Hyposmocoma cristata
Encyclopedia
Hyposmocoma cristata is a species of moth
of the Cosmopterigidae
family. It is endemic to Oahu
, Molokai
and Hawaii
. The type locality are the mountains near Honolulu.
This species is often abundant.
The larvae feed on Freycinetia
species. The slender, white larvae bore in the pith
of dead stems of their host. Pupation takes place within the burrows.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae is a family of insects in the Lepidoptera order. These are small moths with narrow wings whose tiny larvae feed internally on the leaves, seeds, stems, etc of their host plants. There are about 1,500 described species...
family. It is endemic to Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
, Molokai
Molokai
Molokai or Molokai is an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is 38 by 10 miles in size with a land area of , making it the fifth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands and the 27th largest island in the United States. It lies east of Oahu across the 25-mile wide Kaiwi Channel and north of...
and Hawaii
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
. The type locality are the mountains near Honolulu.
This species is often abundant.
The larvae feed on Freycinetia
Freycinetia
Freycinetia is a genus of about 150-180 species of flowering plants native to the tropics of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, belonging to the family Pandanaceae. The genus was named for Admiral Louis de Freycinet, a 19th-century French explorer...
species. The slender, white larvae bore in the pith
of dead stems of their host. Pupation takes place within the burrows.