Akhenaten
Heretic Pharaoh
Bogong Moths belong to the Family Noctuidae and are well known in south-eastern Australia for their mass migration in spring. In some years, they have descended upon cities such as Sydney and Canberra in their thousands, causing disruption around outdoor sports grounds and to air-conditioning plants.
The Bogong Moth is native to Australia and was first described from Mount Bogong in southern New South Wales. The establishment of a tiny new state in the bottom part of New South Wales, known as Victoria, has resulted in Mount Bogong now being the highest mountain in that state.
Native Australians had a good knowledge and understanding of the habits of the Bogong Moth. They roasted the highly nutritious moths in hot ashes and mashed the bodies to make 'moth meat', which is said to have a nutty taste. The mountain caves were well known to the Aboriginal people, who used the moths as an important source of protein.
The adult moths are also important in the diet of the Mountain Pygmy Possum (Burramy).
Caterpillars of the Bogong Moth are known as black cutworms and are considered an agricultural pest, causing significant damage to crops.
Bogong Mouths are found pretty much everywhere in southern Australia, including Tasmania. They occasionally make it as far as New Zealand and Norfolk Island, and I've even heard tell that they've been found in Antarctica (dead as, but still . . .)
They are equally at home in urban areas, forests and woodlands. Truth is, they don't seem to care where they are, and that can make them a bit of a pest.
During winter, Bogongs feed inland (as larvae) on seedlings of wide-leafed plants in an area ranging from the Darling Downs in Queensland, the western slopes and plains of New South Wales and the drier inland regions of Victoria and South Australia.
As the weather begins to warm up they pack on the weight and prepare to migrate. The people of Canberra shudder as they also prepare for the migration.
During spring, the Bogongs fly south to south-eastwards, to caves in the Snowy Mountains and the Victorian Alps, where they remain inactive (aestivation) throughout the summer months. They are sometimes blown towards the coast by westerly winds and may enter houses as they are attracted to light. Over summer, adults congregate in rock crevices in massive numbers and remain dormant, living off their fat reserves.
Aestivation in the High Country
In autumn they make the return journey since the larvae (the aforementined cutworms) can't tolerate cold conditions. Again, the people of Canberra joyfully anticipate this wonderful event. Not.
Bogongs fly at night and, attracted to lights, can cause problems for floodlit buildings by blocking air-conditioning ducts and setting off alarms.
There are numerous reports of large groups of bogong moths causing 'inconvenience' to the naked apes, including:
In 1865, bogong moths invaded a church in Sydney, causing a service to be abandoned.
In Canberra in the mid-1970s, bogong moths invaded new, brightly lit buildings in huge numbers, causing lifts to fail.
In 1988, vast numbers of moths caused havoc at the newly completed permanent Parliament House and engineers had to reduce lighting and redesign air intakes.
In Canberra in the mid-1970s, bogong moths invaded new, brightly lit buildings in huge numbers, causing lifts to fail.
In 1988, vast numbers of moths caused havoc at the newly completed permanent Parliament House and engineers had to reduce lighting and redesign air intakes.
Lotsa moths at Perisher/Smiggins
Recently concern has mounted about arsenic levels in the Bogong Moths. The arsenic is present at low levels in the soil of their larval pasturelands and is stored in the body of the adult moth. When the moths die off in their caves, the arsenic leaches from their bodies into the local soil. The arsenic becomes concentrated because of the build-up of dead moths on the floor of the cave over many years. The arsenic could potentially adversely affect their predators, including the Mountain Pygmy Possum, but this has not yet been fully demonstrated.
Needless to say . . .
Technical Specifications
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum:Arthwollipoda Arthropoda (damn you, Freud!)
Subphylum: Uniramia
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Noctuidae
Subfamily: Noctuinae
Genus: Agrotis
Species: infusa
Phylum:
Subphylum: Uniramia
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Noctuoidea
Family: Noctuidae
Subfamily: Noctuinae
Genus: Agrotis
Species: infusa
Sources:
Last edited:
Soz
