Notoreas ischnocyma

Notoreas ischnocyma was described by Edward Meyrick in 1905 using material collected at Castle Hill by George Hudson at an elevation of 1700 meters.^[1][2] Hudson had previously illustrated the specimen in his 1898 book New Zealand Moths and Butterflies (Macro-lepidoptera) but had included it within the species N. isoleuca.^[3][4] Hudson subsequently agreed with Meyrick and discussed and illustrated this species under the new species name in The Butterflies and Moths of New Zealand.^[5]

The genus Notoreas was reviewed in 1986 by R. C. Craw and the placement of this species within it was confirmed.^[6] However species within the genus Notoreas are currently regarded as being in need of revision.^[7] The holotype specimen is held at the Natural History Museum, London.^[3]

Meyrick described the species as follows:

♂︎. 20 mm. Head and thorax dark fuscous. Fore-wings triangular, costa slightly arched, termen obliquely rounded; dark fuscous, with some scattered yellow-whitish scales; subbasal, first, median, second, and subterminal lines slender, whitish, subbasal straight, first nearly straight, somewhat irregular, median indistinct, curved outwards in disc, second waved throughout, angulated in middle, indented beneath middle, subterminal irregularly waved: cilia white, basal half barred with dark fuscous. Hind-wings with ground colour, median, second, and subterminal lines, and cilia as in fore-wings.^[2]

N. ischnocyma can be distinguished from similar species by the slender second wavy line on its forewings.^[2][5]

This species is endemic to New Zealand.^[8][9] Other than the type locality of Castle Hill, N. ischnocyma has also been found in the Hawkdun and the Dansey ecological districts in Otago.^[10][11]