Pararguda nasuta

Wattle Snout Moth at Melba, ACT

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Identification history

	Pararguda nasuta	28 Nov 2023	donhe
	Pararguda nasuta	28 Nov 2023	chriselidie

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User's notes

This is the grey, powdery caterpillar version of this species that I have occasionally seen on our acacias. It camouflages by getting itself really flat and melding well into the plant material when not active. It looks quite different to the more shiny green ones that I reared from eggs two years ago. Those couldn't flatten themselves as well and had less hair along the line of the feet. The underbody markings and two black stripes behind the head are the same in both.

2 comments

donhe wrote:

28 Nov 2023

@chriselidie : how did you identify the species of your caterpillars last year, and these this year ?

chriselidie wrote:

28 Nov 2023

They were all identified as P. nasuta as the adult moth looks the same. I'm looking at this colour variant again, as I didn't document it well last time I had one. I'm quite sure that both the caterpillar and adult moth were larger than the green form.

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Location information

Places Melba, ACT

Sighting information

1 Abundance
chriselidie Recorded by
Collections
Insects Moths (Lepidoptera) Other moths chriselidie Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr

Additional information

Unknown acacia Associated plant
None Associated animal
25mm to 50mm Animal size
Unknown Gender
Larvae Breeding behaviour
Alive / healthy Animal health

Species information

Pararguda nasuta Scientific name
Wattle Snout Moth Common name
Not Sensitive
Local native
Non-invasive or negligible
Up to 1523.04m Recorded at altitude
Machine learning
External link More information

Record quality

Images or audio
More than one media file
Verified by an expert moderator
Nearby sighting(s) of same species
GPS evidence of location
Description
Additional attributes

Australian Capital Territory

New South Wales

Queensland

Northern Territory

Western Australia

South Australia

Victoria

Tasmania