Lemonia strigata Antoshin & Zolotuhin, 2011

Prozorov, Alexey M., Prozorova, Tatiana A., Volkova, Julia S., Yakovlev, Roman V., Nedoshivina, Svetlana V., Pinzari, Manuela, Pinzari, Mario, Scalercio, Stefano, Bianco, Giovanni, Saldaitis, Aidas, Hausmann, Axel, Revay, Edita E. & Müller, Günter C., 2022, Revision of the Lemonia taraxaci complex, with a description of a new species from Italy and clarification of the status of Lemonia strigata (Lepidoptera Brahmaeidae: Lemoniinae), Zootaxa 5195 (4), pp. 337-360 : 346

Lemonia strigata Antoshin & Zolotuhin, 2011

( Figs 32–51, 55–57, 74–87, 99–115)

Diagnosis. Lemonia strigata is a medium-sized, yellow-colored moth with a dark postmedial line and a single dark spot on a forewing, and a black dorsal abdomen, but these characters may vary even within the same population. The species is found throughout the Balkans and the Cyclades.

Variability. The species’ coloration varies from pale yellow to vivid yolk yellow ( Figs 36 and 33, 41 and 41), the postmedial line may fade until barely noticeable and even absent ( Figs 32–51); known females pale yellow to yellow. The strength of the line does not seem to be related to the distribution or anything else, specimens from close or the same location may have or have no stripe ( Figs 34 and 36, 39 and 40, 41–48, 49 and 50). Discal spot varies in males from small round dot to thicker lunule ( Figs 32 and 49) and much more in females, it widens to big triangular spot ( Figs 35 and 37). Cilia is usually of the same color with the wing, though may include dark scales ( Fig. 36). Abdomen coloration like L. taraxaci – dorsally black, ventrally yellow. It may be striped in adults with a postmedial line on wings ( Figs 36 and 49) and without it ( Figs 40 and 50), so stripes on the abdomen do not seem to be any kind of a reliable character and are more likely related to the way the abdomen was dried, same happens with L. taraxaci ( Fig. 30).

Male genitalia of adults from close and even the same locations vary widely in the shape of uncus ( Figs 75 and 76, 83 and 84), gnathos and valva. Uncus may be more or less narrow ( Figs 84 and 76), straight or widened medially ( Figs 82 and 75), with well or weakly pronounced isthmus ( Figs 74 and 86, shown with arrows), with a well-split pair of apices or not ( Figs 82 and 85), apices may be rounded or pointed ( Figs 78 and 79). The distal radius of gnathos varies from narrow to wider ( Figs 55 and 56). The external margin of valvae may be prominent or concave. Juxta and eighth sternum shapes were not studied.

Spurs on tarsi vary as well in number and size without any system ( Figs 99–113).

Distribution ( Fig. 114). The species is spread in the Balkans and the Cyclades.

Taxonomic note. According to ICZN, Article 45.6.2., the taxon name Lemonia taraxaci ab. strigata Rebel, 1910 and its following usage by Rebel and Zerny (1931), Daniel (1964), and Rougeot (1971) was considered invalid by Antoshin and Zolotuhin (2011). They assumed that the name strigata “probably” should be attributed to Rougeot and Viette (1978) who used it for the first time as a trinomial Lemonia taraxaci strigata . Although Rennwald ( Rennwald & Rodeland, 2022) suggested that Rougeot and Viette regarded it as an infrasubspecific taxon because they did not mention strigata as well as some other infrasubspecific taxa in the “Species list (with family name) and their main subspecies.” We agree with Rennwald and change the authorship here to Antoshin & Zolotuhin, 2011 as the first reviewers of the taxon.