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Family: Castniidae: Synemon sp Most like Synemon nupta ID Ted Edwards CSIRO"Sun moths are an unusual group of day-flying moths that look and behave very much like butterflies.... Most sun-moths are similar in appearance with bright orange or red undersides. The upper-side of the hind wings is also orange or red, but when the wings are closed these are hidden by the dark brown or black fore-wings." Common Butterflies of the South-West - Bush Books series Andrew Williams, Robert Powell, Matthew Williams, Geoff Walker. Publisher Deptartment of Environment and Conservation 2009.They are so sensitive to the sunlight that if a cloud passes overhead, they will settle and stay until the sunlight returns or if they are disturbed. Adults will live only 4 to 10 days. The females mate and lay their eggs shortly after emerging from the pupae.The eggs are laid near the roots of native sedges - Lepidosperma and other species.
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One of the day flying colourful sun-moths. This is feeding from Hakea ruscifolia, a shrub that usually flowers during December and January. Photos: Jean and Fred
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Synemon heliopisThese medium sized moths were flying yesterday and looked black as they flew. They have an iridescent blue colour on the scales on the ends of the wings.
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Lepidoptera: Synemon catocaloides This is a photo I took in October 2004 on a trip through the Murchison (desert country). Not a butterfly but a sun moth.
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One of the day flying colourful sun-moths. This is feeding from Hakea ruscifolia, a shrub that usually flowers during December and January. Photos: Jean and Fred
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One of the day flying colourful sun-moths. This is feeding from Hakea ruscifolia, a shrub that usually flowers during December and January. Photos: Jean and Fred
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Gundaroo, New South Wales, Australia
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Family:
CastniidaeSynemon directa A large showy species only seen in Dec/January. The larvae are said to feed on the roots of the big sword sedge (
Lepidosperma gladiatum) and the moth is usually seen in areas where this occurs (often creeklines, but also coastal areas)Butterfly feeding on
Hakea ruscifolia flowers.Base of rock off Old Bibbulmun track.
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Gundaroo, New South Wales, Australia
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Few insects have been seen in the Northern Jarrah forest during the past twelve months. However these beautiful sun-moths made a timely appearance on the flowering Hakea ruscifolia shrubs.Photo: FredExplored: 11 Jan 2020 #24
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One of the day flying colourful sun-moths. This is feeding from Hakea ruscifolia, a shrub that usually flowers during December and January. Photos: Jean and Fred
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One of the day flying colourful sun-moths. This is feeding from Hakea ruscifolia, a shrub that usually flowers during December and January. Photos: Jean and Fred
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Two years ago I photographed these
moths mating . This year I photographed them laying eggs. They are a large sunmoth and look like a black butterfly as they fly.These moths were described by Westwood, J.O. in 1877 for the Linnean Society of London Zoology See:
www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/abrs/online-resources...Most sunmoths are very similar with dappled grey on the upper side of the fore-wings with bright orange/red under wings. Photos: Jean
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Family: CastniidaeSynemon spA shy sun moth which flies around in the daytime caught here drinking from a Pimelea.