Aponotoreas synclinalis explained

Aponotoreas synclinalis (also known as the Wirerush looper) is a moth of the family Geometridae.^{[1] [2]} It is endemic to New Zealand.^[3]

Taxonomy

This species was first described by George Vernon Hudson in 1903 as Notoreas synclinalis from a type specimen discovered by Alfred Philpott at Seaward Moss near Invercargill on 4 January 1900.^[4] In 1986 R. C. Craw described the new genus Aponotoreas and included A. synclinalis within it.

Distribution

This moth is common in upland areas of the Catlins, Longwood Range and Stewart Island. It is also present in south-west Fiordland. It is unusual as it is only one of two species in its genus where specimens have been collected at sea level.^[5]

Behaviour

This species is day flying and is on the wing from January until March.^[6]

Host plants

The host plant of the larvae of A. synclinalis is Empodisma minus, the lesser wire rush, and in alpine areas of Stewart Island is Dracophyllum politum.^[7]

External links

• Citizen science observations of species
• Specimens held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum

Notes and References

1. Dugdale. J. S.. Lepidoptera – annotated catalogue, and keys to family-group taxa. Fauna of New Zealand. 1988. 14. 170–171. 6 February 2017. 0111-5383. 27 January 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190127012006/https://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/49008/FNZ14Dugdale1988150.pdf. dead.
2. Web site: Taxon: Aponotoreas synclinalis (Hudson, 1903) Collections Online – Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. collections.tepapa.govt.nz. 7 February 2017.
3. Craw. R. C.. 1 January 1986. Review of the genus Notoreas (sensu auctorum) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Larentiinae). New Zealand Journal of Zoology. 13. 1. 131–140. 10.1080/03014223.1986.10422654. 0301-4223. free.
4. Hudson. G. V.. 1903. On some new species of Macro-lepidoptera. Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 35. 243–249. Biodiversity Heritage Library.
5. Patrick. B. H.. Lepidoptera of the Southern Plains and Coast of New Zealand. Otago Conservancy Miscellaneous Series. 1994. 17. 11.
6. Book: Crowe, Andrew. Which New Zealand insect?. Penguin Books. 2017. 978-0-14-100636-9. 20. English.
7. Emerson. Brent C.. Wallis. Graham P.. Patrick. Brian H.. 1 January 1997. Biogeographic area relationships in southern New Zealand: a cladistic analysis of Lepidoptera distributions. Journal of Biogeography. en. 24. 1. 89–99. 10.1111/j.1365-2699.1997.tb00053.x. 1365-2699.