| XYLORYCTIDAE, GELECHIOIDEA | (donherbisonevans@yahoo.com) and Stella Crossley |
drawing by Harriet and Helena Scott,
Australian Lepidoptera, Volume 1 (1864), Plate 3,
image courtesy of Biodiversity Heritage Library,
digitized by
Australian Museum.
This Caterpillar is a variable grey colour, with a series of spots along the back. The head is dark brown. The caterpillar bores a hole into the branch of a tree exuding silk and frass from the entrance. It has been found feeding on various trees, including :
The caterpillars grow to a length of about 4 cms. The caterpillars pupate in their borehole.
The adult moth has off-white forewings speckled with grey, and have slightly recurved wing-tips. The hindwings are white. The wingspan is about 4 cms.
The species has been found in :
Further reading :
Michael F. Braby and Penny Olsen.
A Flutter of Butterflies,
National Library of Australia, 2011, p. 98.
Ian McMillan,
Cryptophasa spilonota, Xyloryctine Moths of Australia,
Blog, Tuesday, August 17, 2010.
Harriet, Helena, and Alexander W. Scott,
Australian Lepidoptera,
Australian Lepidoptera and their Transformations,
Volume 1 (1864), p. 10, and also
Plate 3.
 caterpillar |  butterflies |  Lepidoptera |  moths |  caterpillar |
(written 19 June 2014, updated 4 May 2019, 12 March 2021, 9 September 2022)