Moth facts

Common name:

Bogong describes the moth’s brown colouration and comes from the Aboriginal word bugung, of the now-extinct Dhudhuroa language, previously spoken in north-eastern Victoria. Scientific name: Agrotis infusa. Agrotis is a genus in the large noctuid moth family.

Size:

Body length: 25–30mm; wingspan: 40–50mm; weight: 0.3g.

Life cycle:

Lifespan is about a year. Winter months are spent underground as eggs, larvae and pupae. Summer months are spent in a dormant state in alpine caves. Migration occurs in spring and autumn.

Distribution:

Found across southern Australia as far west as Western Australia and as far south as Tasmania. Some populations, such as those in WA, are non-migratory.

Ecosystem importance:

The bogong moth is a major food source for endemic alpine marsupials, such as the critically endangered mountain pygmy possum, and birds, including the little raven. The moths bring with them a vast amount of energy and nutrients to alpine areas during their migration each spring. Alpine ecologist Ken Green estimates this to be equivalent to 4929 gigajoules of energy, 7.2 tons of nitrogen and 0.97 tons of phosphorus.