Visiana variovinosa Schmidt

Schmidt, Olga, 2013, Review of the species of Visiana Swinhoe from the Papua New Guinea region (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Larentiinae), Zootaxa 3693 (2), pp. 189-199 : 195-197

Visiana variovinosa Schmidt sp. nov.

( Figs 1 , 12 , 16, 17, 29, 33)

Type material. British New Guinea ( Papua New Guinea). Holotype male, Kumusi River, low elevation, [ASM], v.–viii. 1907. Paratypes: eight males, one female, same data as holotype, five males, Upper Aroa River, [ASM], ii.1903 (BMNH).

Description. Labial palpi blackish-brown, with pale ochreous scales at the apex. Legs brown, without distinct rings of lighter scales. Wing expanse 33–35 mm (n = 10). Forewings above dull ochreous to dark brown, with median band distinct, brown to dark brown, with a few reddish-brown scales at costa, edged with a thin, wavy, white line, with a medial projecting tooth outwards, with basal band dark brown with reddish scales, with a distinct, black discal dot, underneath ochreous-brown, with brown and pinkish scales, with several wavy, dark brown median lines, forming a fine, rounded medial projection outwards, with a few small dark brown spots at costa, with a small blackish discal dot. Hind wings above brown at base, lighter than in V. r a n e n s i s, with wavy, alternative, brown and pale ochreous lines in the basal half, with whitish, wavy medial line, underneath coloured and patterned similar to forewings, but with median line without medial projection, with a small narrow discal dot ( Figs 1 , 12 ). Male genitalia (Figs 16, 17). Uncus small, triangular shaped, fused with tegumen, slightly shorter than in V. v i n o s a and V. r a n e n s i s; tegumen short, with lateral prominences at base of uncus, with medium-sized lateral arms directed towards the juxta; valvae with costa relatively broad, sclerotised, with medium-sized, curved, tapering projecting apical process, with distinct, finger-shaped subapical prominence and with medium-sized basal projection; saccus medium-sized, triangular shaped, shorter than in V. v i n o s a; juxta with medium-sized, apically rather flat lateral papillae; aedeagus almost straight, rather thick for the genus, with anellus covered with spines, with a distinct patch of relatively stout cornuti and with a patch of rather thick scobination in vesica. Female genitalia ( Figs 29, 33 ). Antrum medium-sized, with a ring of sclerotisation distally; ductus bursae short, sclerotised, with lateral stripes of heavier sclerotisation, corpus bursae medium-sized, asymmetric, slightly longer than width, slightly wrinkled distally, membranous, with rather inconspicuous medial spot of very thin sclerotisation, with a medium-sized, somewhat drop-shaped diverticulum connected proximally to the corpus by a short tube, with ductus seminalis arising from a prominent medial extension of corpus bursae; signum a small, more or less rounded patch of symmetrically arranged, inwardly directed spicules.

Diagnosis. Forewings above dull ochreous to dark brown, lighter than in V. ranensis or V. grandivinosa with median band more distinct, with basal band lighter than in V. grandivinosa . Uncus shorter than in other described species, tegumen with lateral prominences at base of uncus, valval costa with finger-shaped subapical prominence more distinct than in other species, aedeagus rather thick for the genus but still thinner than in V. hyperctenista , with a distinct patch of cornuti and with rather thick scobination in vesica. Antrum medium-sized, weaker sclerotized than in V. grandivinosa , ductus bursae slightly shorter and corpus bursae is smaller than in V. grandivinosa , signum smaller than in V. grandivinosa but larger than in V. hyperctenista .

Distribution. Papua New Guinea (south-east).

FIGURES 16–25. Visiana spp., male genitalia: (16, 18, 20, 22, 24) armature, (17, 19, 21, 23, 25) aedeagus: 16–17. V. variovinosa; 18–19. V. v i n o s a; 20–21. V. hyperctenista; 22–23. V. ranensis; 24–25. V. morobensis.

Etymology. The species name is formed from the Latin varius (diverse) and vinosa , the name of another related species.

Remarks. Female forewings above with median band less distinct than in males.

Males from Upper Aroa River differ from the rest of the series by slightly thicker uncus and saccus.

One female from Hydrographer Mts, 762 m, Eichhorn Bros., iv.1918 (BMNH) has been studied additionally. It generally shares the characters of the species, the differences are as follows: lateral sides of antrum slightly more oblique and corpus bursae slightly smaller and broader.

The specimens of V. v a r i o v i n o s a from the type series deposited in the BMNH were described by Prout (1939) as belonging to V. v i n o s a.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Visiana spp., wings above: 1. V. variovinosa, male, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Kumusi River; 2. V. morobensis, male, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Morobe district; 3. V. r a n e n s i s, male, Moluccas, Buru, Rana; 4. V. grandivinosa, female, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, New Britain, Mt Sinewit; 5. V. v i n o s a, male, Papua New Guinea, Upper Mambaré River; 6. V. ho r i st a, female, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Bougainville Island; 7. V. hyperctenista, male, Bismarck Archipelago, Vulcan Island; 8. V. hyperctenista, female, Bismarck Archipelago, Vulcan Island.

FIGURES 9 – 15. Visiana spp., wings underneath: 9. V. v i n o s a, male, Papua New Guinea, Upper Mambaré River; 10. V. morobensis, male, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Morobe district; 11. V. ranensis, male, Moluccas, Buru, Rana; 12. V. variovinosa, male, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Kumusi River; 13. V. hyperctenista, male, Bismarck Archipelago, Vulcan Island; 14. V. horista, female, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, Bougainville Island; 15. V. grandivinosa, female, sp. nov., Papua New Guinea, New Britain, Mt Sinewit.

FIGURES 26 – 33. Visiana spp., female genitalia: (26 – 29) general view, (30 – 33) signum: 26, 30. V. hyperctenista; 27, 31. V. horista; 28, 32. V. grandivinosa; 29, 33. V. variovinosa.