Trictena atripalpis
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Trictena atripalpis , male |
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| Trictena atripalpis | ||||||||||||
| ( Walker , 1856) |
Trictena atripalpis ( Syn . : Trictena argentata ) is a butterfly from the family of the rootworm (Hepialidae) thatis endemic to Australia. In English usage, it is called Australian Ghost Moth (" Australian Ghost Moth ") or Rain Moth (" Rain Moth ")because of its sudden numerous occurrences at night, as it sometimes appears en masse immediately before or immediately after heavy rain showers . The Aborigines call the butterfly waikerie , which means many wings , which also refers to the increased occurrence of butterflies during rainy seasons. Anglers like to use the fleshy caterpillars as fishing bait and call them Bardee Grub ("Bardee-Made"), similar to the Witchetty- Grub (English: witchetty grub ).
features
butterfly
The sexes of Trictena atripalpis have different sizes. The female moths reach wingspans of up to 16 centimeters, the males of up to 12 centimeters. Your forewing upper side has a dark brown to brown-gray basic color. An irregularly shaped, silver-white vertical and horizontal stripe clearly stands out from this. There are several indistinct thin dark lines and circles in the hem field and on the front edge . The hind wings are colored gray-brown without drawing. There is a slight sexual dimorphism between the sexes . The larger females show a pattern similar to that of the males, but it is paler and they also have a longer abdomen.
Caterpillar
Fully grown caterpillars are glassy, slender and yellowish-white to dirty yellow in color. The brown point warts have very short, dark bristles. The head capsule is shiny reddish brown.
Distribution and occurrence
Trictena atripalpis occurs in some regions in the east and south-east as well as in the extreme south-west of Australia. The species can also be found in Tasmania . It prefers to live in moist eucalyptus ( Eucalyptus ) and casuarina forests ( Casuarina ).
Way of life
The nocturnal moths appear in autumn on rainy days. They like to visit artificial light sources . Their lifespan is short. After mating, the females scatter the eggs in flight over areas lined with eucalyptus and casuarina trees, the roots of which the caterpillars feed on. In a female, 44,100 eggs were counted in an autopsy . The caterpillars live in tunnels under the surface of the earth, where they also pupate. After the moths have hatched, some of the empty pupa covers still protrude from the ground.
food
Since the caterpillars are large and contain a lot of protein , they have been used by the Aborigines as a source of food for centuries and are still prepared and consumed in various, mostly grilled dishes to this day.
Danger
The caterpillars and moths of Trictena atripalpis are a welcome food supplement for birds and mammals that have been introduced to Australia (including rats and mice). Humans use the caterpillars as food and as fishing bait. However, due to the enormous production of eggs, which the females scatter even in areas that are difficult to access, the species is not endangered.
Individual evidence
- ^ History of Waikerie
- ^ A b Don Herbison-Evans & Stella Crossley: "Trictena atripalpis". uts.edu.au. (viewed at https://web.archive.org/web/20090924134635/http://linus.socs.uts.edu.au/~don/larvae/hepi/atripal.html on May 25, 2017)
- ↑ Distribution area of Trictena atripalpis
- ^ Ian Francis Bell Common: Moths of Australia , University Press, Victoria, Melbourne, 1990, ISBN 978-0522843262
- ^ Edible insects of Australia
literature
- Ian Francis Bell Common: Moths of Australia , University Press, Victoria, Melbourne, 1990, ISBN 978-0522843262
Web links
- insectsoftasmanialepidoptera - insects of Tasmania