Olaa Banana Leaf-roller (Omiodes euryprora)
The Olaa Banana Leaf-roller was described in 1899, the species was found in the Ola’a rainforest on the island of Hawai’i, Hawaiian Islands
The moth reached a wingspan of about 2,5 cm.
The larvae were exclusively found on the leaves of banana plants, which however are not native to the Hawaiian Islands but were introduced to the islands only by the first Polynesian settlers. That means on the one hand, that the native larval host plant/plants is/are unknown, and on the other hand, that this species was able to adapt to new species of host plants.
It is possible that this moth species is not extinct, as it was thought for a long time. [1][2]
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References:
[1] Elwood C. Zimmerman: Insects of Hawaii 8; Lepidoptera: Pyralidae. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu 1958
[2] William P. Haines; Jon Giffin; David Foote: Rediscovery of five species of Omiodes Guenée (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) on Hawai’i Island. Bishop Occasional Papers 79: 45-49. 2003
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(public domain)
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edited: 23.09.2019