Izatha attactella
Encyclopedia
Izatha attactella is a moth
of the Oecophoridae
family. It is endemic to New Zealand
, where it is known from both the North and South Island as far south as mid Canterbury.
The wingspan
24.5–38 mm for males and 22–36 mm for females. Adults are on wing from September to December.
Larvae have been reported feeding under the bark of dead Elaeocarpus dentatus
, Aristotelia serrata, Nothofagus
, Myoporum laetum and Rhopalostylis sapida, feeding on the soft inner surface of the bark. It has also been recorded from dead wood of Castanea, Litsea calicaris, Olearia paniculata, Pinus patula
, Pinus radiata and Sophora
species. Pupation takes place under the bark in an oval cocoon of silk into which fragments of chewn wood are densely incorporated.
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 Oecophoridae
Oecophoridae
Oecophoridae is a family of small moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea. The phylogeny and systematics of gelechoid moths are still not fully resolved, and the circumscription of the Oecophoridae is strongly affected by this....
family. It is endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, where it is known from both the North and South Island as far south as mid Canterbury.
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...
24.5–38 mm for males and 22–36 mm for females. Adults are on wing from September to December.
Larvae have been reported feeding under the bark of dead Elaeocarpus dentatus
Elaeocarpus dentatus
Elaeocarpus dentatus, commonly known as the Hinau, is a species of flowering plant in the Elaeocarpaceae family, bearing bitter edible fruit found in New Zealand.It was first collected on 5 November 1769....
, Aristotelia serrata, Nothofagus
Nothofagus
Nothofagus, also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 35 species of trees and shrubs native to the temperate oceanic to tropical Southern Hemisphere in southern South America and Australasia...
, Myoporum laetum and Rhopalostylis sapida, feeding on the soft inner surface of the bark. It has also been recorded from dead wood of Castanea, Litsea calicaris, Olearia paniculata, Pinus patula
Pinus patula
Patula pine, pino patula, pinus patula is a tree native to the highlands of Mexico. It grows from 24° to 18° North latitude and 1800 to 2700 m above sea level. 30 m tall...
, Pinus radiata and Sophora
Sophora
Sophora is a genus of about 45 species of small trees and shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. The species are native to southeast Europe, southern Asia, Australasia, various islands in the Pacific Ocean, western South America, the western United States, the Southern US...
species. Pupation takes place under the bark in an oval cocoon of silk into which fragments of chewn wood are densely incorporated.