Eastern Dusk-flat (Common Red-eye) Chaetocneme beata
Wingspan: 47 - 52mm
Sighted at Claire Cottage: Dec, Jan & Feb
Distribution: From Kuranda FNQ to the Illawarra area in NSW
Wingspan: 47 - 52mm
Sighted at Claire Cottage: Dec, Jan & Feb
Distribution: From Kuranda FNQ to the Illawarra area in NSW
Eastern Dusk Flat, Claire Cottage Dorrigo NSW, 1 Jan 2021, 8.55 pm
The red eyes! It has a missing palp. Claire Cottage Dorrigo NSW, 1 Jan 2021, 8.55 pm
Male - note the red eyes of the Eastern Dusk-flat that has come to a moth light on the verandah, Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 2 Jan 2007 8.46pm
Two Eastern Dusk Flats came in to feed at 7.30pm Christmas Day 2018, Claire Cottage Dorrigo Plateau NSW
The other Eastern Dusk Flat that came to Claire Cottage at 7.30pm on 25.12.2018
Eastern Dusk Flat, Claire Cottage Dorrigo NSW, 7.30 pm, 25.12.2018
Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 25 Jan 2021, 9.13 pm
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This female Eastern Dusk-Flat also came to our moth light, Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 8 Jan 2018 9.45pm. She measured just under 80 mm wing tip to wing tip sitting as in this photo.
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Unusual view of a variant Eastern Dusk-flat (Chaetocneme beata) Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 20 Dec 2017, 8.10 pm - identified by Kelvyn Dunn - note its red eye.
Nearing dark on 20th Dec 2017, we observed an Eastern Dusk-flat feeding on Buddleia flowers. Occasionally it fluttered its wings continuously in the way Hawk Moths do when preparing to fly. Interesting to see this butterfly so relaxed hours after other butterflies had ceased flying.
Female Eastern Dusk-flat underside, sitting on glass window, Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 8 Jan 2018, 10.04 pm
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The same butterfly photographed from the other side clearly showing it's wing markings, Claire Cottage Dorrigo, 8 Jan 2018, 10.04 pm
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Butterfly Sightings:
Larva Sightings:
Larval Food Plants:
Breeding season on the Dorrigo Plateau: Thought to be September to April. We have also had adults attracted to light 16/12/19 @ 20.15 hrs, 17/12/19 @ 20.00 hrs and 19/12/19 @ 20.30 hrs.
Flight habit: Crepuscular (becomes active at twilight) resting throughout the day on the underside of leaves.
Habitat: East Coast often near Rainforest - subtropical, warm temperate & littoral and in urban areas.
Items of Interest:
A rare sighting in our garden, attracted in the evening either to our moth sheet by our moth light or to our Buddleia flowers by their strong scent. We hope to see more of these special butterflies as their numbers increase due to more rainforest larval foodplant trees being planted close to our cottage. These young trees, which are slowly maturing, are converting our kikuyu paddocks back to their original rainforest habitat. Our evening sightings in Dec 2018 & Jan 2019, were of two butterflies at the same time, on the same buddleia, both in sight of each other but feeding on separate flowers.
Eastern Dusk-flat larvae after emerging from their egg cut out a piece of leaf and fold it back to form a shelter on the leaf surface. More mature larvae form a shelter by attaching two leaves together. Larvae stay in these shelters during the day and come out to feed at night.
The Eastern Dusk-flat rests on flowers and leaves with its wings open. It's red eyes distinguish it from the Bronze Flat. The white wing markings seem to differ in each specimen.
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- CLAIRE COTTAGE: Dec 2010, 2017, 2018 (2), 2019 (3) Jan 2007, 2018, 2019 (2), 2021 (2), Feb 2021
- Elsewhere on the DORRIGO PLATEAU: None to date
- ELSEWHERE: None to date
Larva Sightings:
- CLAIRE COTTAGE: None to date
- DORRIGO PLATEAU: None to date
- ELSEWHERE: None to date
Larval Food Plants:
- CLAIRE COTTAGE:
- EUPOMATIACEAE - Eupomatia laurina (Bolwarra)
- LAURACEAE - Cryptocarya rigida (Rose Maple), Litsea leefeana (Brown Bolly Gum), Neolitsea dealbata (White Bolly Gum)
- MYRTACEAE - Acmena spp., Lophostemon confertus (Brush Box)
- RUTACEAE - Melicope spp.
- Elsewhere on the DORRIGO PLATEAU:
- LAURACEAE - Cryptocarya erythroxylon (Pigeonberry Ash), Cryptocarya microneura (Murrogun)
- MALVACEAE - Hibiscus sp*
- STERCULIACEAE - Commersonia sp.
- ELSEWHERE: (as for above listings plus)
- ANNONACEAE - Annona reticulata (Custard Apple)*
- EUPHORBIACEAE - Croton insularis (Silver Croton)
- LAURACEAE - Cinnamomum camphora (Camphor Laurel)*
- SANTALACEAE - Exocarpos latifolius
Breeding season on the Dorrigo Plateau: Thought to be September to April. We have also had adults attracted to light 16/12/19 @ 20.15 hrs, 17/12/19 @ 20.00 hrs and 19/12/19 @ 20.30 hrs.
Flight habit: Crepuscular (becomes active at twilight) resting throughout the day on the underside of leaves.
Habitat: East Coast often near Rainforest - subtropical, warm temperate & littoral and in urban areas.
Items of Interest:
A rare sighting in our garden, attracted in the evening either to our moth sheet by our moth light or to our Buddleia flowers by their strong scent. We hope to see more of these special butterflies as their numbers increase due to more rainforest larval foodplant trees being planted close to our cottage. These young trees, which are slowly maturing, are converting our kikuyu paddocks back to their original rainforest habitat. Our evening sightings in Dec 2018 & Jan 2019, were of two butterflies at the same time, on the same buddleia, both in sight of each other but feeding on separate flowers.
Eastern Dusk-flat larvae after emerging from their egg cut out a piece of leaf and fold it back to form a shelter on the leaf surface. More mature larvae form a shelter by attaching two leaves together. Larvae stay in these shelters during the day and come out to feed at night.
The Eastern Dusk-flat rests on flowers and leaves with its wings open. It's red eyes distinguish it from the Bronze Flat. The white wing markings seem to differ in each specimen.
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