Faggot Case Moth
Partially constructed case
Ellura
Case Moth
S2, dorsal
 
                      
Faggot Case Moth (Clania ignobilis)Class: Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta)
Order: Butterflies & Moths (Lepidoptera)
Family: Case Moth (:Tineoidea Psychidae)     iNaturalist Observation
Species: Faggot Case Moth (Clania ignobilis)
This Photo:     Completed Case

Thank you Ethan Beaver for identifying and David Muirhead & Leonie Kirchmajer for confirming the id of this species for us

General Species Information:
Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA) and elsewhere
It was previously considered the species could be identified by the unevenness (or evenness) of the sticks on the case; however this has been shown to be incorrect.
Thanks to Nina Maurovic for letting use know a "faggot" means a bundle of sticks.
These are parasitised by flies, as shown here: Parasitic Fly (Tritaxys sp)
We asked Ethan how he was able to determine the id to species he said "C. ignobilis can only be identified as such in your sighting because the only other spp with similar structures (C. lewinii and Euneta spp) do not occur in the SA mallee regions and are instead restricted to higher rainfall areas along the coast and ranges"
Further "Generally speaking C. lewinii selects rougher sticks and creates smaller cases on average, particularly the males, but it's not something easy to pick without the two side by side, and variation will be present due to host plant availability"

Copyright © 2016-2024 Brett & Marie Smith. All Rights Reserved. Photographed 15-Mar-2016
This species is an Australian Native Species, not listed in the SA Murray Mallee Survey of 2010.