Naarda sp. near egrettoides

Toth, Balazs & Ronkay, Laszlo, 2014, Revision of the Palaearctic and Oriental species of the genus Naarda Walker, 1866 (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Hypeninae). Part 3. Description of three new species from Asia, Nota Lepidopterologica 37 (1), pp. 9-18 : 14

Taxon classification Animalia Lepidoptera Erebidae

Naarda sp. near egrettoides Figs 4, 10

Material examined.

♀, 'China: Shanghai | Prov. Kiangsu | leg. Höne’ slide No. TB443f (coll. ZFMK).

Morphology.

Wingspan 21 mm, length of forewing 10 mm. Antennae lost except for a few basal segments, those being ciliate, without rami or crests, length of cilia half times diameter of flagellum. Labial palps longest in the genus: length slightly less than 6 times diameter of eyes; 3rd segment relatively long, narrow, its apical third light; 2nd segment broad, dorsal scales very short (or maybe worn). Scale-hood of vertex broad-based, relatively short, its tip pointed. Characteristic wing pattern features: costa minutely concave; the only one known specimen is worn and possibly faded, ground colour greyish brown; transverse lines indistinct; bottom half of postmedial line hardly visible, dark, narrow, probably strongly angled inwards below cell; reniform stigma hardly visible, quite small, oval, dark ochreous, with a big blackish dot at the bottom third; orbicular stigma also hardly visible, small, dark ochreous. Ground-colour of hindwing like that of forewing, with two fasciae.

Female genitalia (Fig. 4). Ovipositor lobes small, angular. Apophyses long; apophyses posteriores ca 1.5 times longer than apophyses anteriores. Lamella antevaginalis angular, sclerotised, sinus absent. Ductus bursae broad but short, membranous, its mouth to corpus bursae located at the dorsal side of corpus bursae. Corpus bursae elongate, pyriform, posterior 2/3 part being scobinate, becoming sparser anteriorly, posterior 1/3 part with a very broad but quite short, smooth appendix.

Diagnosis.

The wing shape of Naarda sp. nr. egrettoides is similar to that of Naarda egrettoides and Naarda ardeola , but the reniform stigma seems to be narrower, and the orbicular is smaller than in the latter taxa. The female genitalia are somewhat similar to those of Naarda barlowi Holloway, 2008, especially in the configuration of the appendix bursae, which is broad and situated close to the posterior tip of corpus bursae. This species lacks the sinus and the colliculum of ductus bursae and the corpus bursae is only sparsely scobinate, in contrast to Naarda barlowi .

Distribution.

South-eastern China (Prov. Jiangsu), at the transitional zone of the Palaearctic and Oriental Regions.

Remarks.

The long labial palps and the main structure of the female genitalia are similar to those of Naarda egrettoides and Naarda ardeola , but more material, and especially the knowledge of the male genitalia, are essential to decide on the more exact taxonomic assignment of this individual. To make the situation even more difficult, the type locality has apparently been destroyed by development in the last seventy years.