Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Hepialidae
Genus: Wiseana
Species: W. copularis
Binomial name: Wiseana copularis
Synonyms: Porina copularis
Common name: Porina
Wiseana copularis is a species of moth endemic to New Zealand. It is one of seven endemic porina species (Wiseana cervinata, W.copularis, W. fuliginea, W. jocosa, W. mimica, W. umbraculata and W. signata. They are difficult to distinguish from each other. Their habitat is open ground or forest clearings.
The wingspan is 34–40 mm for males and 43–52 mm for females. The colour of the forewings varies from dark to pale brown and with few markings. The markings can vary. The hindwings are pallid to infuscate. The antennae are short. The male abdomen (anterior) is pointed; the female abdomen is cigar-shaped.
Moths only live for a few days and fly with temperatures above 8.3ºC. After mating, females lay most of their 500-2,800 eggs in their emergence area. Around 30-50% of eggs are laid during the dispersal flight. Moths preferably seek pasture more than 75mm high to lay eggs.
The eggs hatch in 3-5 weeks. Initially, the caterpillars live on the soil surface under litter (up to 12mm deep) until they commence burrowing at around 4-15 weeks when they are 10-12mm long (Plate 3 and 3a). Eggs and caterpillars are highly vulnerable to dry weather and trampling by stock. Once burrowed, they are relatively safe from dry conditions.
Thanks to www.beeflambnz.com for information)
Female
Female from above.
Male
Male from above
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