''Stigmella hoheriae'' is a species of

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of ...

of the family Nepticulidae. This day flying moth is found in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

in both 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 or geography. Etymology The word ''no ...

and

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasma ...

s. It inhabits native forest. Eggs are laid on the surface of a still growing leaf of a host plant. Larvae feed on '' Hoheria'' species such as '' Hoheria glabrata'', '' Hoheria populnea'', '' Hoheria sexstylosa'' and '' Hoheria angustifolia'' and have been recorded from February to August. The larvae of ''S. hoheriae'' are

leaf miner A leaf miner is any one of numerous species of insects in which the larval stage lives in, and eats, the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths ( Lepidoptera), sawflies (Symphyta, the mother clade of wasp ...

s. Their mines create blotches on the host plant leaves. ''S. hoheriae'' larvae pupate in a silk cocoon on the ground at the base of their food plant. Adult moths have been observed on the wing in February and from July to December. This species is rarely noticed as it is very small and as a result does not tend to attract attention when on the wing.

Taxonomy

This species was first described in 1989 by Hans Donner and Christopher Wilkinson from specimens collected in the

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

, Rangitiikei, Mid Canterbury, Mackenzie,

Fiordland Fiordland is a geographical region of New Zealand in the south-western corner of the South Island, comprising the westernmost third of Southland. Most of Fiordland is dominated by the steep sides of the snow-capped Southern Alps, deep lakes ...

and

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

regions. The male

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of seve ...

specimen, collected at Te Rau-o-te-Huia / Mount Donald McLean in the

Waitākere Ranges The Waitākere Ranges is a mountain range in New Zealand. Located in West Auckland between metropolitan Auckland and the Tasman Sea, the ranges and its foothills and coasts comprise some of public and private land. The area, traditionally kno ...

, Auckland, emerged 17 August 1976 "ex '' Hoheria populnea''", by J. S. Dugdale.

Description

The larvae of this species are 2–3 mm long and pale transparent green. Donner and Wilkinson described the male of the species as follows: They described the female as follows:

Distribution

This species is endemic to New Zealand. ''S. hoheriae'' is found in both the North and South Islands and is very common throughout New Zealand.

Life history

Eggs

The females lay eggs on the surface of a still growing leaf of their host plant.

Larvae

Larva have been recorded from February to August. They mine the leaves of their host plant.

Adults

Adult moths have been observed on the wing in the wild in February and July—December.

Behaviour

Adults are day flying and are most commonly on the wing from August to November. It is likely there are two generations per year. The species is rarely noticed as the adults are very small and as a result does not tend to attract attention.

Habitat and host species

This species inhabits native forest habitat. The larvae feed on '' Hoheria'' species such as '' Hoheria glabrata'', '' Hoheria populnea'', '' Hoheria sexstylosa'' and '' Hoheria angustifolia''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7616666 Nepticulidae Moths of New Zealand Endemic fauna of New Zealand Moths described in 1989 Endemic moths of New Zealand