Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Crambidae
Genus: Scoparia
Species: S. ustimacula
Binomial name: Scoparia ustimacula
Synonyms: Scoparia conifera
Scoparia ustimacula is a fairly common nocturnal moth found only in New Zealand. It’s a small moth with a body length of >13 mm. It is usually seen from September to March throughout New Zealand. Little is known of this moth but its larva has been feeding on the Hydrocotyle species (a prostrate herb).
“The wingspan is about 21 mm. The forewings are bright ochreous, the costa and inner margin irrorated with black and white. The base is suffused with dark fuscous and there is a slender whitish line before the first line. This first line is white and black-margined posteriorly. The second line is also white and the subterminal line is cloudy and whitish. There is a terminal row of white dots. The hind wings are whitish-grey. The central lunule, postmedian line and hindmargin are darker grey.” (Wikipedia text)
