Rolled-leaf moth

Uropyia meticulodina belongs to the Notodontidae. The related Uropyia melli was described as a separate species in 2002 from the northern Dabashan mountains of China, where both occur. [2][1]

Schintlmeister described meticulodina as having a cooler, greenish or bluish cast relative to the warmer reddish appearance of melli. Its forewing discal spot is weak and diffuse; melli has a more conspicuous contrasting spot. [1]

Chinese records in the 2002 taxonomic study include Taibaishan, Gongga Shan, Yunnan, Hubei and the southern slopes of the Dabashan range. A later flight study sampled the species at mainland sites in Henan and island sites in Zhoushan, Zhejiang. [1][4]

Observations of reared larvae found that young caterpillars rested and fed on the underside of leaves before their first moult. Later stages were more often seen moving and feeding at leaf edges. Scanning-electron microscopy also recorded developmental differences in the mandibles, the notches of the upper lip and the silk-producing spinneret. [2]

A tethered flight-mill experiment compared specimens from Henan and Zhoushan. Uropyia meticulodina showed no significant difference between these samples in the tested flight-speed, distance and duration measures. [4]

In a 2025 study, computational shape-from-shading models reconstructed apparent raised and curled surfaces from a specimen photograph. The wing’s light-and-dark pattern supplies pictorial depth cues that contribute to its rolled-leaf appearance. [3]