Ocybadistes knightorum Lambkin & Donaldson, 1994
Black Grass-dart
HESPERIINAE,   HESPERIIDAE,   HESPERIOIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley


(Photo: courtesy of CSIRO/BIO Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph)

This Caterpillar is green with bluish ends, and has a yellow head with brown markings. The caterpillar grows to a length of about 2.5 cms. It feeds at night on :

  • Alex Floyd's Grass ( Alexfloydia repens, POACEAE ).

    The caterpillar rests by day in tubular shelter made from silk and rolled leaves of the foodplant.

    The adult butterflies are dark brown on top with orange markings. They are similar underneath, but yellower. The males have a black patch on top in the middle of each forewing. The butterflies have a wingspan of about 2 cms.

    The species only occurs in

  • New South Wales around Coffs Harbour.


    Further reading :

    Michael F. Braby,
    Butterflies of Australia,
    CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne 2000, vol. 1, pp. 206-207.

    T.A. Lambkin & J.F. Donaldson,
    A new species of Ocybadistes Heron (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) from Australia,
    Australian Entomologist,
    Volume 21, Part 1 (1994), p.15.


    previous
    back
    caterpillar
    Australian
    Australian Butterflies
    butterflies
    Australian
    home
    Lepidoptera
    Australian
    Australian Moths
    moths
    next
    next
    caterpillar

    (updated 19 September 2006, 5 January 2024)