Taractrocera papyria

Taractrocera papyria
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hesperiidae
Genus:	Taractrocera
Species:	T. papyria
Binomial name
Taractrocera papyria (Boisduval, [1832])
Synonyms
Hesperia papyria Boisduval, 1832 Taractrocera celaeno Cox, 1873 Hesperilla fumosa Guest, 1882 Apaustus alix Plötz, 1884 Apaustus minimus Miskin, 1889 Ancyloxipha agraulia Hewitson, 1868

Taractrocera papyria, the white-banded grass-dart, is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family. It is found in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.

The wingspan is about 30 mm.

The larvae feed on Phragmites australis, Microlaena stipoides, Imperata cylindrica, Echinopogon caespitosus, Cynodon dactylon, Austrostipa scabra, Austrodanthonia, Carex gaudichaudiana, Paspalum dilatatum, Oryza sativa, Pennisetum clandestinum, Ehrharta longiflora, Ehrharta calycina and Poa species. It constructs a shelter in which pupation takes place.

Subspecies

• Taractrocera papyria agraulia (Hewitson, 1868) - western grass-dart (south-western Australia)
• Taractrocera papyria papyria (Boisduval, 1832) (Lord Howe Island, eastern and south-eastern Australian and Tasmania)

External links

• Australian Insects
• Australian Faunal Directory
• Phylogeny and biogeography of the genus Taractrocera Butler, 1870 (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae), an example of Southeast Asian-Australian interchange