Sesamia calamistis Hampson, 1910

Hévin, Noémie M. C., Kergoat, Gael J., Zilli, Alberto, Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire, Musyoka, Boaz K., Sezonlin, Michel, Conlong, Desmond, Van Den Berg, Johnnie, Ndemah, Rose, Le Gall, Philippe, Cugala, Domingos, Nyamukondiwa, Casper, Pallangyo, Beatrice, Njaku, Mohamedi, Goftishu, Muluken, Assefa, Yoseph, Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga, Bani, Grégoire, Molo, Richard, Chipabika, Gilson, Ong’amo, George, Clamens, Anne-Laure, Barbut, Jérôme & Le Ru, Bruno, 2024, Revisiting the taxonomy and molecular systematics of Sesamia stemborers (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Apameini: Sesamiina): updated classification and comparative evaluation of species delimitation methods, Arthropod Systematics & amp; Phylogeny 82, pp. 447-501 : 447-501

Sesamia calamistis Hampson, 1910

Figures 2 A – D ; 3 A, H ; 4 A ; 5 A ; 6

= Sesamia mediastriga Bethune-Baker, 1911

Sesamia calamistis – Hampson (1910: 325, Plate CXLIV, fig. 18), Gaede (1934–1935: 97, Tafel 10, Reihe i), Tams and Bowden (1953: 664, figs 18–21, 47–48), Viette (1967: 703, figs 545–546), Poole (1989: 907 [catalogue]). Sesamia mediastriga – Bethune-Baker (1911: 518). Sesamia vuteria sensu Hampson (1910: 324 , text figure 142, ♂) nec Stoll, 1790 (pro parte, misidentification).

Type material.

Holotype ♂, [ REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA], Cape Colony, Grahamstown, De. 20.03, 98–167, 1924 / 247, 1905.316, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1259, ♀ abdomen stuck on ♂ type, ( NHM).

Other material.

ANGOLA: one ♂, North Angola, N’dalla Tando , 2700 Ft, X 1908, W. Ansorgei, Type Sesamia mediastriga Bethune-Baker, 1911 , ( NHM) ; BOTSWANA: four ♂, Chobe District, Kasane , 17 ° 47 ′ 38 ″ S, 25 ° 09 ′ 10 ″ E, 929 m a. s. l., iii. 2016, ex larvae in stems of Pennisetum macrourum Trin. , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; CAMEROON: two ♀, Northwest Region, Babessi , 06 ° 01 ′ 55 ″ N, 10 ° 33 ′ 07 ″ E, 1203 m a. s. l., xi. 2013, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; four ♀, Northwest Region, Ndop , 05 ° 58 ′ 40 ″ N, 10 ° 24 ′ 25 ″ E, 1182 m a. s. l., xii. 2013, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: three ♂, four ♀, Province Orientale, Yangambi , Yangole , 00 ° 41 ′ 16 ″ N, 24 ° 18 ′ 10 ″ E, 375 m a. s. l., v. 2010, ex larvae in stems of Paspalum virgatum L. (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; ETHIOPIA: three ♂, five ♀, Jimma, Waro Kolobo , 07 ° 36 ′ 49 ″ N, 36 ° 49 ′ 59 ″ E, 1726 m a. s. l., ix. 2005, ex larvae in stems of Cenchrus unisetus (Nees) Morrone , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; KENYA: three ♂, two ♀, Eastern Province, Mtito Andei, 02 ° 40 ′ 37 ″ S, 38 ° 11 ′ 43 ″ E, 739 m a. s. l., iv. 2004 / x 2003, ex larvae in stems of Sorghum arundinaceum (Desv.) Stapf , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♀, Eastern Province, Mtito Andei, 02 ° 40 ′ 37 ″ S, 38 ° 11 ′ 43 ″ E, 739 m a. s. l., xii. 2003, ex larvae in stems of Cyperus articulatus L., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♀, Eastern Province, Mtito Andei, 02 ° 40 ′ 37 ″ S, 38 ° 11 ′ 43 ″ E, 739 m a. s. l., iv. 2004, ex larvae in stems of Eriochloa meyeriana (Nees) Pilg. , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♂, Eastern Province, Mtito Andei, 02 ° 40 ′ 37 ″ S, 38 ° 11 ′ 43 ″ E, 739 m a. s. l., xii. 2003, ex larvae in stems of Schoenoplectus corymbosus (Roth ex Roem. & Schult.) J. Raynal , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; two ♂, one ♀, Eastern Province, Mtito Andei, 02 ° 40 ′ 37 ″ S, 38 ° 11 ′ 43 ″ E, 739 m a. s. l., iv. 2004, ex larvae in stems of Cyperus rotundus L., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; three ♂, two ♀, Central Province, Mai-Mahiu, 01 ° 02 ′ 04 ″ S, 36 ° 26 ′ 25 ″ E, 2042 m a. s. l., xii. 2009, ex larvae in stems of Panicum deustum Brickell & Enslin ex Muhl. , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; MADAGASCAR: one ♀, Tananarive, Anombalahivato , 18 ° 59 ′ 24 ″ S, 47 ° 28 ′ 03 ″ E, 1395 m a. s. l., i. 2004, ex larvae in stems of Pennisetum polystachion (L.) Schult., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; REPUBLIC OF CONGO: four ♂, Kouilou, Kimbakala , 04 ° 21 ′ 04 ″ S, 12 ° 08 ′ 50 ″ E, 46 m a. s. l., Iv. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Pennisetum polystachion (L.) Schult., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; two ♂, Kouilou, Bas Kouilou, 04 ° 28 ′ 19 ″ S, 11 ° 42 ′ 58 ″ E, 11 m a. s. l., iv. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Jardinea gabonensis Steud. , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♂, four ♀, Kouilou, Lac Nanga , 04 ° 53 ′ 48 ″ S, 11 ° 56 ′ 37 ″ E, 14 m a. s. l., iv. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Echinochloa pyramidalis (Lam.) Hitchc. & Chase , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♀, Bouenza, Nkaye , 04 ° 10 ′ 17 ″ S, 13 ° 19 ′ 18 ″ E, 189 m a. s. l., iii. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Imperata cylindrica (L.) P. Beauv., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: four ♀, Kwazulu Natal, Duku Duku , 28 ° 26 ′ 46 ″ S, 32 ° 17 ′ 26 ″ E, 27 m a. s. l., iii. 2016, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; TANZANIA: one ♀, Iringa province, Sao Hill, 08 ° 23 ′ 03 ″ S, 35 ° 10 ′ 45 ″ E, 1938 m a. s. l., ii. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Hyparrhenia dregeana (Nees) Stapf ex Stent , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♀, Zanzibar, Mtwango, 08 ° 23 ′ 03 ″ S, 35 ° 10 ′ 45 ″ E, 1938 m a. s. l., ii. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Hyparrhenia dregeana (Nees) Stapf ex Stent , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; one ♂, two ♀, Zanzibar, Kikobwa, 05 ° 57 ′ 48 ″ S, 39 ° 19 ′ 30 ″ E, 85 m a. s. l., iii. 2012, ex larvae in stems of Andropogon schliebenii Pilg. , (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; ZAMBIA: one ♂, two ♀, North-Western Province, Rwanko Azhi , 12 ° 13 ′ 13 ″ S, 25 ° 39 ′ 04 ″ E, 1413 m a. s. l., iii. 2012, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; two ♂, five ♀, Luapula Province, Ngwenya , 12 ° 58 ′ 32 ″ S, 28 ° 27 ′ 19 ″ E, 1243 m a. s. l., iii. 2012, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) .

Diagnosis.

(See also the identification key of calamistis species subgroup, section 3.3. 2.). This species can be distinguished from the other known members of the calamistis subgroup by the combination of the following characters of the male and female genitalia: vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin, slightly w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large saccus; apical extension of the sacculus shorter than the cucullus; juxta large and trapezoidal, the inferior plate produced into a blunt point, the sides pointed, the superior plate short and wide; phallus short and thick, vesica with a semi-circular large cornutus; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 almost twice as long as wide; ostium bursae small, transverse, strongly sclerotized, with short and bifid tip on each side; ductus bursae short and broad, strongly albeit asymmetrically sclerotized posteriorly.

Supplemental description.

(Fig. 2 A – D ). The external morphology of adults of both sexes has been described in great detail by Tams and Bowden (1953) and Viette (1967). — Forewing length: male 27–33 mm (x ̅ = 29.2 mm, N = 20); female 32–38 mm (x ̅ = 34.0 mm, N = 20). — Male genitalia (Fig. 3 A, H ). Tegumen with large peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin, slightly w-shaped at the inner margin, with a large saccus. Valve with sacculus and cucullus separate; costa short and narrow, heavily sclerotized, ending with a short and thin straight spine, with an apical tooth, sometimes bifid; sacculus heavily sclerotized rounded at base, a thick apical extension, slightly curved inwards, shorter than the cucullus, with a crest of several rows of short stout spines, blunt at apex; cucullus long, weakly sclerotized, clavate at apex, with scattered and papillated hairs. Juxta large and trapezoidal, the inferior plate produced into a blunt point, the sides pointed, the superior plate short and wide, with pointed terminations; uncus small and stout, angled at base, tapered near apex to a fine curved point; phallus short and thick, dilated at base; lamina ventralis with an elongate carinal crest, produced into paired lateral lobes; vesica with a semi-circular large cornutus. — Female genitalia (Fig. 4 A ). Apophyses anteriores with spatulate tips; ventrolateral plates of segment A 8 weakly sclerotized, elongated, almost twice as long as wide; ostium bursae small, transverse, strongly sclerotized, the posterior side slightly flared with short and bifid tip on each side; ductus bursae short and broad, strongly albeit asymmetrically sclerotized posteriorly; corpus bursae long, without signa; ovipositor lobes at least 2.5 times longer than wide with dorsal surface bearing numerous short and stout setae, the ventral side of each lobe slightly curved and tooth-shaped; apophyses posteriores more slender than apophyses anteriores. — L 5 instar larva (Fig. 5 A ). Length, 35–40 mm, breadth, 4.0 mm; head smooth, light brown, prothoracic shield pale salmon beige; body with ground colour salmon pink, pinacula and caudal plate pale yellow-brown. Young larvae are very similar in appearance to mature ones.

Distribution.

All sub-Saharan Africa (including Madagascar and Mascarene Islands), recorded from all vegetation mosaics ( White 1983) (Fig. 6 ) belonging to the corresponding bioregions (sensu Linder et al. 2012).

Ecology.

Larvae were collected on young stems and shoots of 57 host plant species either belonging to Cyperaceae (12 species from three genera) or Poaceae (45 species from 23 genera) (Table S 4).

Remarks.

This important pest species of cultivated grasses (maize, pearl millet, rice, sorghum, sugarcane and wheat; Gahukar 1984; Leslie 1994; Haile and Hofsvang 2001; Kfir et al. 2002) is very common and widespread in sub-Saharan Africa. As reported by Tams and Bowden (1953), the species is variable in size, wing patterns and colours, depending on its geographical origin. In addition to the specimens recorded above, respectively seven, 13 and 33 S. calamistis specimens were found in the MCSN, NHM and TMSA. Unlike S. nonagrioides that is frequently associated with Typha domingensis Pers. in sub-Saharan Africa, S. calamistis larvae have never been reared from this plant.

Figures

Figure 2. Adults of the calamistis subgroup (S. calamistis, S. kabirara sp. nov., S. kalale sp. nov., S. madagascariensis, S. mapalense sp. nov., S. monodi, S. oriaula and S. teke sp. nov.). S. calamistis: A male upper side; B male underside; C female upper side; D female underside; S. kabirara sp. nov.: E male upper side; F male underside, G female upper side; H female underside; S. kalale sp. nov.: I male upper side; J male underside; S. madagascariensis: K male upper side; L male underside, M female upper side; N female underside; S. mapalense sp. nov.: O male upper side; P male underside, Q female upper side; R female underside; S. monodi: S male upper side; T male underside; U original label type from MNHN; S. oriaula: V male upper side; W male underside; X female upper side; Y female underside; S. teke sp. nov.: Z female upper side; AA female underside. Scale bar = 10 mm.

Figure 3. Male genitalia of members of the calamistis subgroup, with the vesica inside the phallus. S. calamistis: A apparatus; H phallus; S. kabirara sp. nov.: B apparatus; I phallus; S. kalale sp. nov.: C apparatus; J phallus; S. madagascariensis: D apparatus; K phallus; S. mapalense: E apparatus; L phallus; S. monodi: F apparatus; M phallus (poorly prepared, damaged); S. oriaula: G apparatus; N phallus. Scale bar = 1 mm for apparatus and 0.5 mm for phalli.

Figure 4. Female genitalia of members of the calamistis subgroup. A S. calamistis; B S. kabirara sp. nov.; C S. madagascariensis; D S. mapalense sp. nov.; E S. oriaula; F S. teke sp. nov. Scale bar = 1 mm.

Figure 5. Last instar larvae of members of the calamistis, incerta and nonagrioides subgroups. A S. calamistis; B S. mapalense sp. nov.; C S. oriaula; D S. epunctifera; E S. firmata; F S. incerta; G S. kamba sp. nov.; H S. penniseti; I S. roumeti. Scale bar = 10 mm.

Figure 6. Distribution map of sampled specimens of the calamistis subgroup, with the exception of S. calamistis specimens.