COSMOPTERIGIDAE: Cosmet Moths ²

Cosmopterix attenuatella (Walker, 1864). F.L. 3.5 mm. Adventive.

Habitat, seasonality and behaviour ³

Adults seem to be found from January to June and can be found anywhere the larval foodplant grows (Cyperus ssp).

Life history ³

Larvae have been found feeding in a mine on a leafy bract of a weedy Cyperus sp., growing at the side of the train track (Thorpe, 2019). One species of Cyperus (ustulatus) is native to NZ, whilst others have been introduced. It is fond of damper areas, often found by rivers near the coast, and is distributed through much of the country.

Notes ³

It is widely distributed in the tropics and subtropics of both the Old and New World.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Stephen Thorpe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Stephen Thorpe
2. Adapted by Tony Steer from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmopterix_attenuatella
3. (c) Tony Steer, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

• iNaturalist NZ taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Atlas of Living Australia
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• BugGuide
• Butterflies and Moths of North America
• CUIC Insect Images
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• Moth Photographers Group
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• 日本のレッドデータ検索システム

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