Moths and their caterpillars are important food for birds, bats, and amphibians. Without them there would be knock-on effects for all of our wildlife species. They are also pollinators and essential in seed production, benefiting wild plants as well as many of our food crops. The caterpillars eat plant matter and enrich the soil with their frass.
Butterflies could be considered the more ‘sophisticated’ relative of moths, having evolved from their ancestors about 100 million years ago. Recent research shows that butterflies most likely split from moths in present-day western North or Central America. It is presumed that some rogue moths began feeding on the nectar of flowering plants available during the day and evolved their dull tones into colours that will attract mates or warn predators that they’re poisonous – the colours that you see in our butterflies today.
New Zealand’s native moth and butterfly fauna, compared with other land masses
