Supplement to the Lepidoptera of the Mackenzie Country with recommendations on their conservation

Abstract

Thirty-three species of Lepidoptera in addition to those listed in Patrick (1989b), are recorded from the Mackenzie Country, Canterbury. Sampling was carried out in shrublands, kettle-holes, wetlands, fescue grassland, sandy areas and depleted cushion vegetation. Several species, including Paranotoreas fulva (Hudson), a species characteristic of Central Otago salt-pans, were recorded from the Mackenzie Country for the first time. The uncommon grasshopper Sigaus minutus Bigelow, was found in a number of sites, many of which have substantial populations of the species. Saline soils and an attendant halophytic flora are recorded for the first time from the Mackenzie Country, from a site between Omarama and Otematata. Key conservation sites for the Lepidoptera of the Mackenzie Country are listed and discussed. Some management objectives are put forward.

Keywords:

• Lepidoptera
• Mackenzie Country
• Mackenzie Ecological Region
• shrublands
• kettle-holes
• wetlands
• grasslands
• cushion vegetation
• saline soils
• Sigaus minutus
• key sites for conservation
• conservation management