Cosmodes elegans

The green blotched moth (Cosmodes elegans) is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is found in New South Wales, Norfolk Island, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia and New Zealand.

Cosmodes elegans
Male
Female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Noctuidae
Genus:
Cosmodes
Species:
C. elegans
Binomial name
Cosmodes elegans
(Donovan, 1805)
Synonyms
  • Phalaena elegans

Identification

Adult moths are brown with sinuous green markings on their forewings, white hindwings fading to light brown along the edges, and a hairy crest just behind their heads.[1] The adult's wingspan is about 40 mm.[2] The caterpillars grow to a length of about 3 cm and are bright green with dark spiracles on both sides.[3]

Habitat

The green blotched moth is native to Australia, although it migrates to New Zealand during the summer. The moth lives in forest clearings from January to May[4] where it cocoons among the foliage of its preferred food source.[5]

Diet

The larvae feed on Lobelia species, Verbena species and Wahlenbergia species.[6]

References
  1. "Green Blotched Moth (Cosmodes elegans)". OzAnimals.com: Australian Wildlife. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  2. Don Herbison-Evans & Stella Crossley (October 11, 2008). "Cosmodes elegans". uts.edu.au. Archived from the original on 2008-07-30. Retrieved 2009-01-23.
  3. Herbison-Evans, Don (March 15, 2015). "Cosmodes elegans". Australian Caterpillars and their Butterflies and Moths. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  4. "Cosmodes elegans (Green blotched moth)". TERRAIN. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  5. Hoare, R. J. B. (2017). Noctuinae (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Part 1, Austramathes, Cosmodes, Proteuxoa, Physetica. Lincoln, N.Z.: Landcare Research. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-0-947525-07-1.
  6. Hoare, R.J.B. (2017). "Noctuinae (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) part 1: Austramathes, Cosmodes, Proteuxoa, Physetica" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 73: 1–130. doi:10.7931/J2/FNZ.73 – via Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd.


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