Synemon theresa

Synemon theresa Doubleday, 1846
Cryptic Sun Moth
(one synonym : Synemon mopsa Doubleday, 1846)
CASTNIIDAE, SESIOIDEA

Synemon theresa
(Photo: courtesy of CSIRO/BIO Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph)

The Caterpillars of this species have been feeding amongst the roots of

Common Wallaby Grass ( Rytidosperma caespitosum ), and

Slender Wallaby Grass ( Rytidosperma racemosum ),

The adult moths have brown wings, with a substantial pattern of white markings on the forewings, and orange markings on the hindwings.

drawing by Arthur G. Butler,
Illustrations of typical specimens of Lepidoptera Heterocera in the collection of the British Museum,
Part 1 (1877), Plate 3, fig. 5,
image courtesy of Biodiversity Heritage Library, digitized by Gerstein Library, University of Toronto.

The eggs are initially pale brown but become white. They are laid in the bases of tussocks of foodplants.

This species is found in

drawing by Arthur G. Butler, listed as Synemon mopsa,
Illustrations of typical specimens of Lepidoptera Heterocera in the collection of the British Museum,
Part 1 (1877), Plate 3, fig. 3,
image courtesy of Biodiversity Heritage Library, digitized by Gerstein Library, University of Toronto.

The

Further reading:

Edward Doubleday,
Descriptions of some new or imperfectly characterized Lepidoptera from Australia,
in J.L. Stokes:
Discoveries in Australia,
London : T. & W. Boone Vol. 1 (1846), pp. 517-518.

Peter B. McQuillan, Jan A. Forrest, David Keane, & Roger Grund,
Caterpillars, moths, and their plants of Southern Australia,
Butterfly Conservation South Australia Inc., Adelaide (2019), p. 73.

Australian
Australian Butterflies

Australian
Australian Moths

(written 3 February 2005, updated 10 April 2017, 9 October 2019, 30 July 2021)