Mnesampela heliochrysa

Mnesampela heliochrysa (Lower, 1893)
(previously known as : Onychodes heliochrysa)
NACOPHORINI , ENNOMINAE , GEOMETRIDAE

Don Herbison-Evans ( donherbisonevans@yahoo.com )
and
Cathy Young & Stella Crossley

(Photo: copyright Cathy Young)

These Caterpillars have a humped back. They are brown with black spiracles, yellow spots and sparse hairs. The caterpillars feed on the foliage of :

various Gum Trees ( Eucalyptus species, MYRTACEAE ).

(Photo: copyright Cathy Young)

The adult moths are brown, with a dark spot near the middle of each forewing. They repose with the wings held across the back like a tent.

eggs magnified
(Photo: copyright Cathy Young)

The eggs are laid in an irregular array. They are oval, and coloured dull red, and covered in tiny pimples.

The species is found in the mountains of

Tasmania, and

Victoria.

Further reading :

Catherine J. Young,
Characterisation of the Australian Nacophorini and a Phylogeny for the Geometridae from Molecular and Morphological Data, Ph.D. thesis, University of Tasmania, 2003.

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(updated 17 September 2011)