Biology:Tatosoma lestevata

Short description: Species of moth endemic to New Zealand

Tatosoma lestevata
Female
Male
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Geometridae
Genus:	Tatosoma
Species:	T. lestevata
Binomial name
Tatosoma lestevata (Walker, 1862)
Synonyms
Cidaria lestevata Walker, 1862 Felder & Rogenhofer, 1875 Sauris ranata

Tatosoma lestevata is a species of moth in the family Geometridae first described by Francies Walker in 1862. It is endemic to New Zealand.

Taxonomy

T. lestevata was first described by Francis Walker in 1862 using specimens collected in Nelson by T. R. Oxley and named Cidaria lestevata. In 1874 Arthur Gardiner Butler placed this species in the genus Tatosoma. In 1875 Rudolf Felder, Cajetan von Felder and Alois Friedrich Rogenhofer, thinking they were describing a new species, named it Sauris ranata. This name was subsequently synonymised by Edward Meyrick. George Vernon Hudson discussed and illustrated this species in both his 1898 book New Zealand moths and butterflies (Macro-lepidoptera) and his 1928 book The Butterflies and Moths of New Zealand.

The male lectotype is held at the Natural History Museum, London.

Description

The adult of this species was described by George Hudson as follows:

The expansion of the wings is ​1 ¹⁄₂ inches. The fore-wings are vivid-green; there are four wavy, black, transverse lines; the first near the base, the second a little before the middle, the third considerably beyond the middle, and the fourth near the termen; the subterminal line is very faint towards the tornus, and it emits three or four very sharp, longitudinal, black, tooth-like marks; all the transverse lines are much stronger where they cross the principal veins. The hind-wings are very pale yellowish-green.

References

Wikidata ☰ Q13551487 entry