Aponotoreas synclinalis
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Aponotoreas synclinalis (also known as the Wirerush looper) is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is endemic to New Zealand. This species was first described by George Vernon Hudson in 1903 as Notoreas synclinalis from a type specimen discovered by Alfred Philpott at Seaward Moss near Invercargill on 4 January 1900. In 1986 R. C. Craw described the new genus Aponotoreas and included A. synclinalis within it.
This moth is common in upland areas of the Catlins, Longwood Range and Stewart Island. It is also present in south-west Fiordland. It is unusual as it is only one of two species in its genus where specimens have been collected at sea level.
This species is day flying and is on the wing from January until March. The host plant of the larvae of A. synclinalis is Empodisma minus, the lesser wire rush, and in alpine areas of Stewart Island is Dracophyllum politum.
Citizen science observations of species Specimens held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rakiura National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
More parks will be added in future updates.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Wirerush Looper sighting in Rakiura National Park on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 64th most-seen of the 118 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January, March and October
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Wirerush Looper in Rakiura National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February, May–September and December, the lowest months.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wirerush Looper sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Rakiura National Park, in our data
Rakiura National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Wirerush Looper sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Geometridae
The closest relatives of the Wirerush Looper that you can see in Rakiura National Park (family Geometridae, Geometer Moths) are Forest Semilooper (about 40%), Common Forest Looper (about 30%) and Barred Pink Carpet (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Wirerush Looper is recorded against all the insects logged in Rakiura National Park (12 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
