A South African moth last observed around the year 1875 was recently rediscovered thanks to citizen science, Mongabay reported.
The moth, Drepanogynis insciata, is a vibrant leaf green with streaks of white and rusty brown. A recent article in ZooKeys detailed recent sightings, complete with photos taken in four locations between 2020 and 2023, all of them uploaded to iNaturalist.
Prior to these acts of citizen science, this species was known only through descriptions, sketches, and two 150-year-old specimens collected near the Western Cape town of Swellendam. The specimens were kept in London's Natural History Museum and had faded significantly over time, turning salmon pink.
The appearance of the first photo in September 2020 caught the attention of South African lepidopterist Hermann Staude.
"I looked, and there it was — insciata — [a] living animal," Staude told Mongabay. "That was quite an incredible feeling, to all of a sudden see something that you thought might have been extinct."
Staude asked the photographer, Cameron Scott, to keep an eye out for any more specimens and to catch one if possible. Scott did so and kept the moth in his freezer until it could be picked up for analysis.
Zoologist Pasi Sihvonen of the Finnish Museum of Natural History helped with that endeavor.
"When the actual specimen was handed over to us, I was like, 'Wow, it's so green,'" Sihvonen told Mongabay. "It's difficult to describe how you feel that you have something so extraordinary in front of you; something that you thought doesn't exist anymore."
So far, the scientists haven't seen a live specimen, but with the ongoing help of citizen scientists, it is only a matter of time. Meanwhile, they are looking for the host plant or plants that this species uses to lay its eggs and feed its caterpillars.
Citizen science has led to the rediscovery of other species, including flowers and mushrooms.
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