Alice Springs Fauna •

Alice Springs Moths | Alice Springs Moths Index

Belonging to Eudesmeola, which is a monotypic moth genus (“monotypic” describing a genus with a single species), Eudesmeola lawsoni is commonly known as the Owlet Moth and the Lawson’s Night Moth.

Lawson's Night Moth / Owlet Moth (Eudesmeola lawsoni), Alice Springs NT
Lawson’s Night Moth / Owlet Moth (Eudesmeola lawsoni), Alice Springs NT

A member of the family Erebidae (erected by George Hampson in 1926), the species Eudesmeola lawsoni was first described by Felder and Rogenhofer in 1874. It is commonly found in the arid inland regions of Australia, although Atlas of Living Australia have listed observations around Australia, including Tasmania.

We assume it is the same moth found deceased a couple of days later less then a metre from where it was originally seen within an apartment.

For more info see Insects > Moths | Moths Index | Eudesmeola lawsoni


  • Scientific classification
  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum: Arthropoda
  • Subphylum: Hexapoda
  • Class: Insecta
  • Informal: Pterygotes
  • Order: Lepidoptera
  • Unranked: Ditrysia
  • Superfamily: Noctuoidea
  • Family: Erebidae
  • Subfamily: Erebinae
  • Tribe: Catocalini
  • Genus: Eudesmeola
  • Species: Eudesmeola lawsoni


Footnote & References

  1. Many thanks to Ben Kurek for ID, member of Butterflies, Moth and other Invertebrates of Australia, https://www.facebook.com/groups/170745013686340/
  2. Eudesmeola lawsoni (R. Felder & Rogenhofer, 1874), Owlet Moth, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/Eudesmeola lawsoni
  3. Lawson’s Night Moth (Eudesmeola lawsoni), ausemade, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations/206919204

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