Stigmella maoriella
| Stigmella maoriella | |
|---|---|
| |
| Male | |
| |
| Female | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nepticulidae |
| Genus: | Stigmella |
| Species: | S. maoriella
|
| Binomial name | |
| Stigmella maoriella (Walker, 1864)
| |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Stigmella maoriella, the pigmy leafminer moth,[1] is a species of moth of the family Nepticulidae.[3] It is endemic to New Zealand and is found from Auckland to the Hawke's Bay. Larvae are leaf miners of species in the genus Olearia. Adults have been observed on the wing in October. This species is classified as Not Threatened by the Department of Conservation.
Taxonomy
[edit]This species was described by Francis Walker in 1864 and named Tinea maoriella using three specimens collected by Lt Col Daniel Bolton, RE.[4][5] In 1988 John S. Dugdale assigned the species to the genus Stigmella.[2] In 1989 Hans Donner and Christopher Wilkinson confirmed this placement in their monograph on New Zealand Nepticulidae.[5] This placement was again confirmed in a 2016 revision of the global species placed in the family Nepticulidae.[3] The lectotype specimen, collected in Auckland, is held at the Natural History Museum, London.[2]
Description
[edit]Walker described the species as follows:
Female. Cinereous, shining. Head white. Palpi very short. Fore wings rounded at the tips, with a short transverse dark cinereous line near the base, and with two dark cinereous bands, each of which contains a black point ; space along the exterior border with black speckles. Length of the body 1 line ; of the wings 2+1⁄2 lines.[4]
Donner and Wilkinson described the adult male of this species as follows:
Head. Frontal tuft, scape, and collar white with an occasional brown scale; antenna silvery grey-brown. Thorax grey-brown. Forewing about 3 mm long; ground colour brownish grey, speckled with brown scales, with a brown distal spot and a brown medial spot; fringe brown. Hindwing grey-brown; fringe concolorous. Abdomen brownish grey.[5]
They pointed out that the lectotype and the two paralectotypes held at the Natural History Museum, London are all male and that, as at 1989, the female of this species was not yet known.[5] However since that time further observations, including of females of this species, have occurred.[6] Donner and Wilkinson also pointed out that this species can be differentiated from its close relatives S. ogygia and S. hakekeae as S. maoriella lacks the large cornutus (the spine-like sclerite) on the aedeagus of the male of the species. S. maoriella is also larger than S. ilsea.[5]
Distribution
[edit]This species is endemic to New Zealand.[7][8] It is found from Auckland to Hawke's Bay.[9]
Habitat and host species
[edit]
The larvae of this species feed on Olearia species.[9]
Behaviour
[edit]Adults of this species has been observed on the wing in October.[10]
Conservation status
[edit]This species has been classified as being "Not Threatened" under the New Zealand Threat Classification System.[1]
References
[edit]
- ^ a b c Hoare, R.J.B.; Dugdale, J.S.; Edwards, E.D.; Gibbs, G.W.; Patrick, B.H.; Hitchmough, R.A.; Rolfe, J.R. (2017). "Conservation status of New Zealand butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera), 2015" (PDF). New Zealand Threat Classification Series. 20: 9.
- ^ a b c Dugdale , J. S. (23 September 1988). "Lepidoptera - annotated catalogue, and keys to family-group taxa". Fauna of New Zealand. 14. Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: 54. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.14. ISSN 0111-5383. Wikidata Q45083134.
- ^ a b Erik J van Nieukerken; Camiel Doorenweerd; Robert J B Hoare; Donald R Davis (31 October 2016). "Revised classification and catalogue of global Nepticulidae and Opostegidae (Lepidoptera, Nepticuloidea)". ZooKeys. 628 (628): 65–246. doi:10.3897/ZOOKEYS.628.9799. ISSN 1313-2989. PMC 5126388. PMID 27917038. Wikidata Q28109648.
- ^ a b Francis Walker (1864), List of the specimens of lepidopterous insects in the collection of the British Museum. XXX: Tineites, London, p. 1008, Wikidata Q108264250
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b c d e Hans Donner; Christopher Wilkinson (28 April 1989). "Nepticulidae (Insecta: Lepidoptera)". Fauna of New Zealand. 16. Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: 38. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.16. ISSN 0111-5383. OCLC 924829916. Wikidata Q45079930.
- ^ Stephens, Christopher (2024-10-11). "Stigmella maoriella". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2024-12-30.
- ^ "Stigmella maoriella (Walker, 1864)". www.nzor.org.nz. Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
- ^ Gordon, Dennis P., ed. (2010). New Zealand inventory of biodiversity: Kingdom animalia: chaetognatha, ecdysozoa, ichnofossils. Vol. 2. p. 461. ISBN 978-1-877257-93-3. OCLC 973607714. OL 25288394M. Wikidata Q45922947.
- ^ a b "NZTCS - Lepidoptera spreadsheet". www.doc.govt.nz. 2013. Archived from the original on 4 February 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
- ^ "Stigmella maoriella". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2024-12-30.