Casbia melanops

Pomaderris Moth at Paddys River, ACT

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Identification history

Casbia melanops	23 Feb 2020	donhe
Casbia melanops	23 Feb 2020	GlennCocking
Casbia (genus)	18 Feb 2020	donhe
Casbia tanaoctena	17 Feb 2020	ibaird
Casbia melanops	17 Feb 2020	ibaird

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User's notes

Attracted to UV light at night.

4 comments

ibaird wrote:

18 Feb 2020

C. melanops is known as the Pomaderris Moth because it is commonly found in wet forests where its larvae feed on the the Hazel Pomaderris (LBH).

ibaird wrote:

18 Feb 2020

I have also suggested this specimen may alternatively be dentified as C. tanaoctena because of an illustrated note on the file 'melanops3' which accompanies Part 7 of Moths of Victoria. The note says that some specimens of females of either of the two species C. melanops and C. tanaoctena show a prominent dark mark on the forewing as evident here. However MoV says in C. melanops the mark has a different shape (i.e more solid) whereas in C. tanaoctena it resembles an M which matches this specimen above.

donhe wrote:

19 Feb 2020

I think the intra-species variability exceeds the inter-species differences, and the species cannot be determined for Casbia from imago photos.

GlennCocking wrote:

24 Feb 2020

I think I was the one who suggested to photographers that 4250594 and 4250285 are Casbia tetramera (cretaea). I now believe they are Casbia melanops females. The wing shape is too narrow and pointed for C. tetramera (see MoV3 set specimen photos, male and female), but matches C. melanops females. Further, 4250285 clearly shows the dark patch towards the termen of the forewing, and faintly the three dark transverse lines across the wings that is typical of many females of the variable C. melanops. 4250594 shows the transverse dark lines clearly, and the dark patch faintly.

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