by Pierre André Latreille in 1810. Collectively, they are known as fungus moths or tineid moths. The family contains considerably more than 3,000 species in more than 300 genera. ...

. It was first described by Francis Walker in 1863. This species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and can be found throughout the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and in the upper parts of the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

Islands. It inhabits native forest. The larvae of ''E. terminella'' feed under a web of silk and frass on the seeds as well as possibly the pods of ''

Phormium tenax ''Phormium tenax'' (called flax in New Zealand English; in Māori language, Māori; New Zealand flax outside New Zealand; and New Zealand hemp in historical nautical contexts) is an evergreen perennial plant native to New Zealand and Norfolk I ...

'' and are also known to feed on the fruits of plant species such as ''

Meryta sinclairii ''Meryta sinclairii'', commonly known as the puka or pukanui, is a large-leaved evergreen tree endemic to New Zealand that grows to about tall, with the distinctly tropical appearance typical of the genus. There are about 27 species of ''Meryt ...

''. Larvae are generally sluggish but can be very agile when disturbed. Adults are on the wing throughout the year and are attracted to light.

Taxonomy

This species was first described by Francis Walker in 1863 using a specimen collected in Auckland by Daniel Bolton and originally named ''Cerostoma terminella''. In 1864 Walker, thinking he was describing a new species, named this moth ''Elachista subpavonella''. In 1915 Meyrick placed this species in the genus ''Erechthias'' and synonymsied ''Elachista subpavonela''.

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 Mania, railway network in the 1840s, became known as "The Railway King"—a ...

discussed and illustrated this species in his 1928 book ''The butterflies and moths of New Zealand'' under that name. Hudson went on to describe the larva of this species in his 1950 book ''Fragments of New Zealand entomology''.

Description

Hudson described the larva of this species as follows: This larva is similar in general appearance to that of ''

Erechthias hemiclistra ''Erechthias hemiclistra'' is a species of moth of the family Tineidae. It was Species description, first described by Edward Meyrick in 1911. This species is Endemism, endemic to New Zealand and has been observed in both the North and South Isl ...

'' but is smaller and has a darker coloured median line. Hudson described the adults of this species as follows:

Distribution

This species is endemic to New Zealand. This species is found throughout the North Island and in the upper parts of the South Island.

Habitat and hosts

This species inhabits native forest. The larvae of ''E. terminella'' feed under a web of silk and frass on the seeds as well as possibly the pods of ''

''. They are also known to feed on the fruits of New Zealand species such as ''

''. Larvae have been reared on the dead bark or stems of ''

Lupinus arboreus ''Lupinus arboreus'', the yellow bush lupine (US) or tree lupin (UK), is a species of flowering plant in the legume family (biology), family Fabaceae. Description ''Lupinus arboreus'' is an evergreen shrub growing to tall (hence the alternative ...

'', pear trees, and species in genus ''

Tetragonia ''Tetragonia'' is a genus of 51 species of flowering plants in the family Aizoaceae, native to temperate and subtropical regions mostly of the Southern Hemisphere, in New Zealand, Australia, southern and eastern Africa, and western South America ...

'' as well as the fruits of species in the genus ''

Pittosporum ''Pittosporum'' ( or The first pronunciation is that expected for traditional English pronunciation of Latin, Anglo-Latin; the second is common in nurseries. ''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607) is a genus of about 250 species of flow ...

''.

Behaviour

The larva of ''E. terminella'' are generally sluggish but can be very agile when disturbed. Adults are on the wing throughout the year and are attracted to light.

References

External links

Image of type specimen of ''Erechthias terminella''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q13483280 Moths described in 1863 Erechthiinae Moths of New Zealand Endemic fauna of New Zealand Taxa named by Francis Walker (entomologist) Endemic moths of New Zealand