Merulempista cyclogramma (Hampson, 1896)

Ren, Yingdang, Liu, Shurong & Li, Houhun, 2011, Review of the genus Merulempista Roesler, 1967 (Lepidoptera, Pyralidae) from China, with description of two new species, ZooKeys 77, pp. 65-75 : 74

Merulempista cyclogramma (Hampson, 1896) Figs 61014

Phycita (Dioryctria) cyclogramma Hampson 1896: 91. Type locality: Sri Lanka.[ Gyrtona cyclogramma : Roesler and Küppers 1979: 78. Misidentification.]

Merulempista cyclogramma : Roesler 1984: 39.

Material examined.

China, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region: 4 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, Nanping and Pinglongshan, Shangsi County (22.09°N, 107.59°E), 510-770 m, 3-6.IV.2002, coll. Shulian Hao and Huaijun Xue.

Diagnosis.

This species is conspicuously different from its congeners by the costa of valva weakly sclerotized and lacking the distal process, the juxta with gradually broadened, posteriorly rounded and spinulate lateral lobe, and the vinculum with a small papillate anteromedian process in the male genitalia; and by the antrum deeply and widely concave at middle, elongate featherlike posterolaterally in the female genitalia.

Distribution.

China (Guangxi); Indonesia (Sumatra), India, Sri Lanka.

Remarks.

Of the four species described in this paper, Merulempista cyclogramma is the only one that is distributed in the southern part of China, while the other three occur in the northern and northwestern parts of China (Fig. 2). Taking the genital structures into consideration, the taxonomic position of this species needs further study with additional material.

This species is recorded as new for China.