Rhynchephestia

Rhynchephestia is a monotypic moth genus of the family Pyralidae described by George Hampson in 1930. Its single species, Rhynchephestia rhabdotis, described by the same author in the same year, is endemic to the Hawaiian island of Maui.

Rhynchephestia
Scientific classification
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Rhynchephestia

Hampson, 1930
Species:
R. rhabdotis
Binomial name
Rhynchephestia rhabdotis
Hampson, 1930

The larvae feed on Argyroxiphium sandwicense macrocephalum. They feed in the flower heads, destroying the seeds. In the seasons when there are no flowers they feed in the stem and among or at the bases of the leaves which are densely crowded together. The larvae are subject to a fungus which kills a large proportion of them.

  • Zimmerman, Elwood C. (1958). Insects of Hawaii. 8 Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea. University of Hawaii Press. hdl:10125/7337.


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