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ABSTRACTA collaborative project involving researchers and citizen scientists was conducted in the Zealandia ecosanctuary (Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand) during 2019–2022 to investigate Lepidoptera biodiversity. Here we present the first results of that project, reporting on the success of the citizen science approach and presenting a checklist of moth species in Zealandia. Sampling efforts took place roughly monthly during the night, and relied heavily on the participation of keen volunteers. Moths were primarily attracted using a mercury vapour light trap, but sweep-netting was also applied. On each trip, a selection of representative specimens was collected, humanely euthanised, prepared, photographed, and deposited as voucher specimens in the entomological collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Photos were uploaded to the community science online platform iNaturalist, where experts could help in identifying the species. We report a total of 262 species in Zealandia, belonging to 29 families; of those species, 22 are exotic. Notably, 217 species were found via our sampling, and the remaining 45 were recorded by citizen scientists and posted on iNaturalist. While this is likely an underestimate of the true species count in Zealandia, we consider the project a successful citizen science initiative that has generated valuable data, a fine collection of voucher specimens for the future, considerable public engagement, and positive media attention.