This species is the smallest member of its genus on the Hawai’i Islands and is known only on the basis of the type material, a single pair.
The species reached a wingspan of about 2,6 cm.
The host plant of its larvae is unknown.
The Kilauea Cutworm was scientifically described in the year 1899 and was, according to eyewitnesses, still commonly found on the hills of the Kilauea volcano in the year 1913, where the moths were seen flying in the morning sunshine over low vegetation. [1]
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
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Photo from: ‘Matthew J. Medeiros; Jessica Kirkpatrick; Christine H. Elliott; Andersonn Prestes; Jesse Eiben; Daniel Rubinoff: Two new day-flying species of Agrotis Ochsenheimer (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) from the alpine summit of Maunakea Volcano. Zootaxa 4545(2): 277-285. 2019’
The Poko Cutworm, so named for its native name Poko, was one of the moth species, that in the time after the arrival of European settlers on the Hawai’i Islands were able to adapt quite well to the new set of circumstances.
The species reached a wingspan of about 4,9 cm.
The natural host plants of the caterpillars were several native species of Ihi (Portulaca spp.) as well as ‘Ilima (Sida fallax Walp.), but in the meantime they also adapted themselves to introduced plant species and fed on the leaves of thorn-apple plants (Datura spp.) and sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum L.). Furthermore they fed on several garden plants, especially of the legume family, e.g. beans, and therefore may not have been very welcome to gardens.
In 1899, Hugo H. Schauinsland wrote the following notes about his observations of this species on the island of Laysan.:
“Of the insects I found on Laysan, only the following … Spaelotis crinigera Butl.; the latter occurred in astonishingly hugh numbers. Its “grublike caterpillar” lives under ground on the roots of Eragrostis.” [2]
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Even though the Poko Cutworm was distributed all over the Hawaiian main islands, it belongs to the extirpated species now, whereas the reasons for this seem still to be unknown up to date.
The species was last seen in 1926.
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958 [2] Hugo H. Schauinsland: Three months on a coral island (Laysan); translated by Miklos D. F. Udvardy. Atoll Research Bulletin 432. 1996
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Depiction from: ‘George F. Hampson: Catalogue of the Lepidoptera Phalaenae in the British Museum. London: Printed by Order of the Trustees 1898-1919’
This species was described in 1900 on the basis of two specimens that were collected on the island of Laysan in the northwestern part of the Hawaiian Islands chain. [1]
The species was never found since and is considered extinct.
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
The Midway Cutworm was described in 1894, the species was endemic to the Midway Atoll in the northwestern part of the Hawaiian Islands chain. The moth reached a wingspan of about 4,7 cm.
There is nothing known about this owlet moth species, this applies also to the extinction date. [1]
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
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Depiction from ‘Walter Rothschild: Some new species of Lepidoptera. Novitates Zoologicae 1: 535-540. 1894’
Kerr’s Cutworm was found on the islets of the so called French Frigate Shoals, far in the northwest of the Hawaiian Islands chain.
The species reached a wingspan of about 3,5 cm.
Not much is known about the habits of this species, the larvae were found on plants of Alena (Boerhavia tetrandra G. Forst.) and Ihi (Portulaca lutea Sol. ex G. Forst.).
The species was last seen in 1923 and is now considered extinct.
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
This species inhabited the islands of Kaua’i and Maui, but very probably occurred on the other main islands as well. The form from Maui was originally described as a distinct species (Agrotis spoderopa Meyrick).
The Kauai Cutworm reached a wingspan of about 4 cm. [1]
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
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Depiction from: ‘George F. Hampson: Catalogue of the Lepidoptera Phalaenae in the British Museum. London: Printed by Order of the Trustees 1898-1919’
The genus Agrotis contains about 90 species which are distributed almost all over the world. The Hawaiian Islands are (or were) home to about 26 species, some are found on all main islands while others are restricted to single islands, yet 11 of these species are considered extinct now.
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The Maui Cutworm is one of these extinct forms. This species is known from the islands of Maui and O’ahu, but very probably inhabited other islands as well.
The reasons for its extinction are unknown, the same applies to the exact extinction date.
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References:
[1] E. C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 7, Macrolepidoptera. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958 [2] F. G. Howarth; W. P. Mull: Hawaiian Insects and Their Kin. University of Hawaii Press 1992
