Australian magpie moth
Nyctemera amicus
The Australian magpie moth is a moth that lives in Australia, New Zealand and nearby islands. Its caterpillars eat plants that contain poison. That makes them taste horrible, so birds learn to leave them alone.
Lives in
Most of Australia, New Zealand, South-east Asia and Pacific islands
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless to touch, but its caterpillars are poisonous to eat, so never put one in your mouth.
What does it eat?
Its caterpillars eat groundsel plants, also called Senecio.
How fast is it?
A person walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)
Australian magpie moth about 14 km/h (8.7 mph)
A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
Its caterpillars eat groundsel plants that contain poison.
2
The poison from their food makes the caterpillars taste bad and poisonous for birds.
3
It has many names, like senecio moth and cineraria moth, after the plants its caterpillars eat.
you asked
Most asked questions about Australian magpie moth
?Is the magpie moth poisonous?
Its caterpillars are poisonous to birds because of the plants they eat. They are safe to look at.
?What does the magpie moth caterpillar eat?
Groundsel plants, also called Senecio.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Nyctemera amicus
- Named by
- White, 1841
- Group
- Moths
- Family
- Erebidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Lepidoptera > Erebidae
- Lives on
- Australia and Oceania, Asia
- Also known as
- Senecio moth, Magpie moth, Cineraria moth
Where the facts come from
- Nyctemera amicus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by dhobern. CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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