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Helastia expolita
Helastia expolita is a species of moth in the family Geometridae. This species is endemic to New Zealand and occurs in the Buller, Marlborough, North and Mid Canterbury regions.This species inhabits short tussock grassland in montane to subalpine zones. Adult moths are nocturnal but little is known about the life history of H. expolita. Adults have been observed on the wing in November. It has been hypothesised the larvae of H. expolita feed on the flowers of Helichrysum species and then feed on mosses, lichens or shrubs growing nearby. It is classified as "At Risk, Relict'" by the Department of Conservation.
From the article Helastia expolita on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
Philpott described the species as follows:
♂︎. 30 mm. Head, palpi, and antennae purplish-grey. Thorax fuscous-brown mixed with grey. Abdomen fuscous-grey with some reddish scales laterally. Forewings moderate, triangular, costa moderately arched, apex subacute, termen sinuate, oblique; whitish-grey with faint purplish tinge; markings dark purplish-fuscous; basal line thick, evenly curved, projecting angularly at middle; anterior margin of median band inwardly oblique beneath costa at 1⁄3, thence broadly excurved to dorsum at 1⁄4; posterior margin from 2⁄3 costa to 3⁄4 dorsum, with strong broad apically-indented projection at middle; traces of a thin waved white subterminal line; an oblique suffused purplish-fuscous fascia from apex : cilia grey, obscurely barred with fuscous, tips whitish. Hindwings elongate, termen angularly projecting at middle; purplish-grey; basal half darker, being marked off by a median fascia parallel to termen : cilia as in forewings. Undersides : Forewings ochreous-reddish with the upper markings faintly reproduced; hindwings ochreous-reddish, terminal half suffused with whitish.
Range & habitat
This species is endemic to New Zealand. It occurs in Buller, Marlborough, North Canterbury and Mid Canterbury.
Wikipedia: “Distribution”
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Every page naming Helastia expolita in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 407330.