Molecular phylogeny, systematics and generic classification of the butterfly subfamily Trapezitinae (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea: Hesperiidae)
Author
Toussaint, Emmanuel F. A.
Author
Braby, Michael F.
Author
Müller, Chris J.
Author
Petrie, Edward A.
Author
Kawahara, Akito Y.
text
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society
2022
2022-02-06
195
1407
1421
journal article
121551
10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab086
f0328034-ac9c-4042-9661-d3101fb45fe7
0024-4082
6993012
E8867B19-E3F4-4089-B2CB-9AC381F0E70D
Signeta
Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914
syn. nov.
Type
species:
Timoconia thiele
Strand, 1909
(by original designation).
Remarks
Signeta
currently contains two species:
Signeta flammeata
(Butler, 1882)
and
Signeta tymbophora
(
Meyrick & Lower, 1902
)
.
Signeta
is distinguished from
Toxidia
, to which it is closely allied, by differences in the shape of vein 1A+2A in the male forewing, which is sharply distorted (i.e. bowed toward the dorsum) near the base, and the presence of a large ovoid central black patch on the upperside of the forewing in the male (
Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914
;
Atkins
et al.
, 1991
;
Braby, 2000
). However, evidence from the morphology of the immature stages (
Jenkinson, 2018
), male genitalia and adult stage morphology (A. F. Atkins, pers. comm.) indicates that
Toxidia peron
(Latreille, 1824)
is more closely allied to
Signeta
than to other members of
Toxidia
. Moreover, in a molecular phylogenetic analysis that included a limited subset of trapezitine taxa (
Warren
et al.
, 2008
,
2009
),
Toxidia peron
emerged sister to
S. flammeata
rather than to
Toxidia doubledayi
(C. Felder, 1862)
(the other exemplar of the genus studied).
Atkins (2012
,
2017
) hypothesized further on the putative close relationship between
Toxidia peron
and
Signeta
, and he placed
Toxidia peron
informally under
Signeta
, although he did not comment on the status of other members of
Toxidia
, such as
Toxidia melania
(Waterhouse, 1903)
, for which the biology and life history remain poorly known.
As noted above, the genus
Toxidia
was polyphyletic in our analysis, with two species (
Toxidia peron
and
Toxidia melania
) showing a closer relationship to
Signeta
than to the other species of
Toxidia
. The logical course of action would be to change the composition of these genera by transferring
Toxidia peron
and
Toxidia melania
across to
Signeta
to maintain monophyly; otherwise,
Signeta
would have to be synonymized under
Toxidia
. However, since
Timoconia thielei
Strand, 1909
(the
type
species of
Timoconia
) is a junior synonym of
Hesperia peron
Latreille, 1824
,
Timoconia
Strand, 1909
is a valid and available name for this clade of four taxa and therefore becomes the senior synonym of
Signeta
Waterhouse & Lyell, 1914
because it was published five years earlier. Thus, the nomenclature and new combinations recognized for the four revised species of
Timoconia
are as follows:
Timoconia peron
(Latreille, 1824)
comb. nov.
=
Telesto kochii
Felder, C., 1862
=
Hesperilla doclea
Hewitson, 1868
=
Telesto arsenia
Plötz, 1884
=
Timoconia thielei
Strand, 1909
Timoconia melania
(Waterhouse, 1903)
comb. nov.
Timoconia flammeata
(Butler, 1882)
comb. nov.
=
Telesto eclipsis
Butler, 1882
=
Hesperilla atromacula
Miskin, 1889
Timoconia tymbophora
(
Meyrick & Lower,
1902)
comb. nov.
Larvae of
Timoconia
exploit a wide range of monocots, including
Asparagaceae
,
Cyperaceae
,
Flagellariaceae
,
Phormiaceae
and
Poaceae
.
Flagellariaceae
were recently recorded as food plants for
T. melania
(E. A. Petrie, unpublished data).