Hygraula nitens, the pond moth or Australian water moth, is a moth of the family Crambidae. It was described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1880. It is found in New Zealand[2] and most of Australia, including Tasmania.
| Hygraula nitens | |
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| Hygraula nitens photographed in Aranda, Australia | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Crambidae |
| Genus: | Hygraula |
| Species: | H. nitens
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| Binomial name | |
| Hygraula nitens | |
| Synonyms | |
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The wingspan is about 25 mm.
The caterpillars of this species live underwater. The larvae feed on Potamogeton crispus and Zostera species.[3] They also feed on other alien macrophytes such as Hydrilla verticillata, Lagarosiphon major, and Ceratophyllum demersum.[4]
References
edit- ^ "GlobIZ search". Global Information System on Pyraloidea. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
- ^ "NZOR (Web Service Demonstrator)". Archived from the original on 2013-02-23. Retrieved 2012-12-27.
- ^ Don Herbison-Evans & Stella Crossley (February 17, 2008). "Hygraula nitens". uts.edu.au. Archived from the original on August 1, 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
- ^ Redekop, Petra; Gross, Elisabeth M.; Nuttens, Andréïna; Hofstra, Deborah E.; Clayton, John S.; Hussner, Andreas (2016-04-18). "Hygraula nitens, the only native aquatic caterpillar in New Zealand, prefers feeding on an alien submerged plant". Hydrobiologia. 812 (1): 13–25. doi:10.1007/s10750-016-2709-7. ISSN 0018-8158.