Heliothela atra
Heliothela atra is a moth of the family Crambidae. It was described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1877. This species is endemic in New Zealand and has been observed in both the North and South Islands. The preferred habitat of this species is dry tussock grasslands and short-sward sites. Adults of this species are on the wing from December until March and are day flying moths known for their rapid flight. This species is said to be associated with Melicytus alpinus.
Taxonomy
This specie was first described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1877 and named Orosana atra. Butler used a specimen obtained from the Canterbury plains and sourced from the collection of J. D. Enys. In 1885 Edward Meyrick discussed this species and placed it within the genus Nyctarcha. In 1913 Meyrick placed this species in the genus Heliothela and renamed the species H. erebopis as he was of the opinion that the epithet atra could be confused with atralis, the type of the genus. This placement and naming was followed by George Hudson in his book The butterflies and moths of New Zealand. In 1988 J. S. Dugdale agreed with the placement of the species within the genus Heliothela but argued that the epithet should be atra as it was sufficiently distinct from atralis for it not to be regarded as a homonym. The male holotype is held at the Natural History Museum, London.Description
Meyrick described this species as follows:Hudson pointed out that the dark and light markings on this species vary in colour intensity.