Paralaea tasmanica McQuillan, Young, & Richardson, 2001
DIPTYCHINI,   ENNOMINAE,   GEOMETRIDAE,   GEOMETROIDEA
 
Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Cathy Byrne & Stella Crossley


male
(Photo: copyright Cathy Byrne)

Both sexes of adult moth have greyish-brown wings. Each forewing has an indistinct dark spot near the middle. The hindwings become paler toward the bases. The males have feathery antennae, and the females have thread-like antennae. This species is the smallest in the genus Paralaea, with a wingspan of about 4.5 cms.


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

The eggs are laid in a distinctive formation, at a slight angle to the substrate, and slightly overlapping each other, like roof shingles. The eggs are initially bluish-green, changing later to become transparent. The eggs appear to hatch only after rain.

This species only occurs in

  • Tasmania.


    male, underside
    (Photo: courtesy of Elaine McDonald, Nicholls Rivulet, Tasmania)


    Further reading :

    Peter B. McQuillan, Catherine J. Young, & Alistair M.M. Richardson,
    A revision of the Australian moth genus Paralaea Guest (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Ennominae),
    Invertebrate Taxonomy,
    Volume 15, part 3 (2001), pp. 277-317.


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

    (updated 4 March 2005, 3 June 2019)