Invertebrates eating plants in New Zealand

New Zealand plants are fed on by a large diversity of invertebrate herbivores, many specialised to feed on only one kind of plant. Some can cause lots of damage, and some enhance the diversity of plant communities. It's a big intricate food web out there. This is a project for exploring the insects and other invertebrates eating plants in New Zealand, and the damage they cause.

Please be sure to include photograph(s) of the plant (and identify it if you can) as well as the insect or its feeding damage.

A good place to start for identifying what might be eating your favourite plant is Nicholas Martin's useful PlantSyNZ website. It allows you to search for all insects known to feed on a plant species, and all plant species an insect is known to feed on. It doesn't have photos, but has useful written descriptions of the damage insects cause.

The banner image is a native magpie moth Nyctemera annulata feeding on a native groundsel Senecio minimus, from an observation by @john_barkla. less ↑