Anthela addita

7 Reddish Anthelid at West Hobart, TAS

Request use of media

Identification history

Anthela addita	10 Jun 2025	ibaird
Anthela addita	3 Jun 2025	donhe
Anthela (genus)	7 Dec 2024	donhe
Anthela (genus)	6 Dec 2024	VanessaC

Identify this sighting

Please Login or Register to identify this sighting.

Significant sighting

MatthewFrawley noted:

13 Jun 2025

A new species sighting for NatureMapr and NatureMapr's Tasmania region. All three life stages documented. Species known to occur in Victoria and Tasmania.

User's notes

Wingspan (closed as shown in photo) of mature moth around 40mm. Moth emerged 2 June 2025.

38 comments

donhe wrote:

7 Dec 2024

Looking at
http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/anth/anth-cats.html
that is a new Anthelid larva.
@VanessaC : please can you rear it to an adult moth to get an ID ?

VanessaC wrote:

7 Dec 2024

I'm not at all sure I could find it again, and I know nothing about rearing moths. However, if I can find the plant it was on and someone in/near Hobart is able to rear it, I'm happy to arrange to either show them where the larva is or get it for them. Best I can do, I think.

donhe wrote:

7 Dec 2024

Rearing is easy. You just need a clean jamjar and patience, see
https://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/faqs/care.html

VanessaC wrote:

7 Dec 2024

Okay, I'll see if I can find it...

VanessaC wrote:

8 Dec 2024

Hi @donhe - I found the plant again quite quickly, and eventually found the larva. I have it in a jar and have followed the instructions on the website above. Fingers crossed....

donhe wrote:

9 Dec 2024

Terrific. What plant species it feeding on?

VanessaC wrote:

9 Dec 2024

It was on some kind of sedge but there was no sign of any of the leaves being eaten. I cut off some sections in case it would eat them but it hasn't eaten any in the jar. I have also put in a small wild rose which I lightly sprayed with water but it doesn't seem to be eating anything so far.

donhe wrote:

10 Dec 2024

They have a diapause before each instar moult. Are the sedges in flower? Are there orchids or grass amongst the sedges?

VanessaC wrote:

10 Dec 2024

Hi @donhe - I realised I have previously seen on eof these larvae on a silver wattle so I have given it some silver wattle leaves with a light mist of water and it is munching away happily. :)

VanessaC wrote:

10 Dec 2024

I have just spotted several small red round things on the larva that I haven't seen before - is this some kind of parasite or disease?

VanessaC wrote:

10 Dec 2024

I have added a photo above - can't get a very clear shot through the jar...

donhe wrote:

10 Dec 2024

Yes those are parasitic mites. They are not necessarily fatal, but will deplete the strength of the caterpillar. Can you remove them with tweezers?

VanessaC wrote:

11 Dec 2024

Yep

VanessaC wrote:

11 Dec 2024

Caterpillar says nope. It's very sensitive to the tweezers on the tips of its hairs and curls inwards so I can't get to the mites. I tried approaching from both sides, so that I could get to the mites on one side while it was curled the other way but without success.

donhe wrote:

11 Dec 2024

Try anaesthesia: put it in the fridge (5C) for a spell. That usually slows insects down.

VanessaC wrote:

11 Dec 2024

That helped. I have got rid of around 5 mites - the biggest ones.

donhe wrote:

11 Dec 2024

Well done. Is it still feeding? Fingers crossed.

VanessaC wrote:

12 Dec 2024

I gave it some fresh silver wattle last night and it was feeding this morning when I got up. To come back to your question about what it was initially eating, I have a photo of the plant that it was on. There were a couple of other plants growing amongst it, which I can't identify at present. However, the plant was underneath a silver wattle so maybe the caterpillar fell out of the wattle?

donhe wrote:

12 Dec 2024

Acacia dealbata ?

VanessaC wrote:

12 Dec 2024

Yes, Acacia dealbata.

VanessaC wrote:

12 Jan 2025

(Hi @donhe - An update on this caterpillar. I managed to remove 7-8 or so parasites, but there were three I couldn't get (close to the head). Around that time the caterpillar started spending most of its time in the soil at the bottom of the jar and didn't seem to be eating. Last Sunday when I checked on it, I was alarmed to see two long brown drips on the inside of the jar and a smear or two. It looked like a pretty bad case of caterpillar diarrhoea. The caterpillar emerged from the soil while I was checking and shortly after went back under and that is the last I have seen of it. During the week, I've seen three mature mites on the inside of the jar and managed to get them all out. I am wondering if the caterpillar is dead. I haven't disturbed the soil but am feeling a bit pessimistic. Any idea what has happened?

donhe wrote:

12 Jan 2025

The caterpillars of many species burrow into the soil to pupate. Yours might emerge in a fortnight or so, if the species has 2 generations per year. But some moth species have only one generation per year, so these typically hibernate as the pupa till next spring, then emerge as an adult next September or October. You just need to do a visual check every day, to see if it emerged yet. So this is where patience is required.

VanessaC wrote:

12 Jan 2025

All righty, will wait and see. Thanks Don.

donhe wrote:

12 Jan 2025

VanessaC wrote:

12 Jan 2025

I just re-read your webpage on rearing moths, and see that expelling fluid is something that happens at pupation, so that's good to know.

VanessaC wrote:

2 Jun 2025

Hi @donhe - I got home from work to find a moth in my jar! It didn't move while I took photos (through the glass, so not best quality).

donhe wrote:

3 Jun 2025

Wonderful. Congrats.

ibaird wrote:

3 Jun 2025

A. addita? - or a different Anthela species? Judging by the 3rd photo the emerged moth is a female. I must say I do not find the comparison of this sighting with the photo of th female on Lepidopters Butterfly House very supporting of the ID as A. addita here:- See
https://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/anth/addita.html

donhe wrote:

3 Jun 2025

BOLD has about 24 unnamed Anthela species, it could be one of those.

VanessaC wrote:

3 Jun 2025

I've swapped a couple of the photos out, including one that I took later than the others, which might help with identification.

donhe wrote:

4 Jun 2025

As far as I can see: none of the unnamed BOLD Anthela specimens come from Tasmania.
17 named Anthela species have been found in Tasmania.

ibaird wrote:

10 Jun 2025

Great piece of work VanessaC! Congratulations.

ibaird wrote:

10 Jun 2025

A new species sighting for NatureMapr and NatureMapr's Tasmania region. All three life stages documented. Species known to occur in Victoria and Tasmania.

VanessaC wrote:

10 Jun 2025

Thanks @ibaird and @donhe. I have uploaded a photo of the pupa case which I unearthed and cut open after the moth had gone.

HelenCross wrote:

12 Jun 2025

Fantastic work Vanessa! With excellent help from Don

VanessaC wrote:

13 Jun 2025

Thanks Helen, and yes, a big thank you to Don for his advice and support.

MatthewFrawley wrote:

13 Jun 2025

This is next-level dedication to discovery, well done to all involved. Don has suggested I do the same but I just thought he was a crazy man. It turns out he isn't, lol.

ibaird wrote:

13 Jun 2025

The life stages and the larvall hosts of most Australian moths remain unknown and undocumented. Citizen scientists with a camera and some patience and a minimum of knowhow can make worthwhile contributions to science and ecology.

Please Login or Register to comment.

Location information

Coordinates 147.301850 -42.885695
Places West Hobart, TAS

Sighting information

1 Abundance
3 Jun 2025 09:06 PM Recorded on
VanessaC Recorded by
Collections
VanessaC NatureMapr Tasmania Anthelid moths (Anthelidae) Moths (Lepidoptera) Insects Significant Featured

Additional information

25mm to 50mm Animal size

Species information

Anthela addita Scientific name
Reddish Anthelid Common name
Not Sensitive
Local native
Non-invasive or negligible
Machine learning
External link More information

Record quality

Images or audio
More than one media file
Verified by an expert moderator
Nearby sighting(s) of same species
GPS evidence of location
Description
Additional attributes

Australian Capital Territory

New South Wales

Queensland

Northern Territory

Western Australia

South Australia

Victoria

Tasmania

Anthela addita

7 Reddish Anthelid at West Hobart, TAS

Identification history

Identify this sighting

Significant sighting

User's notes

38 comments

Location information

Sighting information

Additional information

Species information

Record quality