heloxycanus patricki is a species of moth of the family hepialidae , the only member of the genus heloxycanus .

its common names are ghost moth and sphagnum porina moth .

the species is named for its discoverer , entomologist brian patrick .

it is found in sphagnum and other moss bogs in the southern part of the south island of new zealand .

its life cycle runs in two year cycles with peak numbers of adults occurring in odd-numbered years .

heloxycanus

heloxycanus <EOT> heloxycanus patricki ; nielsen , robinson & wagner , 2000 , j . nat . hist . 34 : 853 ( list )

heloxycanus ( hepialidae ) ; [ nhm card ] ; nielsen , robinson & wagner , 2000 , j . nat . hist . 34 : 853 ( list )

only a single species of ghost moth ( heloxycanus patricki ) of this endemic new zealand genus has been discovered , by brian patrick , an otago entomologist . it appears to be restricted to the southern south island , living in sphagnum and other moss bogs from sea level to 1 , 500 metres . adults emerge early in winter in alternate years .

this item has been provided for private study purposes ( such as school projects , family and local history research ) and any published reproduction ( print or electronic ) may infringe copyright law . it is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder .

the content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly .

this question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions .

all text licensed under the creative commons attribution - noncommercial 3 . 0 new zealand licence unless otherwise stated . commercial re - use may be allowed on request . all non - text content is subject to specific conditions . © crown copyright .

this web site would not have been possible without the continuous support and encouragement of my wife claudia violette , the generous assistance of malte ebach , and the kind help with information and images from many professionals and enthusiasts througout the world . to everyone i am eternally grateful . 1990 . hunting korscheltellus gracilis larvae mid winter vermont .

my interest in ghost moth evolution began in my first graduate year when i conducted a small project looking at the occurrence of wood - boring insects at different stages of forest succession . this was followed by a phd project on the developmental ecology of

s in new zealand where my interest encompassed all aspects of ghost moth biology .

i am particularly interested in the evolutionary relationships between ghost moths . although other responsibilities have curtailed much of that effort of the last decade , i continue to work on developing a better understanding of the global systematics and biogeography of this much overlooked group of moths .

( this listing is in development . my apologies in advance for any oversight ) martin albrecht phil bendle rudolph bryner clinton care don davis ( usnm )

monotypic . rviewed by dugdale ( 1994 ) . member of the old world oycanine clade ( grehan , in prep ) . habitat

biology biennial emergence of adults with peak emergece in odd - numbered years for all known populations ( cf . biennial patterns in korscheltellus gracilis ) . adults emerge in the autumn and winter .

( lepidoptera ) of new zealand . new zealand entomologist 8 : 64 - 67 .

nielsen , robinson & wagner , 2000 ghostmoths of the world : a global inventory and bibliography of the exoporia j . nat . hist . 34 : 823 - 878

if you have corrections , comments or information to add into these pages , just send mail to markku savela keep in mind that the taxonomic information is copied from various sources , and may include many inaccuracies . expert help is welcome .

confused by a class within a class or an order within an order ? please see our brief essay .

to cite this page : myers , p . , r . espinosa , c . s . parr , t . jones , g . s . hammond , and t . a . dewey . 2018 . the animal diversity web ( online ) . accessed at https : / / animaldiversity . org .

disclaimer : the animal diversity web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students . adw doesn ' t cover all species in the world , nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe . though we edit our accounts for accuracy , we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts . while adw staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable , we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control .

this material is based upon work supported by the national science foundation grants drl 0089283 , drl 0628151 , due 0633095 , drl 0918590 , and due 1122742 . additional support has come from the marisla foundation , um college of literature , science , and the arts , museum of zoology , and information and technology services .

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 0 transitional / / en " " urltoken "

genus dumbletonius dugdale , 1988 trioxycanus dumbleton , 1966 characterifer walker , 1865 impletus walker , 1865 unimaculatus salmon , 1948 enysii not butler , 1877 but meyrick , 1890 sylvicola dugdale , 1988 n . syn .

aitkenhead , p . ; baker , c . r . b . 1964 : the larvae of british hepialidae . entomologist 97 : 25 - 38 .

archibald , r . d . 1984 : some eugregarinida ( apicomplex ) from new zealand melolonthinae ( scarabaeidae : coleoptera ) and hepialidae ( lepidoptera ) . unpubl . phd thesis , university of otago , dunedin . 206 pp .

barratt , b . i . p . ; van toor , r . f . ; ferguson , c . m . ; stewart , κ . μ . 1990 : grass grub and porina in otago and southland . a guide to management and control . maf technology , invermay / n . z . tablet , dunedin . 104 pp .

best , ε . 1912 : maori forest lore : being some account of native forest lore and woodcraft , as also of many myths , rites , customs , and superstitions , connected with the flora and fauna of the tuhoe or ure - wera district , part π . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 41 : 231 - 285 .

birket - smith , s . j . r . 1974 : morphology of the male genitalia of lepidoptera , ii . monotrysia , zeugloptera , and discussion . entomologica scandinavica 5 : 161 - 183 .

boudinot , j . 1991 : biologie d ' aenetus cohici viette ( lepidoptera hepialidae ) . pp . 167 - 175 in j . chazeau & s . tillier eds , ` zoologia neocaledonica 2 ' . memoires du museum nationale d ' histoire naturelle ( a ) 149 .

bourgogne , j . 1949 : un type nouveau d ' appareil génital femelle chez les lépidoptères . annales de la société entomologique de france 115 : 69 - 80 .

broun , t . 1915 : descriptions of new genera and species of coleoptera . bulletin of the n . z . institute 1 ( 4 ) : 267 - 346 .

buller , w . l . 1873 : notice of a new species of moth from new zealand . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 5 : 279 - 280 , colour plate .

butler , a . g . 1877 : on two collections of heterocerous lepidoptera from new zealand with descriptions of new genera and species . proceedings of the zoological society of london , 1877 : 379 - 407 .

butler , a . g . 1879 : on a small collection of heterocerous lepidoptera from new zealand . cistula entomologica 2 : 487 - 511 .

carpenter , a . 1978 : a review of the biology and control of porina ( wiseana spp . ) with particular reference to the southern north island . internal report , ministry of agriculture and fisheries research division , palmerston north . 18 pp . + unnumbered bibliography .

common , i . f . b . 1969 : a winglocking or stridulatory device in lepidoptera . journal of the australian entomological society 8 : 121 - 125 .

common , i . f . b . 1990 : hepialoidea . pp . 140 - 150 in : ` moths of australia ' . melbourne university press . 533 pp .

crosby , t . k . ; dugdale , j . s . ; watt , j . c . 1976 : recording specimen localities in new zealand : an arbitrary system of areas and codes defined . n . z . journal of zoology 3 : 69 + map .

davis , d . r . 1975 : a review of the west lndian moths of the family psychidae with descriptions of new taxa and immature stages . smithsonian contributions to zoology 188 . 66 pp .

dick , r . d . 1945 : ecological observations on oxycanus cervinata . n . z . journal of science and technology a 27 ( 1 ) : 32 - 38 .

doubleday , ε . 1843 : lepidoptera . pp . 283 - 289 in dieffenbach , e . ed . , ` travels in new zealand , with contributions to the geography , geology , botany and natural history of the country ' , vol . 2 . london , john murray .

dugdale , j . s . 1961 : larval characters of taxonomic significance of new zealand ennomines ( lepidoptera : geometridae ) . transactions of the royal society of n . z . , zoology 1 : 215 - 233 .

dugdale , j . s . 1974 : female genital configuration in the classification of lepidoptera . n . z . journal of zoology 1 : 127 - 146 .

dugdale , j . s . 1986 : trioxycanus dumbleton , 1966 ( lepidoptera ) , a genus based on a misidentified type species , with proposal of new names for the taxonomic genus and species involved . z . n . ( s . ) 2462 . bulletin of zoological nomenclature 43 : 46 - 49 .

dugdale , j . s . 1988 : lepidoptera - annotated catalogue , and keys to family - group taxa . fauna of n . z . 14 . 262 pp .

dumbleton , l . j . 1945 : contribution to the ecology of oxycanus cervinata walk . n . z . journal of science and technology a 27 ( 2 ) : 114 - 128 .

dugdale , j . s . 1966 : genitalia , classification , and zoogeography of the new zealand hepialidae ( lepidoptera ) . n . z . journal of science 9 ( 4 ) : 920 - 981 .

elder , r . j . 1970 : larval taxonomy of oncopera brachyphylla turner and its distinction from oncopera mitocera ( turner ) . queensland journal of agricultural and animal sciences 27 : 123 - 128 . ( also published as queensland department of primary industries , division of plant industry bulletin no . 533 . )

elder , r . j . 1978 : notes on the biology and descriptions of the life stages of oncopera parva tindale ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . journal of the australian entomological society 17 : 5 - 11 .

esson , m . j . 1970 : time lapse photography for the observation of porina caterpillar behaviour . proceedings of the 23rd n . z . weed and pest control conference : 200 - 204 .

felder , c . ; rogenhofer , a . f . 1874 : reise der österreichischen fregatte ` novara ' um die erde ( zoologischer theil ) , β and 2 ( abteilung 2 ) hefte 4 [ plates 15 - 107 ] .

fenemore , p . g . ; allen , v . a . l . 1969 : oviposition preference and larval survival in wiseana cervinata ( walker ) , hepialidae . n . z . journal of agricultural research 12 : 146 - 161 .

flower , n . e . ; helson , g . a . h . 1976 : variation in antennal sensilla of some hepialid moths ; a scanning electron microscope study . n . z . journal of zoology 3 : 327 - 331 .

french , r . a . 1973 : some aspects of the population dynamics , biology and economic status of wiseana spp . unpubl . ph . d . thesis , lincoln college , canterbury .

french , r . a . ; pearson , j . f . 1979 : influence of temperature on the rate of development of porina ( wiseana spp . : hepialidae ) eggs and timing of larval emergence in the field . n . z . journal of experimental agriculture 7 : 315 - 319 .

french , r . a . ; pearson , j . f . 1981 : food intake and feeding behaviour of porina ( wiseana spp . : hepialidae ) . n . z . journal of experimental agriculture 9 : 383 - 386 .

gaskin , d . e . 1964 : distinction between wiseana umbraculata and w . signata ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) with light trapping records for wellington . n . z . journal of science 7 ( 3 ) : 396 - 408 .

glare , t . r . ; o ' callaghan , μ . ; wigley , p . j . 1993 : checklist of naturally occurring entomopathogenic microbes and nematodes in new zealand . n . z . journal of zoology 20 : 95 - 120 .

grehan , j . r . 1979 : larvae of aenetus virescens ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) in decaying wood . n . z . journal of zoology 6 ( 4 ) : 583 - 586 .

grehan , j . r . 1981 : morphological changes in the tree - phase development of aenetus virescens larvae ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . ν . ζ . journal of zoology 8 : 505 - 514 .

grehan , j . r . 1983a : larval establishment behaviour in live trees . n . z . entomologist 7 ( 4 ) : 413 - 417 .

grehan , j . r . 1983b : record of wiseana signata ( walker ) ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) larvae in sand dunes . n . z . entomologist 7 ( 4 ) : 417 - 418 .

grehan , j . r . 1983c : description of the male of the endemic new caledonian species aenetus cohici ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) .

grehan , j . r . 1987a : life cycle of the woodborer aenetus virescens ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . n . z . journal of zoology 14 : 209 - 217 .

grehan , j . r . 1987b : evolution of arboreal tunnelling by larvae of aenetus ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . ν . ζ . journal of zoology 14 : 441 - 462 .

grehan , j . r . 1989 : larval feeding habits of the hepialidae ( lepidoptera ) . journal of natural history 23 : 803 - 824 .

grehan , j . r . ; moeed , a . ; meads , m . j . 1983 : observations on trioxycanus enysii ( butler ) ( sensu meyrick , 1890 ) ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) on kapiti island , new zealand , with a description of larval chaetotaxy . n . z . entomologist 7 ( 4 ) : 408 - 413 .

grehan , j . r . ; patrick , b . h . 1984 : notes on bog - inhabiting hepialidae ( lepidoptera ) of new zealand . n . z . entomologist 8 : 63 - 67 .

grehan , j . r . ; wigley , p . j . 1984 : fungal and bacterial diseases of puriri moth , aenetus virescens ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) larvae . n . z . entomologist 8 : 61 - 63 .

guenée , a . 1868 : new species etc . , of heterocerous lepidoptera from canterbury , new zealand , collected by mr r . w . fereday . entomologists ' monthly magazine 5 : 1 - 6 .

hamilton , a . 1909 : notes on lepidoptera collected by η . hamilton in various localities in the queenstown district , otago , between november 1907 and march 1908 . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 41 : 11 18 .

hardy , r . j . 1973 : larval chaetotaxy of thorax and abdomen of fraus simulans walker ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . journal of the australian entomological society 12 : 121 - 123 .

hasenfuss , i . 1969 : zur homologie der borstenmusterelemente der larven kopfkapsel einiger monotrysischer lepidoptera . beitrage zur entomologie 19 : 289 - 301 .

helson , g . a . h . 1967 : adult periodicity of wiseana species ( family hepialidae ) in new zealand as revealed by light traps . transactions of the royal society of n . z . , zoology 9 ( 8 ) : 79 - 91 .

helson , g . a . h . 1972 : an hypothesis on the effect of atmospheric small air ions and weather fronts on the emergence of wiseana cervinata . abstract , 14th international congress of entomology : 341 .

herrich - schaeffer , g . a . w . 1855 : synopsis familiarum lepidopterorum . pp . 82 - 132 in systematische bearbeitung der schmetterlinge von europa , zugleich als text revision und supplement zu jacob hübner ' s sammlung europäischer schmetterlinge . vol . 6 .

hinton , η . ε . 1946 : on the homology and nomenclature of the setae of the lepidopterous larvae , with some notes on the phylogeny of the lepidoptera . transactions of the royal entomological society of london 97 : 1 - 37 .

horak , μ . 1984 : assessment of taxonomically significant structures in tortricinae ( lep . : tortricidae ) . mit teilungen der schweizerischen entomologischen gesellschaft 57 : 3 - 64 .

hudson , g . v . 1885 : life history of charagia virescens . entomologist , london , 18 : 30 - 36 .

hudson , g . v . 1898 : new zealand moths and butterflies ( macrolepidoptera ) . london , west , newman & co . xix + 144 pp .

hudson , g . v . 1905 : on some new species of macrolepidoptera in new zealand . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 37 : 355 - 358 .

hudson , g . v . 1906 : recent observations respecting the origin of the vegetable caterpillars . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 39 : 195 - 196 .

hudson , g . v . 1908 : recent observations on new zealand macrolepidoptera including descriptions of new species . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 40 : 104 - 107 .

hudson , g . v . 1920 : descriptions of two new species of hepialidae from new zealand . entomologists ' monthly magazine 56 : 277 .

hudson , g . v . 1923 : descriptions of three new species of lepidoptera from new zealand . entomologists ' monthly magazine 59 : 179 - 181 .

hudson , g . v . 1928 : the butterflies and moths of new zealand . wellington , ferguson & osborn . xi + 386 pp .

hudson , g . v . 1939 : a supplement to the butterflies and moths of new zealand . wellington , ferguson & osborn . pp . 387 - 481 , pl . 53 - 62 .

hudson , g . v . 1950 : fragments of new zealand entomology . wellington , ferguson & osborn . 188 pp . , ii + 17 p1 .

janse , a . j . t . 1939 : on the structure of lepidopterous larvae , with special reference to the mature larva of letovenus stoll . journal of the entomological society of south africa 2 : 165 - 175 .

janse , a . j . t . 1942 : sub - order jugata . pp . 1 - 78 in janse , a . j . t . ' the moths of south africa ' , vol . 4 ( 1 ) .

joubert , p . c . 1975 : the ' ghost moth ' ( dalaca rufescens hampson ) in natal ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . dept of agricultural technical services technical communication 130 .

kalmakoff , j . 1980 ( 1979 ) : enzootic virus control of wiseana spp . ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) in the pasture environment . pp . 202 - 204 in crosby , t . k . , & pottinger , r . p . ( eds ) , " proceedings of the 2nd australasian conference on grassland invertebrate ecology . " wellington , government printer .

kirby , w . f . 1892 : a synonymic catalogue of lepidoptera heterocera ( moths ) . vol . 1 : sphinges and bombyces . london . 951 pp .

kristensen , n . p . 1968 : the anatomy of the head and the alimentary canal of adult eriocraniidae . entomologiske meddelelser 36 : 239 - 315 .

kuznetsov , v . l . ; stekol ' nikov , a . a . 1984 : the evolution and system of higher taxa of tortricid moths ( lepidoptera : tortricidae ) of the world fauna with reference to the comparative morphology of genitalia . ( 36th cholodkovsky memorial lecture , 1 april 1983 , pp . 51 - 91 . leningrad , nauka . [ p . auckland , csiro translation , 1986 . ]

latch , g . c . m . ; kain , w . m . 1983 : control of porina caterpillar ( wiseana spp . ) in pasturte by the fungus metarrhizium anisopliae . n . z . journal of experimental agriculture 11 : 351 - 354 .

leonard , j . g . ; grehan , j . r . ; parker , b . l . 1992 : first instar description of korscheltellus gracilis ( grote ) and sthenopis auratus ( grote ) ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) with a consideration of cladistic relationships between setae . journal of the νew york entomological society 100 ( 4 ) : 594 - 614 .

macarthur , g . 1986 ( nov . ) : an electrophoretic contribution to the systematics of the genus wiseana viette ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . unpubl . ph . d . thesis , victoria university of wellington .

mccabe , t . l . ; wagner , d . l . 1988 : the biology of sthenopis auratus ( grote ) ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . journal of the new york entomological society 96 ( 4 ) : 256 - 273 .

meads , m . j . 1990 : forgotten fauna : the rare , endangered , and protected invertebrates of new zealand . wellington , dsir land resources / dsir publishing . 95 pp .

meyrick , ε . 1890 : descriptions of new zealand lepidoptera . transactions of the n . z . institute 22 : 204 - 220 .

meyrick , ε . 1912 : descriptions of new zealand lepidoptera . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 44 : 117 - 126 .

meyrick , ε . 1921 : notes and descriptions of new zealand lepidoptera . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 53 : 334 - 336 .

miller , d . 1971 : common insects in new zealand . wellington , reed . 178 pp .

minet , j . 1984 : contribution à l ' analyse phylogenetique des néolépidoptères ( lepidoptera : glossata ) . nouvelle revue d ' entomologie ( n . s . ) 1 ( 2 ) : 139 - 149 .

mishler , b . d . ; donaghue , m . j . 1974 : species concepts : a case for pluralism . systematic zoology 31 : 491 - 503 .

mosher , ε . 1916 : a classification of the lepidoptera based on characters of the pupa . bulletin of the illinois state laboratory of natural history 12 ( ii ) . 147 pp .

nielsen , e . s . 1989 : phylogeny of major lepidopteran groups . chapter 21 ( pp . 281 - 294 ) in fernholm , b . ; bremer , κ . ; jörnvall , h . eds , ' the hierarchy of life ' . amsterdam , elsevier .

nielsen , e . s . ; common , i . f . b . 1991 : lepidoptera ( moths and butterflies ) . chapter 41 , pp . 817 - 915 , in : ' the insects of australia : a textbook for students and research workers ' ( 2nd edition ) , vo1 . ii .

nielsen , e . s . ; kristensen , n . p . 1989 : primitive ghost moths . morphology and taxonomy of the australian genus fraus walker ( lepidoptera : hepialidae s . lat . ) . monographs on australian lepidoptera 1 . 206 pp .

nielsen , e . s . ; robinson , g . s . 1983 : ghost moths of southern south america ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . entomonograph 4 . 192 pp .

nielsen , e . s . ; scoble , m . j . 1986 : afrotheora , a new genus of primitive hepialidae from africa ( lepidoptera : hepialoidea ) . entomologica scandinavica 17 : 29 - 54 .

patrick , β . h . 1982 : lepidoptera of danseys pass , otago . new zealand entomologist 7 ( 3 ) : 332 - 336 .

patrick , β . h . 1988 : lepidoptera of the umbrella ecological district . pp . 37 - 50 in : κ . j . μ . dickinson ed . , umbrella ecological district , survey report for the protected natural areas programme . department of conservation , wellington .

patrick , β . h . 1989 : lepidoptera , cicadidae , acrididae of the manorburn ecological district . n . z . department of conservation : science & research no . 60 .

patrick , b . h . ; barratt , β . i . p . ; heads , μ . ; child , j . 1984 : entomological survey of mt pye—ajax bog , catlins state forest park . n . z . forest service , invercargill .

patrick , b . h . ; barratt , b . i . p . ; heads , μ . 1985 : entomological survey of the blue mountains . n . z . forest service , invercargill .

patrick , b . h . ; rance , b . d . ; barratt , b . i . p . ; tangey , r . 1987 : entomological survey , longwood range . department of conservation , dunedin . 86 pp .

patrick , b . h . ; rance , b . d . ; barratt , b . i . p . 1992 : alpine insects and plants of stewart island . department of conservation , dunedin , miscellaneous series no . 9 . 57 pp .

perrott , d . c . f . 1974 : susceptibility to three organophosphorus insecticides of wiseana spp . larvae ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . n . z . journal of zoology 1 ( 3 ) : 355 - 364 .

philpott , a . 1914 : descriptions of new species of lepidoptera . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 46 : 118 - 121 .

philpott , a . 1923 : notes and descriptions of new zealand lepidoptera . transactions and p roceedings of the n . z . institute 54 : 148 - 154 .

philpott , a . 1927a : new zealand lepidoptera : notes and descriptions . transactions and p roceedings of the n . z . institute 57 : 703 - 709 .

philpott , a . 1927b : the male genitalia of the hepialidae . transactions of the entomological society of london 75 : 35 - 41 .

philpott , a . 1931 : notes and descriptions of new zealand lepidoptera . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 62 : 26 - 36 .

quail , a . 1903a : on charagia virescens , dbid . transactions and proceedings of the n . z . institute 35 : 249 - 255 .

quail , a . 1903b : on the antennae of hepialidae — lepidoptera jugatae . transactions of the entomological society of london , 1903 : 499 - 508 .

salmon , j . t . 1948 : new species and records of lepidoptera from the three kings islands , new zealand . records of the auckland institute and museum 3 : 309 - 311 .

salmon , j . t . 1958 : hybridisation between two species of oxycanus . n . z . entomologist 2 ( 2 ) : 18 - 19 .

sattler , k . r . 1991 : a review of wing reduction in lepidoptera . bulletin of the british museum of natural history ( ent . ) 60 ( 2 ) : 243 - 288 .

sharell , r . 1971 : new zealand insects and their story . collins , auckland and london . 268 pp .

tillyard , r . j . 1926 : the insects of australia and new zealand . sydney , angus & robertson . xi + 560 pp .

ueda , k . 1978 : the male genitalia structure of some hepialid moths with a historical review of their terminology [ in japanese , with english summary ] . tyo ga 29 : 191 - 206 .

ueda , k . 1982 : male and female external genital structure of aenetus virescens ( doubleday ) and its male genital musculature . tyo ga 33 : 87 - 96 .

ueda , k . 1988 : new species of the genus hepialiscus hampson ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) from taiwan . bulletin of the kitakyushu museum of natural history 8 : 39 - 54 .

valentine , e . w . 1967 : a list of the hosts of entomophagous insects of new zealand . n . z . journal of science 10 : 1100 - 1209 .

viette , p . e . l . 1950 : contribution à l ' étude des hepialidae ( 22eme note ) . hepialidae du musée de leiden . zoologische mededelingen 31 ( 7 ) : 67 - 77 [ n . ζ . references pp . 71 - 73 ] .

viette , p . e . l . 1961 : notes on some synonymous or preoccupied names in the lepidoptera . the entomologist , london , 94 : 38 - 39 .

wagner , d . 1987 : hepialidae ( hepialoidea ) . pp . 347 - 349 in stehr , f . w . ed . , ` immature insects , ' vol . 1 . dubuque , kendall / hut . xiv + 754 pp .

wagner , d . ; tobi , d . r . ; parker , b . l . ; waliner , w . e . ; leonard , j . g . 1989 : immature stages and natural enemies of korscheltellus gracilis ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) . annals of the entomological society of america 82 ( 6 ) : 717 724 .

waller , j . b . 1966 : sexing of pupae of wiseana cervinata ( walker ) , hepialidae . n . z . entomologist 3 ( 1 ) : 5 .

walker , f . 1856 : list of the specimens of the lepidopterous insects in the collection of the british museum , vol . viι ( pp . 1509 - 1808 ) .

walker , f . 1865 : list of the specimens of the lepidopterous insects in the collection of the british museum , vol . xxxii , supplement , part 2 ( pp . 323 - 706 ) .

wardle , p . 1991 : vegetation of new zealand . cambridge , cambridge university press . xx + 672 pp .

wood , j . 1970 : rearing wiseana species in the laboratory . n . z . entomologist 4 ( 4 ) : 3 - 7 .

yasuda , t . ; abe , k - i 1986 : endoclita hosei tindale ( lepidoptera : hepialidae ) attacking eucalyptus in sabah , with descriptions of the immature and imaginal stages . applied entomology and zoology 21 ( 3 ) : 417 - 423 .

you are not permitted to download , save or email this image . visit image gallery to purchase the image .

this grey southern ghost moth , found recently in southland , continues to haunt entomologist brian patrick , formerly of dunedin ; who believes it may belong to a " new " species . photo by brian patrick .

moth expert and museologist brian patrick is full of questions after his latest close encounter with one of new zealand ' s most unusual moths - the southern south island ghost moth .

if anyone should know this nocturnal creature , it is mr patrick , who discovered the country ' s only known biennial moth at dansey pass in april , 1979 .

one of new zealand ' s 27 known ghost - moth species , it usually lives in moss bogs .

" it turned out that they were not only undescribed but belonged to an undescribed genus , " mr patrick said .

" it ' s a beautiful sight - it ' s a gorgeous species . "

he has since shown the moth is widespread , in moss bogs from sea level to alpine wetlands , but only in otago - southland .

unusually , it appears only once every two years , and then only in late autumn and into winter .

the adult moth has a wingspan of up to 4 . 5cm , but cannot eat , having no mouth parts .

mr patrick , who is a former manager at the otago museum and former director of the central stories museum and art gallery in alexandra , has been left scratching his head over many aspects of these moths .

he recently encountered them again at borland mire , west southland and believes another undescribed ghost - moth species lurks in south and west southland .

male ghost moths found in those parts of southland are greyer and less colourful than they are near dunedin and in central otago , the catlins and northern southland , where their wings are often bright orange , with a white stripe and some black .

by appearing only every second year , the moths deny predators , such as birds , the chance to form a well - remembered " search image " in order to target them .

mr patrick also notes dunedin is the native - moth capital of new zealand , home to more than 750 of the country ' s more than 2000 native - moth species .


parapoynx diminutalis is a species of moth of the crambidae family .

it is endemic to south-east asia , including the northern territory , queensland and new south wales in australia , but has since been found in the united kingdom and the united states .

it is also found in africa , where it has been recorded from egypt , sudan , ethiopia , kenya , uganda , tanzania , zambia , zimbabwe , malawi , south africa , botswana , angola , the republic of congo , nigeria and madagascar .

the wingspan is 11 – 14 mm for males and 16 – 23 mm for females .

the forewings are white , suffused with fuscous .

the hindwings are white with a fuscous y-shaped median fascia .

the larvae feed on hydrilla and nymphaea species .

parapoynx diminutalis

parapoynx diminutalis <EOT> species parapoynx diminutalis - small leafcutter moth - hodges # 4765 - bugguide . net

figure 5 . a cocoon constructed and occupied by a parapoynx diminutalis snellen larva . parapoynx diminutalis snellen use plant stems , leaves and other materials to construct their cocoons and attach to submerged stems or plant material . photograph by julie baniszewski , university of florida .

figure 7 . damage inflicted on hydrilla leaf by a first instar of parapoynx diminutalis snellen . photograph by lyle j . buss , university of florida .

brou jr va . 1993 . range extension of the moth parapoynx diminutalis snellen ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) . southern lepidopterists’ news 15 : 33 - 34 .

according to the global pyraloidea database ( nuss et al . 2003 - 2013 ) and shibuya ( 1928 ) the following junior synonyms have been used for parapoynx diminutalis :

balciunas jk , habeck dh . 1981 . recent range extension of a hydrilla damaging moth , parapoynx diminutalis ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) . florida entomologist 64 : 195 - 196 .

bownes a . 2010 . asian aquatic moth parapoynx diminutalis , accidentally introduced earlier , contributes to control of an aquatic weed hydrilla verticillata in south africa . african journal of aquatic science 35 : 307 - 311 .

buckingham gr , bennett ca . 1996 . laboratory biology of an immigrant asian moth , parapoynx diminutalis ( lepidotera : pyralidae ) , on hydrilla verticillata ( hydrocharitaceae ) . florida entomologist 79 : 353 - 363 .

figure 2 . parapoynx diminutalis snellen , first instar larva eating hydrilla . first instar larvae are transparent , allowing consumed hydrilla to be visible in the gut . photograph by lyle j . buss , university of florida .

del fosse es , perkins bd , steward kk . 1976 . a new record for parapoynx diminutalis ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) , a possible biological control agent for hydrilla verticillata . florida entomologist 59 : 1 - 30 .

buckingham gr , bennett ca . 1989 . laboratory host range of parapoynx diminutalis ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) , an asian aquatic moth adventive in florida and panama on hydrilla verticillata ( hydrocharitaceae ) . environmental entomology 18 : 526 - 530 .

figure 1 . eggs of parapoynx diminutalis snellen , within one day of being laid ( left ) . egg mass sizes vary and are often laid on plant tissue ( right ) . photographs by lyle j . buss , university of florida .

baniszewski j , weeks eni , cuda jp . 2016 . bacillus thuringiensis subspecies kurstaki reduces competition by parapoynx diminutalis ( lepidoptera : crambidae ) in colonies of the hydrilla biological control agent cricotopus lebetis ( diptera : chironomidae ) . florida entomologist 99 : 644 - 647 .

figure 3 . an early instar of parapoynx diminutalis snellen ( left ) . larvae are mobile and retreat into a cocoon between feedings . cocoons are constructed of plant materials and attached to a hydrilla stem ( right ) . photographs by julie baniszewski , university of florida .

parapoynx diminutalis is native to parts of asia , africa , and australia ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . in its adventive range , parapoynx diminutalis has been found in panama ( notably in the panama canal , which was infested with hydrilla ) , honduras , and florida . in commercial greenhouses , the moth has been observed colonizing aquatic plants in england and denmark ( agassiz 1978 , 1981 ) . parapoynx diminutalis was first seen in florida in fort lauderdale in 1976 but progressively appeared in more northern counties , eventually reaching alachua and putnam counties by 1979 ( balciunas and habeck 1981 ) . in the early 1980s , hydrilla surveys in other southeastern states revealed that the moth’s range did not extend beyond florida ( balciunas and minno 1985 ) . even in northern florida , the cooler water temperatures caused populations to be reduced in late winter and early spring . milder climates such as those found in panama may enable populations to thrive throughout the year ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

figure 4 . a late instar of parapoynx diminutalis snellen , feeding on hydrilla ( left ) . instars 2 through 7 are white , later instars begin to turn yellow closer to pupation ( right ) . branched gills are visible and help identify this species in the larval stage . photograph by lyle j . buss , university of florida .

figure 6 . an adult parapoynx diminutalis snellen , female moth ( left ) and male moth ( right ) . females have longer wingspans , more pointed forewings , and larger abdomens . males have longer antennae and more distinct white setae ( hairs ) at the tip of the abdomen . photographs by lyle j . buss , university of florida .

parapoynx diminutalis snellen is an adventive asian moth with an aquatic larval stage . the moth is found associated with a variety of water bodies including river backwaters , lakes , and ponds ( habeck 1996 ) . the aquatic larvae commonly attack hydrilla , hydrilla verticillata ( l . f . royle ) , and other aquatic plants ( buckingham and bennett 1989 , 1996 ) .

parapoynx diminutalis undergoes complete metamorphosis from an aquatic caterpillar to a moth . life stages include the egg , seven larval instars ( the seventh instar includes a pre - pupa stage ) , the pupa and finally adult emergence ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . the life cycle of parapoynx diminutalis ranges from 25 to 41 days for development and about five days for the adult life span . females lay on average about 200 eggs , but can lay just a few to over 500 . the eggs require 4 - 6 days to develop before first instars hatch . adults typically emerge from pupae after dusk and are quick to fly to avoid potential predators . the adults drink water using a reduced proboscis , but they do not appear to feed ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . parapoynx diminutalis mating has not been studied in detail but has been observed occasionally and seems to occur at around three hours after dusk . although the maximum time in copula is unknown , pairs of moths in copula facing in opposite directions were noted to rest for at least 30 minutes . after mating , there is a 1 - day pre - oviposition period . females then oviposit soon after dusk just below the water surface on leaves or stems . first instars have been shown to hatch both below and above the water surface , although it has been observed that the females typically oviposit below the water surface ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

however , in south africa , where the moth was accidentally introduced , parapoynx diminutalis is believed to be having a significant impact on hydrilla infestations ( bownes 2010 ) . after moths were discovered feeding in a hydrilla infested water body at pongolapoort dam , kwazulu - natal in january 2009 , almost all plants were defoliated by april of the same year ( bownes 2010 ) . although hydrilla was not eradicated in this area , the reduction in viability of the hydrilla has allowed other native plants to recolonize .

the asian moth parapoynx diminutalis snellen is an immigrant in florida and panama where it attacks hydrilla , hydrilla verticillata ( l . fil . ) royle , an immigrant submersed weed from asia . field populations of p . diminutalis are occasionally heavy on hydrilla but are rarely found on other plant species , including those that are laboratory hosts . larvae build portable cases from which they feed on leaves and stems . the 7 instars can be differentiated by head capsule widths . measurements are presented of other immature stages . in the laboratory at 26 . 7°c , eggs developed in 4 - 6 d , larvae in 21 - 35 d , prepupae in 1 - 2 d , and pupae in 6 - 7 d . adults lived 3 - 5 d at 24 . 4°c .

hydrilla is invasive , and the actions of the moth rarely require management and are usually considered to be desirable . however , in certain situations where the presence of hydrilla is needed , such as in research with other biocontrol agents , management of the moth larvae may be necessary to prevent consumption of the plant material . in these situations , a strain of the biorational insecticide bacillus thuringiensis has been tested for controlling parapoynx diminutalis ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ; bownes 2010 ; baniszewski et al . 2016 ) . bacillus thuringiensis subspecies kurstaki , commonly known as btk , is specific to lepidopteran pests . btk produces proteins that are toxic to larvae ; the proteins bind to the midgut when consumed and kill the larvae ( bauce et al . 2006 ; van driesche et al . 2008 ) . a commercially available btk product has been shown to cause 80 % mortality of parapoynx diminutalis larvae in about four days ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . baniszewski et al . ( 2016 ) found that a concentration of 2 ml per 3 . 8 l or higher reduced moth emergence by 75 % and a concentration of 0 . 2 ml per 3 . 8 l reduced emergence by 50 % . however , the higher doses impacted the emergence of the biological agent under culture , the hydrilla tip - mining midge , cricotopus lebetis ( baniszewski et al . 2016 ) .

larvae are commonly found on the aquatic weed hydrilla , hydrilla verticillata . the initial discovery of the moth on hydrilla led to an interest in the moth as a possible biological control agent of this invasive weed . in the field , larvae and pupae have been found in small numbers on coontail ( ceratophyllum demersum l . ) , southern naiad ( najas guadalupensis ( sprengel ) magnus ) , and illinois pondweed ( potamogeton illinoensis morong ) ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . furthermore , in laboratory studies , while parapoynx diminutalis larvae preferred hydrilla , they could also complete development on various other plants including coontail , southern naiad , fanwort ( cabombo caroliniana gray ) , brazilian waterweed ( egeria densa planchon ) , and eurasian water - milfoil ( myriophyllum spicatum l . ) ( buckingham and bennett 1989 ) .

plant damage is inflicted by the larvae , which not only eat the leaf and stem tissue , but use these materials to prepare their pupal cocoon as well ( figure 7 ) . the main food source for parapoynx diminutalis is the aquatic weed hydrilla ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . in most natural situations in the u . s . , hydrilla is invasive and an undesirable weed because it develops surface mats and disrupts natural ecosystems ( haller and sutton 1975 ; langeland et al . 2016 ) . there have been few studies to quantify the effect of feeding moth larvae on hydrilla biomass . feeding of the moth larvae on hydrilla in florida was thought to have a positive effect on hydrilla - invaded water bodies ( del fosse et al . 1976 ) by reducing the need for herbicide applications to control hydrilla mats . however , naturalized populations of this moth are too sporadic to have a significant effect on hydrilla density . for example , in northern florida populations build up during the summer months and can cause extensive defoliation of hydrilla , but in the winter , populations decline rapidly with cooler water temperatures ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 0 strict / / en " " urltoken "

the moth was identified in 1971 in india and pakistan during scouting trips to attempt to determine potential biological control agents for hydrilla . despite having potential for hydrilla destruction , the moth was declared to be a generalist feeder and unsuitable for release into u . s . water bodies for hydrilla control ( baloch et al . 1980 ) . however , the moth was later found in florida in 1976 by united states department of agriculture technicians who were testing herbicides for hydrilla control . the larvae ( caterpillars ) found on hydrilla were observed to be eating the invasive weed . the pathway , method , or time of the moth’s arrival remains unknown ( del fosse et al . 1976 ) .

more recent studies indicate that the moth also is established in louisiana , where 37 moths were collected from 1984 - 1992 ( brou jr . 1993 ) .

eggs : eggs are smooth and bright yellow when laid ( figure 1 ) ; they turn white , and then become transparent as they develop . the eggs are generally deposited on plant leaves or stems just below the water surface in masses of various sizes ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

larvae : larvae can be distinguished from those of other aquatic species by the presence of branched gills ( habeck 1996 ) and brown spots on the head and the tip of the thorax . the larval stage consists of seven instars ; all seven are off - white with yellow - brown legs ( habeck and balciunas 2005 ) . the larvae are mobile and feed on hydrilla leaves . the first instar is white yet nearly transparent and has 1 mm long setae ( hairs ) ( figure 2 ) . instars 2 through 7 are white , later instars begin to turn yellow as they approach pupation ( figure 3 ) . in later instars , the length increases and the external gills develop ( figure 4 ) . instars 3 through 7 use plant tissue to construct a silk case , and often retreat into the case between feeding events ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

pupae : pupae have three tubercles ( or nodules ) along each side and two setae ( or hairs ) on the head . female pupae can be distinguished from males by their larger size and by their antennae . female antennae are shorter , extending only to the wing tips , whereas male antennae are longer and extend past the wing tips ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) . late seventh instar larvae ( or pre - pupae ) enclose themselves in a white cocoon , which is attached to a submerged plant stem ( figure 5 ) . after 1 - 2 days in the cocoon , the white pre - pupae have developed into yellow pupae inside the cocoon . the eyes turn red , then brown , and the wings become visible as pupation progresses ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

adults : moth adults are white with brown or tan markings or bands on the wings and tan bands on the body ( figure 6 ) . females typically differ from males by their longer wingspans , more pointed forewings , larger abdomens and shorter antennae , and they lack the noticeable white setae displayed by males on the tip of the abdomen ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

the moth was identified in pakistan and india during scouting trips to locate potential biological control agents for hydrilla ( baloch et al . 1980 ) . at this point , the researchers observed the moth damaging hydrilla and believed that the moth could be an effective control agent due to its destructive capabilities .

an important characteristic of a biocontrol agent is host specificity . when laying eggs , female moths are not highly selective , which makes other plants susceptible to consumption by developing larvae . furthermore , the moth is limited by winter temperatures , and populations decline during the cooler months to a level that is almost undetectable . sensitivity to cooler climates and lack of host specificity makes the moth a poor biological control agent of hydrilla ( habeck and balciunas 1976 , buckingham and bennett 1989 ) .

monitoring for adult moths can be done using ultraviolet ( uv ) black lights or incandescent light bulbs , which are both attractive to the moth ( buckingham and bennett 1996 ) .

the authors would like to acknowledge funding provided by the usda nifa ramp grant 2010 - 02825 that helped pay for the production of this article . the authors would like to acknowledge the reviewers that provided feedback on an early draft of the article , dr . william overholt and dr . verena lietze .

agassiz d . 1978 . five introduced species , including one new to science , of china mark moths ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) new to britain . entomologist’s gazette 29 : 117 - 127 .

agassiz d . 1981 . further introduced china mark moths ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) new to britain . entomologist’s gazette 32 : 21 - 26 .

balciunas jk , minno mc . 1985 . insects damaging hydrilla in the usa . journal of aquatic plant management 23 : 77 - 83 .

baloch gm , sana - ullah , ghani ma . 1980 . some promising insects for the biological control of hydrilla verticillata in pakistan . tropical pest management 26 : 194 - 200 .

bauce e , kumbasli m , van fankenhuyzen k , carisey n . 2006 . interactions among white spruce tannins , bacillus thuringiensis subsp . kurstaki , and spruce budworm ( lepidoptera : tortricidae ) , on larval survival , growth and development . journal of economic entomology 99 : 2038 - 2047 .

haag kh , buckingham gr . 1991 . effects of herbicides and microbial insecticides on the insects of aquatic plants . journal of aquatic plant management 29 : 55 - 57 .

habeck dh . 1996 . australian moths for hydrilla control . u . s . army engineer waterways experiment station . technical report . a96 : 10 . vicksburg , ms .

habeck dh , balciunas jk . 2005 . larvae of nymphulinae ( lepidoptera : pyralidae ) associated with hydrilla verticillata ( hydrocharitaceae ) in north queensland . australian journal of entomology 44 : 354 - 363 .

haller wt , sutton dl . 1975 . community structure and competition between hydrilla and vallisneria . hyacinth control journal 13 : 48 - 50 .

kegley se , hill br , orme s , choi ah . 2010 . pan pesticide database . pesticide action network , north america ( san francisco , ca . 2010 ) . ( 24 june 2017 ) .

langeland ka , enloe sf , gettys l . 2016 . hydrilla management in florida lakes . university of florida , ifas extension . ( 24 june 2017 ) .

nuss m , landry b , vegliante f , tränkner a , mally r , hayden j , segner a , li h , schouten r , solis ma , trofimova t , de prins j , speidel w . 2003 - 2013 . global information system on pyraloidea . ( 24 june 2017 ) .

shibuya j . 1928 . the systematic study on the formosan pyralidae . journal of the faculty of agriculture , hokkaido imperial university , sapporo , japan 22 : 1 - 300 .

van driesche r , hoddle m , center t . 2008 . control of pests and weeds by natural enemies : an introduction to biological control . blackwell publishing . malden , ma .

photographs are the copyrighted property of each photographer listed . contact individual photographers for permission to use for any purpose .

if you have any good quality photographs and would like to contribute , please contact me by email at ian @ ukmoths . co . uk .

ukmoths is built , run and maintained by ian kimber , with thanks to the many kind contributors who provide photos and information .

the ukmoths facebook page is a great place to post your identification queries . more often than not you ' ll get a positive id on most photos fairly quickly .

looking for a specific moth species ? enter just part of the name below .

procache : v317 render date : 2018 - 06 - 24 08 : 27 : 12 page render time : 0 . 2267s total w / procache : 0 . 2709s

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 0 transitional / / en " " urltoken "

upcoming events 2018 bugguide gathering in virginia july 27 - 29 : registration and discussion photos of insects and people from the 2015 gathering in wisconsin , july 10 - 12 photos of insects and people from the 2014 gathering in virginia , june 4 - 7 . photos of insects and people from the 2013 gathering in arizona , july 25 - 28 photos of insects and people from the 2012 gathering in alabama photos of insects and people from the 2011 gathering in iowa photos from the 2010 workshop in grinnell , iowa photos from the 2009 gathering in washington

" looks like it arrived on it ' s own at least by 1976 , not a planned introduction . note the larva has 7 instars ( as opposed to a more normal 5 ) . " bob p .

bold - barcode of life data systems - collection map and photos of pinned adults .

disclaimer : dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service . we strive to provide accurate information , but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world . if you need expert professional advice , contact your local extension office .

contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content . click the contributor ' s name for licensing and usage information . everything else copyright © 2003 - 2018 iowa state university , unless otherwise noted .

the caterpillars of this species is off - white with a pale brown head . it has stiff hairs along the body and two long hairs at the tail . the caterpillars have been found feeding on the leaves of aquatic plants in the genus :

the wings of the adult have a striking pattern of brown and white . the moth has a wingspan of about 2 cms .

are yellow and laid in masses on water plant leaves on the surface of the water .

for esthwaite waterweed , which is pest in waterways there , but its depradations are too variable .

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 1 / / en " " urltoken "

notes : naturalised in aquatic nurseries through accidental introduction in aquatic plants from singapore . abundant in aquatic nurseries at enfield , middlesex from 1977 since when periodically controlled by fumigation , also in other nurseries , and in many parts of europe and the u . s . a . in hampshire one was found dead in a striplight insect trap at barton stacey in july 1977 . not recorded from the isle of wight to date . wingspan male 13 - 16 mm , female 17 - 19 mm . similar to p . obscuralis , which see . larva feeds on water plants , living entirely underwater , causing sufficient damage to be a serious pest in some areas .

if you have images for this taxon that you would like to share with atlas of living australia , please upload using the upload tools .

meyrick , e . 1885 , " on the classification of the australian pyralidina " , transactions of the entomological society of london , vol . 1885 , no . 4 , pp . 421 - 456

butler , a . g . 1886 , " descriptions of 21 new genera and 103 new species of lepidoptera heterocera from the australian region " , transactions of the entomological society of london , vol . 1886 , no . 4 , pp . 381 - 441 , pls 9 - 10

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . taxon : 0c5c89ae - 27ce - 474e - ad86 - 0a7dbac83b54

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . taxon : 8a9ad7c8 - bea6 - 466d - b760 - 8f72c9d402d9

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . taxon : b30514ec - 3f74 - 40da - 9cf6 - 551bc30c441a

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . taxon : b76251a5 - 9360 - 4a65 - 9a7a - e9bc171fac97

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . taxon : 65abdd10 - ec8e - 42a5 - 9c0c - a6e47b422bec

urn : lsid : biodiversity . org . au : afd . name : 401483

explore species occurrence records in the context of their environment . find records and model species distributions . export reports , maps and data .

find out how you can contribute to a citizen science project in your area , or explore one of the many citizen science projects supported by the ala .

did you see something ? photograph something ? contribute your sighting to the atlas of living australia .

the atlas of living australia acknowledges australia ' s traditional owners and pays respect to the past and present elders of the nation ' s aboriginal and torres strait islander communities . we honour and celebrate the spiritual , cultural and customary connections of traditional owners to country and the biodiversity that forms part of that country .


pholadomya is a genus of fossil saltwater clams , marine bivalve mollusks in the family pholadomyidae .

fossils species within this genus lived during the mesozoic era , in the opening south atlantic , between present-day brazil and africa .

in the triassic of argentina , austria , hungary , and italy fossils have been found .

they are found in the jurassic of the coquina group , la guajira , colombia among many other places .

of campanian age , this genus is widespread as a fossil in cameroon , france , poland , austria , germany and the usa .

fossils up to the neogene have been found in belgium , the united kingdom , and venezuela ( pliocene mare and playa grande formations ) and miocene bulgaria , chile , colombia , cyprus , germany , india , japan , malta , moldova , new zealand , panama , poland , the russian federation , slovakia , trinidad and tobago , and venezuela .

pholadomya

pholadomya <EOT> worms - world register of marine species - pholadomya g . b . sowerby i , 1823

worms - world register of marine species - pholadomya candida g . b . sowerby i , 1823

variety pholadomya loveni var . locardi mars , 1958 accepted as parilimya loveni ( jeffreys , 1882 ) ( synonym )

species pholadomya arata verrill & s . smith , 1881 accepted as panacca arata ( verrill & s . smith [ in verrill ] , 1881 )

species pholadomya arata verrill & s . smith , 1881 , sensu locard , 1898 accepted as panacca locardi ( dall , 1903 ) ( misidentification )

morton b . 1980 . the anatomy of the ‘living fossil’ pholadomya candida sowerby , 1823 ( mollusca : bivalvia : anomalodesmata ) . videnskabelige meddelelser fra dansk naturhistorik forening i kjøbenhavn 142 : 7–102 . [ details ]

juan manuel díaz , francisco j . borrero ; on the occurrence of pholadomya candida sowerby , 1823 ( bivalvia : anomalodesmata ) on the caribbean coast of colombia , journal of molluscan studies , volume 61 , issue 3 , 1 august 1995 , pages 407–408 , urltoken

ty - jour ti - indomya , a new subgenus of pholadomya from the middle jurassic of kachchh , western india ( bivalvia , pholadomyidae ) t2 - the veliger . vl - 28 ur - urltoken pb - california malacozoological society . cy - berkeley , ca : py - 1986 sp - 457 ep - 459 sn - 0042 - 3211 au - jaitly , ak er -

@ article { bhlpart94157 , title = { indomya , a new subgenus of pholadomya from the middle jurassic of kachchh , western india ( bivalvia , pholadomyidae ) } , journal = { the veliger . } , volume = { 28 } , copyright = { in copyright . digitized with the permission of the rights holder . } , url = urltoken publisher = { berkeley , ca : california malacozoological society . 1958 - } , author = { jaitly , ak } , year = { 1986 } , pages = { 457 - - 459 } , }

< mods xmlns : xlink = " urltoken " version = " 3 . 0 " xmlns : xsi = " urltoken " xmlns = " urltoken " xsi : schemalocation = " urltoken urltoken " > < titleinfo > < title > indomya , a new subgenus of pholadomya from the middle jurassic of kachchh , western india ( bivalvia , pholadomyidae ) < / title > < / titleinfo > < name > < namepart > jaitly , ak < / namepart > < / name > < typeofresource > text < / typeofresource > < genre authority = " marcgt " > < / genre > < note type = " content " > 28 < / note > < relateditem type = " host " > < titleinfo > < title > the veliger . < / title > < / titleinfo > < origininfo > < place > < placeterm type = " text " > berkeley , ca : < / placeterm > < / place > < publisher > california malacozoological society . < / publisher > < / origininfo > < part > < detail type = " volume " > < number > 28 < / number > < / detail > < extent unit = " pages " > < start > 457 < / start > < end > 459 < / end > < / extent > < date > 1986 < / date > < / part > < / relateditem > < identifier type = " uri " > urltoken < / identifier > < accesscondition type = " useandreproduction " > in copyright . digitized with the permission of the rights holder . < / accesscondition > < / mods >

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd html 4 . 01 transitional / / en "

javascript is required to use this web site . please turn it on before proceeding .

see also eames 1951 , frassinetti and covacevich 1999 , ronchetti 1970 , russell and landes 1937 , scholz et al . 2008 , sepkoski 2002 , vokes 1980 and woodring 1982

sowerby i , g . b . ( 1821–34 ) . the genera of recent and fossil shells , for the use of students , in conchology and geology . g . b . sowerby , london . vol . 1 pl . 1 - 126 + text ( unpaginated ) [ 1821 - 1825 ] ; vol . 2 : pl . 127 - 162 + text ( unpaginated ) [ 1825 - 1834 ] ( [ published in 42 numbers . for complete collation see sykes , 1906 and see petit r . e . 2006 . notes on sowerby ' s the genera of recent and fossil shells ( 1821–1834 ) archives of natural history 33 : 71 - 89 ] . , available online at urltoken [ details ]

coan e . v . 2000 . a new species of panacca from chile ( bivalvia : pholadomyoidea : parilimyidae ) . malacologia 42 ( 1 - 2 ) : 165 - 170 , available online at urltoken [ details ]

liu j . y . [ ruiyu ] ( ed . ) . ( 2008 ) . checklist of marine biota of china seas . china science press . 1267 pp . ( look up in imis ) [ details ] available for editors [ request ]

( of flabellomya rollier , 1911 ) huber , m . ( 2010 ) . compendium of bivalves . a full - color guide to 3 , 300 of the world’s marine bivalves . a status on bivalvia after 250 years of research . hackenheim : conchbooks . 901 pp . , 1 cd - rom . ( look up in imis ) [ details ]

sowerby i , g . b . ( 1821–34 ) . the genera of recent and fossil shells , for the use of students , in conchology and geology . g . b . sowerby , london . vol . 1 pl . 1 - 126 + text ( unpaginated ) [ 1821 - 1825 ] ; vol . 2 : pl . 127 - 162 + text ( unpaginated ) [ 1825 - 1834 ] ( [ published in 42 numbers . for complete collation see sykes , 1906 and see petit r . e . 2006 . notes on sowerby ' s the genera of recent and fossil shells ( 1821–1834 ) archives of natural history 33 : 71 - 89 ] . , available online at urltoken page ( s ) : pl . 19 , 2 p . unpaginated text [ details ]

rosenberg , g . 1992 . encyclopedia of seashells . dorset : new york . 224 pp . page ( s ) : 167 [ details ]

jeffreys j . g . 1882 . on the mollusca procured during the ' lightning ' and ' porcupine ' expeditions 1868 - 70 . ( part iv ) . proceedings of the zoological society of london , ( 1881 ) : 922 - 952 , pl . 70 - 71 . , available online at urltoken page ( s ) : 934 ; pl . 70 fig . 7 [ details ]

gofas , s . ; le renard , j . ; bouchet , p . ( 2001 ) . mollusca . in : costello , m . j . et al . ( eds ) , european register of marine species : a check - list of the marine species in europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification . patrimoines naturels . 50 : 180 - 213 . ( look up in imis ) [ details ]

check list of european marine mollusca ( clemam ) . , available online at urltoken [ details ]

intergovernmental oceanographic commission ( ioc ) of unesco . the ocean biogeographic information system ( obis ) , available online at urltoken [ details ]

scientists aim to describe a single ' tree of life ' that reflects the evolutionary relationships of living things . however , evolutionary relationships are a matter of ongoing discovery , and there are different opinions about how living things should be grouped and named . eol reflects these differences by supporting several different scientific ' classifications ' . some species have been named more than once . such duplicates are listed under synonyms . eol also provides support for common names which may vary across regions as well as languages .

eol content is automatically assembled from many different content providers . as a result , from time to time you may find pages on eol that are confusing .

to request an improvement , please leave a comment on the page . thank you !

moderately large for family ( to 80 mm long ) , highly inflated , with very thin , fragile , highly nacreous shell , and umbo close to anterior end . sculpture of many rather indistinct commarginal ridges and , on central region , about 17 to 20 low , widely spaced radial costae , forming weak nodules at sculptural intersections ; anterior eighth and posterior fifth of length lack obvious radial sculpture . escutcheon weakly defined , a narrow , smooth , weakly concave area on each side of dorsal margin . anterior end short , inflated , bearing very weakly defined , pouting lunule , occupying third of shell height , bounded by very shallow , wide depression . interior not seen in any new zealand material of the genus ; modern species lack hinge teeth . almost all specimens distorted in a variety of ways .

illustrated by suter ( 1915 , p . 62 , pl . 7 , fig . 1 ) , is said to be from " oamaru " ; the sole specimen we are aware of subsequently collected in oamaru district is from mount harris formation in south oamaru ( altonian ) and this could well be the horizon of hutton ' s type .

commonly encountered of at least five species of pholadomyoidean bivalves recorded from the new zealand cenozoic . until recently these were all included in the pholadomyidae and assigned to either

( pl . 9h , i ) , but some modification to this classification is necessary in the light of work by morton ( 1982 ) . he proposed a new family parilimyidae for anomalodesmatans that resemble pholadomyids in most shell characters , but differ significantly in anatomical details . in particular , parilimyids have " taenioid " ( i . e . , tape - like ) siphonal retractor muscles , which leave prominent scars on the inside of the shell ( a single scar near the centre of each valve ) , whereas pholadomyids have only greatly reduced siphonal muscles . on the other hand , parilimyids lack pedal retractor muscles , whereas these are well developed in pholadomyidae . unfortunately , fossil pholadomyaceans are rarely well enough preserved to discern muscle scar details , so assignment to one or other of these families normally depends on their similarity to extant species .

dell , 1963 , which morton ( 1982 , p . 167 ) assigned to

melvill & standen , 1889 ( recent , torres strait ) , the type species of the genus , beu & maxwell ( 1990 ) provisionally assigned them there .

dall , 1903 , which morton ( 1982 , p . 161 - 163 ) included in the parilimyidae .

a ( length up to about 55 mm ) , is lower and less inflated , has a less convex ventral margin , has umbones situated at about a third of the length from the anterior end , and has less prominent radial sculpture . there are few obvious differences , however , between

are known from waipipi , waverley beach ( waipipian ; type only ) , and from gs1548 , mangaone crossing , wairoa district , hawkes bay ( opoitian ) .

an unnamed pholadomyacean , probably a parilimyid , is represented by a specimen in nzgs from whitewater creek , castle hill basin , canterbury ( duntroonian ) with a nearly central umbo , a relatively thick shell , and prominent radial costae with no obvious commarginal sculpture ; this may be the second species illustrated by suter ( 1915 , pl . 6 , fig . 2 ) as

as , although suter ' s specimen is unlocalised , the preservation appears to match that of the whitewater creek shell . it is not a typical

dall , 1907 ( recent , japan ) , referred by morton ( 1982 , p . 172 ) to

although , like the other species he assigned there , it has little similarity to the type species . another possibly distinct species is represented by an internal mould of a small ( length 40 mm ) , evenly oval specimen from " gs945 , breccia below kakanui limestone , kakanui " collected and listed by park ( 1918 , p . 68 ) ; the specimen is almost certainly from the top of the deborah volcanic formation ( whaingaroan ) .

( pl . 9h , i ) is readily distinguished from all other new zealand pholadomyaceans by its extremely short anterior end and almost flat anterior area .

although pholadomyaceans are often considered to be characteristic of deep waters they are also recorded from much shallower environments .

( tongaporutuan , kaiwara river , north canterbury ) is from a very shallow - water assemblage .

is limited to shallow - water " hurupi facies " faunules in palliser bay ( tongaporutuan ) . powell ( 1931a , p . 90 ) and fleming ( 1953 ) concluded that the fossiliferous beds at waipipi  the type locality of

( duntroonian ? ) otaian ( ? ) to tongaporutuan ; rare in bathyal siltstone and some shelf assemblages throughout new zealand .

cite this publication as : " a . g . beu and j . i . raine ( 2009 ) . revised descriptions of new zealand cenozoic mollusca from beu and maxwell ( 1990 ) . gns science miscellaneous series no . 27 . " © gns science , 2009 isbn 978 - 0 - 478 - 19705 - 1 issn 1177 - 2441 ( included with a pdf facsimile file copy of new zealand geological survey paleontological bulletin 58 in cd version from : publications officer , gns science , p . o . box 30368 lower hutt , new zealand )

we use cookies to enhance your experience on our website . by continuing to use our website , you are agreeing to our use of cookies . you can change your cookie settings at any time .

you could not be signed in . please check your email address / username and password and try again .

most users should sign in with their email address . if you originally registered with a username please use that to sign in .

to purchase short term access , please sign in to your oxford academic account above .

oxford university press is a department of the university of oxford . it furthers the university ' s objective of excellence in research , scholarship , and education by publishing worldwide

for full access to this pdf , sign in to an existing account , or purchase an annual subscription .

to museum of new zealand te papa ( m . 016253 ; pholodomya maoria dell , 1963 ; holotype )

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 0 transitional / / en " " urltoken "


utegenia is a genus of early tetrapod .

it is usually regarded as a basal seymouriamorph , but sometimes included in the discosauriscidae or as a sister taxon of the latter .

only one species , utegenia shpinari , found from kazakhstan , is known .

urumqia , another basal seymouriamorph , from urumqi , xinjiang of china is probably a junior synonym of utegenia .

utegenia

utegenia <EOT> urumqia was originally associated with utegenia , but actually urumqia is a basal lepidosauromorph reptile .

figure 1 . skull of a postmetamorphic specimen of utegenia shpinari . notice the contact between the postorbital ( po ) and the supratemporal ( st ) .

according to the present family tree , the rise of the living amphibians occurs in this lineage beginning with utegenia . this is where living amphibians depart from living reptiles .

overall much smaller than kotlassia , the skull of utegenia was relatively larger , lower and wider . the interpterygoid space expanded ( narrower pterygoid ) . the parasphenoid and basisphenoid were enlarged .

laurin , m . in press . a reappraisal of utegenia , a permo - carboniferous seymouriamorph ( tetrapoda : batrachosauria ) from kazakhstan . journal of vertebrate paleontology 29 pages , 6 figures .

laurin m 1996 . a reappraisal of utegenia , a permo - carboniferous seymouriamorph ( tetrapoda : batrachosauria ) from kazakhstan . journal of vertebrate paleontology 16 ( 3 ) : 374 - 383 .

utegenia shpinari kuznetsov and ivakhnenko , 1981 ( batrachosauria : seymouriamorpha ) . kurty locality . latest carboniferous - early permian of kazakhstan . two postmetamorphic specimens and larvae with leaves of pecopteris , taeniopteris and kerpia .

of course they are not an ancestors of axolotl despite some morphological similarities utegenia much closer to ancestors of reptiles in a broad sense . but you are correct , this small - sized specimens which are larvae , really looks similar to modern axolotls .

utegenia had a moderately long trunk , with 28 presacral vertebrae ( three of four more than in other seymouriamorphs ) . the neural arches are paired and disarticulated from the pleurocentra even in the largest known specimen , but this is probably a juvenile character ( neural arch fusion occurred relatively late in the ontogeny of early terrestrial vertebrates ) .

utegenia had circular scales over most of its body , like discosauriscus . it retained rhomboidal ventral scales ( fig . 2 ) arranged in a chevron pattern ( gastralia ) and a contact between the postorbital and the supratemporal ( fig . 1 ) . both of these characters suggest that it is not closely related to discosauriscus , ariekanerpeton , or seymouria ( none of these seymouriamorphs appear to have had rhomboidal gastralia , although circular ventral scales were present in discosauriscus , and the presence of gastralia cannot be determined in seymouria ) . the contact between the supratemporal and the postorbital is rarely present in discosauriscus and ariekanerpeton , and it is not found in seymouria , but it is present in most postmetamorphic specimens of utegenia .

the first published reconstructions of utegenia shpinari showed a very broad skull ( kuznetsov and ivakhnenko , 1981 ) , but recent work suggests that kuznetsov and ivakhnenko did not take the extensive crushing into consideration ( fig . 1 ) , and that the skull was somewhat more narrow ( laurin , in press ) . the braincase is virtually unknown because its endochondral elements were cartilaginous . however , the parasphenoid was broad , triangular , and covered in a shagreen of denticles .

utegenia shpinari was found in the upper pennsylvanian or lower permian of kazakhstan ( the stratigraphy of this area is problematic ) . it is represented by more than four hundred flattened but well preserved specimens . these specimens document a growth series ranging from small larvae to small post - metamorphic specimens . this growth series shows that the neural arches ossify before the centra , and the external gills disappear when the skull reaches a length of about 1 . 5 cm ( kuznetsoz and ivakhnenko , 1981 ) . however , the poor ossification of most endochondral elements suggests that no fully mature specimen was found . the cranial length of the known specimens ranges from 1 cm to 3 . 5 cm ( kuznetsov and ivakhnenko , 1981 ) .

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd html 4 . 01 transitional / / en " " urltoken "

the appendicular skeleton is poorly known because of its poor ossification . the scapula and coracoid are discrete elements , and the scapula is approximately circular . the ends of the limb bones are unossified . the carpus and tarsus are usually not ossified .

kuznetsov , v . v . , and m . f . ivakhnenko . 1981 . discosauriscids from the upper paleozoic in southern kazakhstan . paleontological journal 1981 : 101 - 108 .

skeleton of a postmetamorphic specimen . this specimen is one of more than four hundred skeletons recently collected in kazakhstan . impressions of ventral scales are preserved on the right side of the abdomen .

this media file is licensed under the creative commons attribution - noncommercial license - version 3 . 0 .

i thank my wife ( ms . patricia lai ) and mr . matthew marlowe for editing this page . dr . david maddison provided invaluable assistance in formatting this page and in linking it to other pages of the tree of life . i thank dr . jozef klembara for his useful comments on discosauriscus .

. note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license , and they may or may not be available for reuse . click on an image or a media link to access the media data window , which provides the relevant licensing information . for the general terms and conditions of tol material reuse and redistribution , please see the

each tol leaf page provides a synopsis of the characteristics of a group of organisms representing a leaf at the tip of the tree of life . the major distinction between a leaf and a branch of the tree of life is that a leaf cannot generally be further subdivided into subgroups representing distinct genetic lineages .

for a more detailed explanation of the different tol page types , have a look at the structure of the tree of life page .

tree of life design and icons copyright © 1995 - 2004 tree of life project . all rights reserved .

html public " - / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1 . 0 transitional / / en " " urltoken "

in the lineage of microsaurs . it also phylogenetically preceded the amniota , and its basalmost taxon ,

the cervicals and caudals are not known . the dorsal ribs were wide , producing a flattened torso .

the scapula and coracoid were reduced to two unfused discs . the extremely robust humerus was enlarged proximally , removing any trace of the former l shape . the radius and ulna were more robust . the manus and pes were not documented .

kuznetzov vv and ivakhnenko mf 1981 . discosauriscids from the upper paleozoic in southern kazakhstan . paleontological journal 1981 : 101 - 108 .

javascript is required to use this web site . please turn it on before proceeding .

full reference : v . v . kuznetsov and m . f . ivakhnenko . 1981 . discosauriscids from the upper paleozoic in southern kazakhstan . paleontological journal 1981 : 101 - 108

sorry , preview is currently unavailable . you can download the paper by clicking the button above .

enter the email address you signed up with and we ' ll email you a reset link .