''Harmologa columella'' is a species 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 ...

of the family

Tortricidae The Tortricidae are a family of moths, commonly known as tortrix moths or leafroller moths, in the order Lepidoptera. This large family has over 11,000 species described, and is the sole member of the superfamily Tortricoidea, although the genu ...

. It was first described by

Edward Meyrick Edward Meyrick (25 November 1854 – 31 March 1938) was an English schoolmaster and amateur entomologist. He was an expert on microlepidoptera and some consider him one of the founders of modern microlepidoptera systematics. Life and work Ed ...

in 1927. It 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 is found in the South Island at Arthur's Pass and Mount Arthur. This species inhabits open mountainous terrain above the tree line. The larvae feed on flowering shoots of '' Cassinia vauvilliersii.'' They are very active when disturbed. The larvae play host to the fly larvae of '' Pales tecta''. The adult moths are on the wing in January and February.

Taxonomy

This species was first described by Edward Meyrick in 1927 using a male specimen collected by Stella Hudson at

Arthur's Pass Arthur's Pass, previously called Camping Flat then Bealey Flats, and for some time officially Arthurs Pass, is a township in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand, located in the Selwyn district. It is a popular base for explori ...

at approximately 4000 ft in January.

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 both in his 1928 book ''The butterflies and moths of New Zealand'' and in his 1939 book ''A supplement to the butterflies and moths of New Zealand''. The

holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...

specimen is held at the

Natural History Museum, London The Natural History Museum in London is a museum that exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. It is one of three major museums on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, the others being the Science Museum (Lo ...

Description

Hudson described the larva of this species as follows: Meyrick described this species as follows:

Distribution

This species is endemic to New Zealand. It has been observed both at Arthur's Pass and on Mount Arthur.

Habitat and host

This species inhabits open mountainous country just above the native forest limit. The larvae of this species feed on the spun up flowering shoots of '' Cassinia vauvilliersii''.

Behaviour

The larva is very active when disturbed. Larvae taken around the end of January emerge as adults during February. Adults are on the wing in January and February.

Enemies

This larvae of this moth are the host for the fly species '' Pales tecta''. The larva ingests the eggs of the fly and the fly larva grows in the caterpillar and kills it.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q13654650 Moths described in 1927 Archipini Taxa named by Edward Meyrick Endemic moths of New Zealand