bogong

[ boh-gawng, -gong ]

noun

1. a dark-colored Australian moth, Agrostis infusa, used by Aboriginal peoples as food.

bogong

/ ˈbəʊˌɡɒŋ; ˈbuːˌɡɒŋ /

noun

1. an edible dark-coloured Australian noctuid moth, Agrotis infusa

Word History and Origins

Origin of bogong¹

First recorded in 1830–35; earlier bugong, perhaps from Ngayawung (an Australian Aboriginal language of the lower Murray River, New South Wales) buguŋ

Example Sentences

So the researchers captured bogong moths during their migration, tethered them to a metal rod in the center of a plastic drum and recorded what direction they rotated in response to a moving felt cutout of a mountain and a synthesized magnetic field, the same strength as Earth’s.

From New York Times

“It’s as if the bogong moth is the dreary-colored, nocturnal cousin of the monarch butterfly.”

From New York Times

Every spring in Australia, billions of bogong moths migrate from the arid plains of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria to the meadows of the Australian Alps to escape the impending heat.

From New York Times

Australia’s small, brown, ordinary-looking bogong moths are the only known insect besides the monarch butterfly to manage such a long, directed and specific migration.

From New York Times

But scientists have now discovered that bogong moths have a magnetic sense to help them.

From New York Times