Plesiolaea maritima (Lower, 1897)
Red-tracked Geometrid
 DIPTYCHINI,   ENNOMINAE,   GEOMETRIDAE,   GEOMETROIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans,
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley


(Photo: courtesy of Steve Williams, Moths of Victoria: Part 5)

The Caterpillars of this species are dark brown with two paired dorsal projections along the back, as well as a single projection on the last abdominal segment. The caterpillars are inclined to rest lying along a twig.


female
(Photo: courtesy of Marilyn Hewish, Moths of Victoria: Part 5)

The female adult moths have grey forewings, each with striated rusty marks in an irregular submarginal band and at the base. The antennae are thread-like.


male
(Photo: copyright of Brett and Marie Smith at Ellura Sanctuary, South Australia)

The males only have rusty striations by the wingtips of the forewings. The antennae of the males are feathery. The hindwings of both sexes are are off-white, each with a brown band along the margin. The wingspan of both sexes is about 3 cms.


female
(Photo: courtesy of Marilyn Hewish, Moths of Victoria: Part 5)

The species occurs in

  • New South Wales,
  • Victoria,
  • South Australia, and
  • Western Australia.


    male, underside
    (Photo: copyright of Brett and Marie Smith at Ellura Sanctuary, South Australia)

    Further reading :

    Marilyn Hewish,
    Moths of Victoria: Part 5,
    Satin Moths and Allies - GEOMETROIDEA (A)    ,
    Entomological Society of Victoria, 2014, pp. 14-15.

    Oswald B. Lower,
    Descriptions of new Australian Lepidoptera,
    Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia,
    Volume 21 (1897), p. 51.

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    (written 16 January 2016, updated 26 April 2018)