Red Owlet

Hampson described the species as follows:

♀. Antennae minutely serrate; head and thorax bright ferruginous red mixed with ochreous; abdomen ochreous, suffused with ferruginous. Fore wing ochreous, almost entirely suffused with bright ferruginous red; subbasal line whitish, angled outwards in submedian fold and ending at vein 1; antemedial line double, filled in with whitish, oblique, angled inwards on median nervure and vein 1; claviform with its extremity defined by whitish; orbicular and reniform large, with whitish annuli, the former rather oblique, elliptical, open above, the latter incomplete below; post-medial line defined by whitish on outer side, minutely dentate, strongly bent outwards below costa and oblique below vein 4; subterminal line minutely dentate, angled outwards at vein 7, dentate to termen at veins 4, 3, and bent outwards to tornus. Hind wing ferruginous red; the underside paler, with ferruginous spot and traces of curved postmedial line. ♂. Head and thorax purplish red; abdomen suffused with red; fore wing purplish red, the markings all indistinct; hind wing pale reddish.This moth is distinctive, with a violet red hue to the forewings in living specimens. The male has a wingspan of between 40 and 43 mm and the female of between 48 and 49 mm. This species has darker forms and may be confused with I. …

It is endemic to New Zealand and can only be found in the southern parts of the South Island.

The life history of this species is unknown as are the host species of its larvae. It is possible that the larvae of this species is a monocot feeder and it has been hypothesised that the larvae consume Chionochloa rubra cuprea. However, as the species is also found in podocarp forest the host species of the larvae may include other plant species.

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