Anthela connexa

Anthela connexa (Walker, 1855)
Day-Flying Anthelid
(one synonym : Darala fervens Walker, 1855)
ANTHELINAE, ANTHELIDAE, BOMBYCOIDEA

Don Herbison-Evans,
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Miguel de Salas & Stella Crossley

Anthela connexa
(Photo: courtesy of S. Williams, Moths of Victoria - Part 1)

The Caterpillars of this species are black and hairy. Early instars have grey hairs on most of the body, and brown hairs with two white hair pencils on the thorax. The grey hairs become black in later instars. The caterpillars are thought to feed on:

She Oaks ( Casuarina and Allocasuarina species, CASUARINACEAE ),

but have been reared successfully on:

Wattles ( Acacia species, MIMOSACEAE ).

(Photo: courtesy of S. Williams, Moths of Victoria - Part 1)

The caterpillar pupates in a tight silk cocoon through which it pokes its hairs.

male
(Specimen: courtesy of the Macleay Museum, University of Sydney)

The adult moths of are brown with a dark line parallel to the margin on each wing, and two pale spots on each forewing. The males are unusual in that they commonly fly in the daytime. The male moths have a wingspan of about 5 cms. The female moths have a wingspan of about 7 cms.

female
(Photo: courtesy of D.M. Holmes, Moths of Victoria - Part 1)

The species has been found in

Queensland,

New South Wales,

Victoria,

Tasmania, and

South Australia.

Further reading:

Ian F.B. Common,
Moths of Australia,
Melbourne University Press, 1990, p. 393.

Peter Marriott,
Moths of Victoria - Part 1,
Silk Moths and Allies - BOMBYCOIDEA,
Entomological Society of Victoria, 2008, pp. 20-21.

Francis Walker,
Catalogue of Lepidoptera Heterocera,
List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum,
Part 4 (1855), p. 898.

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(updated 23 April 2013, 3 July 2023)