HONOLULU (KHON2) — Ten new species. Seven new genera. In Hawaiʻi, scientists are still finding animals no one knew existed. Some shimmer with almost iridescent color. One from Hawaiʻi Island may be the largest in its family anywhere in the world. Others may already be gone.
Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa have identified 10 new species and seven new genera of Hawaiian leaf roller moths.
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Graduate student Kyhl Austin and Professor Daniel Rubinoff led the work through the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience Entomology Section.
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Scientists discover new species every year; but even a single new genus is uncommon, let alone seven new ones. To identify seven at the same time is almost unheard of.
“Hawaiʻi is a world-renowned laboratory for evolution, but these moths have been hiding their true history in plain sight,” Austin said, the lead author for the paper. “By identifying these seven new genera, we are showing that these insects crossed thousands of miles of open ocean to reach Hawai’i far more frequently than we ever imagined.”…