Zonopetala clerota

Zonopetala clerota Meyrick, 1883
OECOPHORINAE , OECOPHORIDAE

Don Herbison-Evans ( donherbisonevans@yahoo.com )
&
Stella Crossley

(updated 24 April 2009)

Zonopetala clerota
(Photo: curtesy of Donald Hobern)

The caterpillar of this species lives in the ground leaf litter in a shelter that it makes by joining together two dead leaves with silk. It has been found feeding on the dead leaves of various species of Gum Trees ( MYRTACEAE ) including :

Cabbage Gum ( Eucalyptus platyphylla ), and

Small Fruited Gray Gum ( Eucalyptus propinqua ).

The adult moth has a black collar around the head, and white forewings with two black bands across them, and a black margin. The hindwings are cream, shading to brown at the apex. The moth has a wingspan of about 2 cms.

The species is found across mainland Australia, including:

New South Wales,

Queensland,

Victoria, and

Western Australia.

Further reading :

Ian F.B. Common,
Oecophorine Genera of Australia I:
The Wingia Group (Lepidoptera: Oecophoridae)
Monographs on Australian Lepidoptera Volume 3,
CSIRO Publis pp. 21,22,24,138-143.