During our first lockdown I entertained myself by looking for invertebrate animals in my garden. Photographing them proved to be tricky as many were far too small or way too nimble. Identifying the large, slow ones would have been impossible without the help of iNaturalist NZ
So far I have identified 70 different species. Disappointingly, only 19 are native or endemic species.
One of the first insects I noticed was the magpie moth (Nyctemera annulate), probably because it is quite large and flies about during the daytime. It was first described in 1832 by a Frenchman, Jean Baptiste Boisduval who never came to New Zealand. Nyctemera means night and day, probably from the black and white colour of the moths while annulate refers to the rings on their bodies. The Maori names are mokarakara (moth) and Tuahuru, tupeke (caterpillar)
You can tell a male from a female moth as the dude has the more feathery antennae.
They’re endemic to New Zealand and are found all over the country wherever there are plants belonging to the Senecio family. I’m not much of a plant person but apparently we have 19 native and 14 exotic species. One of the exotic species, groundsel is a common weed in my garden, hence the magpie moths. I’m on the lookout for any native species that I could grow instead. Senecio species contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are toxic to humans and livestock. The caterpillars eat them quite happily but it gives them and their moth body a bitter taste making them yucky or possibly poisonous to lizards and most birds. They don’t hide like most tasty caterpillars do but flaunt themselves with their red stripes which may act as a warning. Unfortunately for the caterpillars, the shining cuckoo is unaffected by the toxin and eats them in droves. There’s always a downside to flaunting oneself.
There is a suggestion that the caterpillars are able to freeze themselves to survive cold weather. I haven’t been able to verify this but it is a pretty cool ability which isn’t shared by many animals. In New Zealand the mountain stone weta and some stick insects can do this. Arctic ground squirrels hold the record among mammals as they can super cool their bodies to -2.9 o C.
Maori called the pupa tūngoungou ("to nod") as the pupa’s abdomen bends back and forth. Mavis Lessiter described a game where children would hold the pupa between their thumb and finger and Grandparents would ask questions along the line of “Have you been a good girl?” A wiggle up was yes and wiggle down was no. I have yet to find a pupa in my garden so have no idea whether I have been good or not.