Hyposmocoma nohomaalewa
Encyclopedia
Hyposmocoma nohomaalewa is a species of moth
of the Cosmopterigidae
family. It is endemic to Kauai
.
The wingspan
is 5.6–6.6 mm for males and 4.6–5.7 mm for females.
The larvae live on or near the tips of smaller roots of fallen Metrosideros polymorpha
trees that are suspended parallel to the ground and covered with lichen. They live in a larval case which has the form of a bag-shaped structure covered with minute particles of sand intricately woven with silk. In the wild, it is always densely covered in bright green powdery lichen.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae is a family of insects in the Lepidoptera order. These are small moths with narrow wings whose tiny larvae feed internally on the leaves, seeds, stems, etc of their host plants. There are about 1,500 described species...
family. It is endemic to Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 5.6–6.6 mm for males and 4.6–5.7 mm for females.
The larvae live on or near the tips of smaller roots of fallen Metrosideros polymorpha
Metrosideros polymorpha
The ōhia lehua is a species of flowering evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that is endemic to the six largest islands of Hawaii. It is a highly variable tree, being tall in favorable situations, and much smaller when growing in boggy soils or on basalt...
trees that are suspended parallel to the ground and covered with lichen. They live in a larval case which has the form of a bag-shaped structure covered with minute particles of sand intricately woven with silk. In the wild, it is always densely covered in bright green powdery lichen.