Suniana lascivia (Rosenstock, 1885)
Dingy Dart
HESPERIINAE,
HESPERIIDAE
Don Herbison-Evans (
donherbisonevans@yahoo.com )
&
Stella Crossley
(updated 25 July 2004)
This Caterpillar is pale green with dark narrow stripes.
The head is brown with dark markings.
It lives by day in a vertical shelter formed by
joining foodplanrt leaves with silk.
At night it emerges to feed, being found on various grasses
(
POACEAE ) including :
Blady Grass ( Imperata cylindrica ), and
Guinea Grass ( Panicum maximum ).
It grows to a length of about 2.5 cms.
It pupates in its shelter.
female
(Photo: courtesy of
Museum Victoria)
The upper side of the adult butterfly is dark brown
with yellow bands across each wing.
The males have a black patch in middle of each forewing.
Underneath, the wings are fawn with a pale patch
under each wing, and large dark patch under each forewing.
The wing span is about 2 cms.
male
(Photo: courtesy of
Museum Victoria)
The eggs are cream with red markings,
and are laid singly on leaves of a foodplant.
The species is found in Timor, New Guinea, and in mainland Australia.
Several races have been recognised in Australia :
lascivia in Victoria, New South Wales, and
the southern half of Queensland,
neocles in north Queensland,
lasus, in the north of Western Australia, and
larrakia in the Northern Teritory.
Further reading :
Michael F. Braby,
Butterflies of Australia,
CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne 2000, vol. 1, pp. 209-210.
