| (previously known as Oecophora crystallina) WINGIA GROUP, OECOPHORINAE, OECOPHORIDAE, GELECHIOIDEA | (donherbisonevans@yahoo.com) and Stella Crossley |
(Photo: courtesy of
Cath Busby,
Aranda, Australian Capital Territory)
|
| (previously known as Oecophora crystallina) WINGIA GROUP, OECOPHORINAE, OECOPHORIDAE, GELECHIOIDEA | (donherbisonevans@yahoo.com) and Stella Crossley |
(Photo: courtesy of
Cath Busby,
Aranda, Australian Capital Territory)
This caterpillar is thought to live in a shelter constructed of two overlapping leaves of its foodplant joined by silk and frass. One of the leaves is typically folded like a tent. The caterpillar feeds on the surfaces of the leaves composing its shelter. It probably feeds on:
It probably pupates within its shelter.
The adult moth has white or off-white forewings each with bold black markings along the hind margin. The hindwings are off-white shading to pale brown at the wingtips. The head can be either yellow or white. The wingspan is about 2 cms.
The species has been found in Australia in:
It is not yet clear whether the two posible head colours are just genetic diversity, or seasonal forms, or different sexes, or different species that, so far, are sharing the same name.
Further reading :
Ian F.B. Common,
Oecophorine Genera of Australia I:
The Wingia Group (Lepidoptera: Oecophoridae),
Monographs on Australian Lepidoptera Volume 3,
CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne 1994, p. 352.
Edward Meyrick,
Descriptions of Australian Micro-lepidoptera XII Oecophoridae,
Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales,
Series 1, Volume 9, Number 4 (1885), pp. 1077-1078, No. 391.
 caterpillar |  butterflies |  Lepidoptera |  moths |  caterpillar |
(written 13 February 2017, updated 29 March 2023)