Amata aperta

Amata aperta (Walker, [1865])
(one synonym : Hydrusa nesothetis)
SYNTOMIINI , CTENUCHINAE , ARCTIIDAE , NOCTUOIDEA

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

Amata aperta
(Photo: courtesy of Ted Cadwallader)

These Caterpillars have rather puzzling feeding habits. They have been found feeding on the foliage of :

Bladder Saltbush ( Atriplex vesicaria, CHENOPODIACEAE ),

but also ate

dead Gum leaves ( Eucalyptus, MYRTACEAE ).

The Caterpillars pupate in a flimsy cocoon.

(Specimen : courtesy of A. Kallies et al,
photo: courtesy of Peter Marriott)

The adult moth rather resembles a wasp. Its wings are basically black, with pale yellow translucent spots on each wing. It has transverse black and yellow bands on its body. It has a wingspan of about 3 cms. The hind wings are only about half the span of the forewings.

Specimens have been taken in

Victoria,

New South Wales, and

Queensland.

Further reading :

Ian F.B. Common,
Moths of Australia, Melbourne University Press, 1990, pl. 19.27, p. 439.

Peter Marriott,
Moths of Victoria, Part 2, Entomological Society of Victoria, 2009, pp. 28-29.