Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana Rougerie & Herbin

Rougerie, Rodolphe & Herbin, Daniel, 2006, Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana n. sp., a new saturniid from the Greater Antilles (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae, Hemileucinae), Zootaxa 1204, pp. 53-59 : 54-58

Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana Rougerie & Herbin , n. sp.

Figs. 1–5 , 11–15

Type material

Holotype ( Figs. 1 , 11–15 , deposited in MNHN, genital prep. #R. Rougerie 294): male, Dominican Republic, Hispaniola island, province Pedernales, km 40 of the road from Puerto Escondido to Pedernales, Sierra de Bahoruco National Park, alt. 1740 m. asl, 12.V.2004, Jérôme Barbut, Bernard Lalanne­Cassou, and Benoît Vincent leg.

Paratypes: 29 males, same data as the holotype [8 in MNHN, 5 in collection of first author, 7 in collection of second author, 1 in collection of Antoine Lévêque (Orléans, France), 1 in collection of Thibaud Decaëns (Rouen, France), 5 in collection of Bernard Lalanne­Cassou (Paris, France), 1 in collection of Charles Descoins (Bailly, France), 2 in collection of Athanase Koutroumpas (Volos, Greece)]; 5 males (in collection of MNHN), Dominican Republic, Hispaniola island, province Pedernales, 9.7 km NE of Los Arroyos, Sierra de Bahoruco National Park, alt. 2070 m. asl, 15/ 16.VII.1990, J. Rawlins, C.W. Young, and S.A. Thomson leg. (one of these males figured by Lemaire (2002: pl. 82, fig. 11)).

Diagnosis

Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana is easily distinguished by its unique wing pattern ( Figs. 1–5 ). It can be separated easily from its single congener, H. plana ( Fig. 6 ), by the distinct postmedial line of the forewing and the more or less developed white discal markings of the forewing which are always reduced to a pair of dark spots in H. plana . The most important differences in the male genitalia are (1) the shape of the apex of the uncus, simple in H. plana ( Fig. 9 ), bifid in H. lemaireiana ( Fig. 13 ); and (2) the larger lateral development of the caecum­penis in H. lemaireiana ( Fig. 14 ).

The resemblance to representatives of other Hemileucinae genera, as mentioned by Lemaire (1999, 2002), is superficial; the general habitus and the absence of the antemedial line of the forewing prevent any confusion with species of other genera found on continental South America.

Description

Male ( Figs. 1–5 ). Wingspan 52–57 mm; forewing length from base to apex 30–32 mm. Antennae yellow, 9–10 mm long, 42–48 segments, bipectinate up to the apex. Frons, labial palpi, and upper part of the pro­ and mesothorax brown to dark brown, upper part of the metathorax reddish; scales erected on thorax forming a dense tuft; femur and tibia hairy, covered with long brown scales sparsely mixed with short reddish scales, tarsi reddish. Abdomen tawny brown dorsally, black ventrally, mixed with white scales; anal tuft tawny brown, sparsely mixed with reddish purple. Forewing triangular; ground colour pale brown to dark brown, scattered with numerous white scales; the latter forming a distinct white patch at the base of the forewing in some specimens ( Figs. 3, 5 ); antemedial and medial lines absent, postmedial line slightly sinuous, reaching the costa far from the apex; this line made up by a proximal white band running along a dark brown band lacking the white scattering present on the remainder of the wing; submarginal line poorly distinct, zigzagging along the outer margin of the wing where white scales are denser; venation underlined with tawny brown scales, forming elongate tawny brown patches along the costal margin of the wing; fringe of the inner margin pale brown, the one of the outer margin dark brown; discal markings variable, reduced to a pair of small disjunct white patches in some specimens ( Figs. 1, 2 ), forming a large mark ( Figs. 3–5 ) diffuse along the discal veins in others (its greatest extension is illustrated in Fig. 4 ). Hindwing rounded, mainly covered with long and thin scales, making the underside markings apparent by transparency; baso­median area reddish, costal and outer margins dark brown, more or less densely scattered with white scales; postmedial line poorly marked by sparse appressed dark brown scales; this line more apparent near the costal margin where it is proximally bordered with a distinct white patch; submarginal band zigzagging along the outer margin; fringe of the internal and the external margins reddish and brown respectively. Underside of forewing coloured as hindwing upperside; postmedial line reaching the apex, discal spot white; hindwing underside usually densely covered with white scales, making ground colour white ( Figs. 1, 3, 5 ); postmedial line dark brown, heavily marked; submarginal line distinct; discal spot white, rounded; venation distinctly underlined with tawny brown.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 11–15 ). Uncus narrow, short, apically downcurved and bifid ( Fig. 13 ). Gnathos and transtilla merged ( Fig. 13 ); median plate of the latter consisting of two heavily sclerotized lobes connected medially by a narrow link ( Figs. 12, 13 ). Valves simple, short and thick, rounded; their posterior part highly setose. Juxta membranous; saccus triangular, pointed at its anterior margin ( Fig. 12 ). Aedeagus shotgun­shaped ( Fig. 15 ), apex on dorsal side, broadly rounded. Caecum penis ( Fig. 14 ) enlarged laterally. Vesica ( Fig. 14 ) opening ventrally, short and lacking cornutus. Bulbus ejaculatorius very short.

Female. Unknown. According to the very limited sexual dimorphism observed in H. plana ( Lemaire, 1999, 2002), the female of H. lemaireiana probably looks similar to the male.

Distribution and biology

H. lemaireiana is known only from middle elevations (1700–2100 m asl) of the Sierra de Bahoruco National Park on Hispaniola. About thirty specimens were attracted to light by Barbut et al. during a single night; all of them arrived simultaneously at midnight just a few minutes after the Hg­vapor lamp was turned on. Early stages and foodplants are unknown, but H. lemaireiana flies in pine forests ( Fig. 16 ), and it is suspected that larvae feed on this plant.

Etymology

The new species is named in honour of our late and dear friend and colleague Claude Lemaire whose life­long work on the taxonomy of New World saturniids made up one of the greatest contributions in the history of the study of these moths.

Discussion

The characteristic habitus of Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana and its geographic distribution speak for themselves, making this moth immediately identifiable. Features of the male genitalia ( Figs. 7–15 ) unquestionably support its inclusion within the genus Hispaniodirphia . This genus now includes two closely related species endemic to Hispaniola that have quite different wing patterns.

Whereas the description above applies to most specimens we have observed, we stress the high variability of H. lemaireiana . In addition to the strong variation in shape and development of the discal markings of the upperside of forewings, ground colour varies from pale to dark brown. Some dark specimens are almost grayish (figs. 1, 3) because of the mix of dark brown and white scales. A few specimens also display a more heavily reddish general colouration.

The systematic position of Hispaniodirphia remains unclear, the entire subfamily in need of a proper phylogenetic analysis. Some morphological traits might be of special significance, such as wing venation (see Lemaire, 2002: 748), tibial spurs formula 0­2­2 ( Lemaire, 1999), and the bipectinate antennae of the male. However, these character states are found in several other genera and are not informative unless combined in a rigorous cladistic analysis with a complete set of characters and taxa. The distribution of Hispaniodirphia and its uniqueness as the single saturniid taxon endemic to the Greater Antilles render this genus especially interesting in terms of historical biogeography. Identifying its sister group would shed some light on the colonization route taken by the ancestor of Hispaniodirphia . The use of pine trees by larvae remains to be confirmed, but if established, it also would raise the question of the origin of the use of coniferous trees, which remains relatively unusual within Hemileucinae . Was the continental sister group of Hispaniodirphia a pine­feeder (like Coloradia , Ormiscodes or some Hemileuca ), or did the specialization occur after colonization of the islands?

Figures

FIGURE 16. Pine­tree forest in Sierra de Bahoruco National Park (Hispaniola, Dominican Republic) where Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana was collected by Barbut et al. (picture courtesy of J. Barbut).

FIGURES 1 – 6. Males of Hispaniodirphia lemaireiana Rougerie & Herbin (1 – 5) and H. plana (Walker) (6). 1, holotype; 2 – 5, paratypes. Upperside (right half) and underside (left half) of each specimen is represented; scale bar = 1 cm.

FIGURES 7 – 15. Male genital parts of Hispaniodirphia plana (7 – 10; genital prep. # S. RR 59) and H. lemaireiana holotype (11 – 15; genital prep. # R. Rougerie 294). 7, 11, dorsal view; 8, 12, ventral view; 9, 13, posterior view; 10, 14, ventral view of the aedeagus; 15, lateral view of the aedeagus.