Moths maligned and misunderstood

Monday, 23 April 2018

Dr Barbara Anderson, quantitative ecologist at Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research and leader of the Ahi-pepe project to improve people's understanding of moths.

The next time you're lucky enough to get a $100 note, take a closer look. Tucked away next to Lord Rutherford and the Mohua is Aihuka (Declana egregia) the South Island zebra moth.

Moths don't tend to get noticed much. They don't have the celebrity status of a nuclear scientist or a native bird. Moths lack a certain appeal; they don't rate in a world driven by Twitter feeds, and Facebook likes.

Compared to their close relatives the butterfly, moths lack the X factor. Moths are in need of a media makeover.

In terms of common understanding, if you're a moth, you're a bit drab and get confused by bright lights. You're on the simple side and are drawn easily to bright lights. You lack simple road sense and often end up splattered across the windscreen of a car at night.

* Elusive moth found in Bay of Plenty

* Chance for sex lures moths**

However, moths do have a greater purpose in life. Our misconception of moths needs to be challenged. They need to be noticed because they're an important indicator of our environmental wellbeing. Their presence and variety can give us valuable insights into the health of our natural world.

There are more than 2000 species of moths and butterflies in NZ. Over More than 90 per cent are unique to this country.

Moths and butterflies fulfil importation functions in the natural world, including pollination of many of our native and garden plants.

Other species, such as birds, depend on moths and butterflies, including their eggs and pupae, for food. Moths and butterflies have an important role in the ecosystem.

Moths face many threats, including use of pesticides, reduction in habitat, changing land uses, predation from introduced pests such as wasps and even the impact of artificial light on their behaviour and life cycle.

One group taking a closer interest in moths is Ahi Pepe-MothNet.

Ahi-Pepe is a project led by Dr Barbara Anderson, a quantitative ecologist at Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research. Ahi Pepe is a 'hands on' citizen science project which aims to involve people in moths and to understand them better. The Ahi Pepe MothNet project is a strong collabarative project involving seven partners:

Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, The Geography Dept, (University of Otago), Te Tumu (University of Otago), Orokonui Ecosanctuary, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ōtepoti, the Otago Museum and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research

Ahi Pepe works with schools to carry out moth research. The project has been running since 2015 in Otago schools but is slowly spreading across Aotearoa, with this year's Ahi Pepe wānanga held at Pūtiki Marae in Whanganui.

By understanding moths, we get an understanding of the health of our local environment and what impacts things such as habitat loss or predator control, have on the complex ecosystem in which moths form an important part.

The purpose of Ahi Pepe is to raise the appreciation of moths as an essential and highly responsive part of ecosystems throughout New Zealand. Ahi Pepe explores the potential of moths to act as ecological indicators of the health and connectedness of our natural world.

Ahi Pepe gives schools support around simple moth monitoring techniques, comparing different local areas and the impact care for our environment has on the variety and numbers of moths supported. The project helps build the reputation of moths as more than mere nocturnal light flutterers.

Moths do matter. Ahi Pepe MothNet is an example of a hands on project helping young people recognise connections between these under-rated insects and our world.