''Musotima aduncalis'', also known as the maidenhair fairy moth, is a

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

Crambidae Crambidae comprises the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, with the nominal subfamily Crambinae (grass moths) taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies ...

. It was described by

Cajetan Felder Baron Cajetan von Felder (; 19 September 1814 – 30 November 1894) was an Austrian lawyer, entomologist and liberal politician. He served as mayor of Vienna from 1868 to 1878. Life and career Felder was born in Wieden, today the fourth dis ...

Rudolf Felder Rudolf Felder (2 May 1842 in Vienna – 29 March 1871 in Vienna) was an Austrian jurist and entomologist. He was mainly interested in Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes ...

and

Alois Friedrich Rogenhofer Alois Friedrich Rogenhofer (22 December 1831, in Vienna – 15 January 1897, in Vienna) was an Austrian entomologist. He was a curator at the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna, where he was the first keeper of the Lepidoptera. Rogenhofer was main ...

in 1875. 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 ...

Description

The larvae are green in colour with a dark head. Adults are variable in colour, ranging from white to ochreous yellow.

Behaviour

The larvae can be found on the underside of the fern fronds and create clear window like patches when consuming their host. The adult moth is on the wing from October to February.

Hosts

The larvae feed on ''

Adiantum ''Adiantum'' (), the maidenhair fern (not to be confused with the similar-looking maidenhair spleenwort fern), is a genus of about 250 species of ferns in the subfamily Vittarioideae of the family Pteridaceae, though some researchers place it ...

'' species.

References

Moths described in 1875 Musotiminae Moths of New Zealand Endemic fauna of New Zealand Endemic moths of New Zealand {{Musotiminae-stub