GRACILLARIIDAE: Gracillariinae ⁵

Caloptilia chrysitis (Felder & Rogenhofer, 1875). F.L. 5.5 mm. Endemic.

Forewing has distinctive broad metallic gold band along the full costal length.

Habitat, seasonality and behaviour ⁶

Adults can be found from November through to March in native forest. They can be collected by day but also fly at night and come to light. I have caught this species in the Coromandel ranges in February using a M.V. light trap.

Life history ⁶

The larvae of all Gracillariidae start as leaf miners. Larvae are known to feed on Weinmania racemosa, kamahi and presumably Weinmania silvicola, towai and Elaeocarpus dentatus, hinau.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) James Tweed, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by James Tweed
2. (c) Tony Steer, all rights reserved, uploaded by Tony Steer
3. George Vernon Hudson , no known copyright restrictions (public domain), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fig_10_MA_I437896_TePapa_Plate-XXXV-The-butterflies_full_(cropped).jpg
4. (c) Stephen Thorpe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Stephen Thorpe
5. Adapted by Tony Steer from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caloptilia_chrysitis
6. (c) Tony Steer, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

• iNaturalist NZ taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• CUIC Insect Images
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants

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