Establishment of the new genus Parvuspina for an undescribed Lithosiini species of Asura / Miltochrista generic complex (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae)
Author
Singh, Navneet
Author
Kirti, Jagbir Singh
Author
Datta, Harvinder Singh
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-10-14
4686
1
145
150
journal article
25249
10.11646/zootaxa.4686.1.10
6bae9a46-16b5-4022-9046-f404a1f1b745
1175-5326
3484332
Parvuspina tawaghatensis
N. Singh, Kirti & Datta
,
sp. nov.
(
Figs. 1–2
,
7–9
)
Type material.
Holotype
.
1 ♂
,
India
,
Uttarakhand
,
Tawaghat
,
15.vi.2008
, leg.
Navneet Singh
(Coll.
NZCZSI
,
H 10
/5946)
.
Paratype
:
1 ♂
, data same as holotype
;
1 ♂
,
India
,
Himachal Pradesh
,
Joginder Nagar
,
29.vi.2009
,
Navneet Singh
leg. (Coll.
NZCZSI
,
H 10
/5947)
.
Diagnosis.
Externally,
P. tawaghatensis
is closely similar to the
M. calamaria
, but it significantly differs due to male genital attributes. The details are discussed under the diagnosis of the genus. The females of
M. dasara
and
M. undulata
are also very similar to the adults of
P. tawaghatensis
,
but both the former species are true members of genus
Miltochrista
Hübner.
Description.
Wing length of
11 mm
. General body colour straw yellow to pale orange yellow. Antennae ciliated, base of antennae is ornamented with yellow scales. Forewing with basal area of costa black up to 1/5 length; a small subbasal black spot and a black discoidal spot; underside pale fuscous, except outer, inner, and marginal areas. Hindwing paler. Legs slightly darker than rest of the body; mid tibia with single pair of spurs, hind tibia with two pair of spurs. Male genitalia with uncus robust, almost equal to the length of tegumen, having two sub-basal, dorso-lateral spines; tegumen short, broad, attached to vinculum with a small stalk; vinculum slightly longer than tegumen; saccus broad U-shaped; transtilla with lobed apex; valva undivided, without any process, ending to a sharp apex, costal edge in form of s-shaped curve, ventral edge smoothly curved; vesica globular with an apical field of scobination, two cornuti present: one is large, second is smaller.
Etymology.
The species is named after its
type
locality, Tawaghat in
Uttarakhand
,
India
.
Remarks.
1. We studied three specimens of
P. tawaghatensis
and recorded some populational variation. In both
paratypes
, the vesica bears an additional, very small spine along with two spines present in
holotype
. The size of the largest spine in vesica is also variable to some extent. In one
paratype
(H 10/5947), valva having a small indention at middle of ventral edge.
2.
P. tawaghatensis
was published as
Lyclene calamaria
(Moore) in
Kirti & Singh (2015)
.
3. At present, the genus
Lyclene
is a junior synonym of the genus
Miltochrista
,
therefore,
L. dasara
,
L. calamaria
,
L. undulata
, and
L. chromatica
are being shifted here to genus
Miltochrista
as
M. dasara
,
comb. nov
.
,
M. calamaria
,
comb. nov.
,
M. undulata
,
comb. nov.
,
and
M. chromatica
,
comb. nov.
The male genitalia of all the four species were studied by
Volynkin & Bucsek 2016
, with a concept of
Lyclene
and
Miltochrista
as distinct genera. Later on,
Kirti & Singh (2016)
advocated a broader concept for
Miltochrista
with
Lyclene
as its junior synonym. Following the same, four new combinations are proposed here.