Lyces striata (Druce), 1885

Miller, James S, 2009, Generic Revision Of The Dioptinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuoidea: Notodontidae) Part 2: Josiini, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2009 (321), pp. 675-1022 : 778-779

Lyces striata (Druce) , new combination Figures 320F , 323F–J ; plate 31

Josiomorpha striata Druce, 1885b: 528 .

TYPE LOCALITY: Ecuador, ‘‘Sarayacu’’. TYPE: Syntype ³, leg. C. Buckley ( BMNH).

Josia ampliflava Warren, 1901: 442 . New synonymy.

TYPE LOCALITY: Pichinde, Colombia, 5000 ft.

TYPE: Holotype ♀, leg. Rosenberg, Dec 1894 ( BMNH).

Josia discipuncta Hering, 1928: 273 . New synonymy.

TYPE LOCALITY: Pululagua bei Quito, Ecuador.

TYPE: Holotype ³, leg. Stübel, 2500– 2700 m, 28 Jul 1873 ( ZMH).

DISCUSSION: The identity of L. striata (Druce) —formerly in Josia ( Kirby, 1892; Bryk, 1930) but here referred to Lyces —is somewhat problematic. There is a discrepancy between the known habitat of L. striata and its so-called type locality. The type label reads ‘‘Sarayacu’’, an Amazonian locality in eastern Ecuador near the Río Pastaza (fig. 5). Problems inherent in Buckley material purportedly from Sarayacu are discussed with reference to another dioptine— Pseudoricia sibyllae (see Pseudoricia , Distribution). Potentially, such material could have been collected almost anywhere in Ecuador. Lyces specimens throughout the world’s collections, matching Warren’s type of striata in every detail, have been captured exclusively on the western slope of the Colombian and Ecuadorian Andes. I therefore conclude that L. striata is endemic to the Pacific slope. Sarayacu can almost certainly be disregarded as the type’s provenance.

In the same paper, Warren (1901) described ampliflava and attenuata as aberrations of L. striata . Subsequent authors retained those names as synonyms (see Bryk, 1930). A series of dissections support the theory that ampliflava is a synonym of L. striata , but L. attenuata is distinct and is here described as new. Characters for separating L. striata and L. attenuata are provided in the diagnosis for the latter (above). Based on comparison of types, discipuncta Hering (type locality: Quito, Ecuador) is established as a new synonym of L. striata .

Lyces striata , described by Druce (1885b) in the genus Josiomorpha (Arctiiidae), flies commonly in the day at Otonga Reserve, a western Ecuadorian site at approximately 2000 meters. It co-occurs there with a nearly perfect mimic, Crocomela erectistria Warren (pl. 31) in the Pericopinae ( Arctiidae ). This pericopine is commonly misidentified in collections as L. striata , but membership in the Arctiidae is revealed by its quadrifid wing venation (see Fibiger and Lafontaine, 2005) and prominent countertympanal hood on A1 (see Forbes, 1960).

Lyces striata was reared at Otonga Reserve (J.S. Miller, 1993) on Passiflora chelidonea (table 6).

DISTRIBUTION: Ecuador (AMNH, BMNH, LACM, USNM, ZMH); Colombia (AMNH, BMNH, JBSC, USNM) .

DISSECTED: ³, Ecuador, Cotopaxi, La Otonga, W San Francisco de Las Pampas , 1900 m, 30 Jul 1993, leg. E. Tapia, host plant #4, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-671 ) ; ³, Colombia, Valle, km 118, Carr. Del Mar to Dapa Rd. , 1800 m, 17 Jan 1992, leg. J.B. Sullivan, JBSC (genitalia slide no. JSM-1382 ) ; ³, Colombia, USNM (genitalia slide no. JSM-1446 ) ; ♀, Ecuador, Pichincha, Las Palmeras, 59 km W Quito, 8 km W Chiriboga , 6400 ft, black light, 24 Oct 1988, leg. J.S. Miller, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-654 ) ; ♀, Ecuador, Cotopaxi, La Otonga, Via Toachi-Las Pampas, 1900 m, 30 Jul 1993, leg. E. Tapia, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-672 ) ; ♀, Colombia, Valle , Peña Blanco, 1800 m, 21 Jan 1986, leg. J.B. Sullivan, JBSC (genitalia slide no. JSM-1383 ) ; ♀, Colombia, USNM (genitalia slide no. JSM-1447 ) .

Figures

Fig. 320. Morphology of Lyces (³³). A, head of L. angulosa, lateral view; B, head of L. patula, lateral view; C, head of L. patula, frontal view; D, head of L. patula, posterior view; E, L. ena labial palpus; F, L. striata labial palpus; G, L. attenuata labial palpus; H, L. ariaca head, lateral view; I, L. angulosa wings (illustration by J.S. Miller).

Fig. 323. Genitalia of Lyces. A, L. attenuata ³ (JSM-329); B, L. attenuata aedeagus; C, L. attenuata ♀ (JSM-330); D, ³ Tg8 of L. attenuata; E, ³ St8 of L. attenuata; F, L. striata ³ (JSM-1489); G, L. striata aedeagus; H, L. striata ♀ (JSM-1715); I, ³ Tg8 of L. striata; J, ³ St8 of L. striata.