A preliminary study of the genus Nymphicula Snellen from Australia, New Guinea and the south Pacific (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea: Crambidae: Acentropinae)
Author
Agassiz, David
text
Zootaxa
2014
3774
5
401
429
journal article
46265
10.11646/zootaxa.3774.5.1
95c81d13-feb2-408c-8052-5a9de926d3cf
1175-5326
230064
41806FD6-9D31-4CEF-8F26-3D1200BBA01E
Nymphicula torresalis
sp. n.
Description of imago
(fig. 9). Wingspan
12–13 mm
. Head pale ochreous; labial palpus terminal segment ochreous, a little longer than second segment; second segment with fuscous scales on sides; antenna pale fuscous. Thorax pale fuscous mixed ochreous. Forewing base brown; subbasal fascia broad, yellow, edged on each side with white; antemedian fascia a thin sinuous line of dark fuscous scales; median zone evenly scaled dark brown; terminal area yellow extending well inside tornal spot; first strigula white, inwardly edged brown; second strigula white, lower two-thirds silver grey, yellow on costa; terminal cilia with grey line, whitish above tornus; tornal spot crescentshaped, entirely enclosed in yellow.
Hindwing base whitish; subbasal fascia indistinct; brownish antemedian fascia enclosing whitish lunule; tornal spot silver grey followed by a yellow streak to dorsum; median zone clear white with irregular patches of blackish scales; submarginal line clear, irregular, partially following contours of eye-spots; five distinct eye-spots separated by small silver studs and orange against termen; a silver grey spot before eye-spot 1.
Abdomen ochreous; legs pale ochreous, brownish above of forelegs.
Tympanal organs
(fig. 35): Venula media half to two-thirds length of venulae secundae; venulae secundae diverging, slightly curved outwards, anterior end very close to rami tympani.
Male
genitalia
(fig. 57): Abdomen with two pairs of coremata pads at base of eighth segment, a pair of internal hair pencils twice length of seventh segment; valva length
5x
breadth, uncus at least twice gnathos. Aedeagus slender, sclerotisation around tip but no conspicuous cornutus in vesica.
Female genitalia
(fig. 80): Antrum longer than ductus bursae; corpus bursae with signa comprising a spinose band extending from junction with ductus about halfway along length of corpus bursae.
Material examined.
Holotype
♀ Babinda| North Queensland|
16th September 1930
.
ANIC
. 3
paratypes
Base cableway, Mt. Belanden-Ker, Queensland,
80m
,
19th October 1981
.
ANIC
♂ slide No. 13089, 2♀♀s.
paratypes
in
BMNH
: 2 labelled Kuranda, near Cairns, P.F. Dodd; 1 labelled
Papua
, Mafulu,
4000ft
,
i.1934
, L.E. Cheesman; 1 labelled Cedar Bay, s of Cooktown, Meek. One further specimen, forewings missing, St Aignan (
BMNH
).
Diagnosis.
Distinguished by the strong straight subterminal line of the hindwing.
Derivation.
from the Torres Straits which separate
Australia
and New
Guinea
.
Distribution.
Queensland and
Papua New Guinea
.