Lygephila dubatolovi Fibiger, Kononenko & Nilsson

Fibiger, Michael, Kononenko, Vladimir S. & Nilsson, Danny, 2008, Description of a new species of Lygephila Billberg, 1820 (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae, Catocalinae) from Russian Far East and North China, Zootaxa 1922, pp. 62-68 : 62-65

Lygephila dubatolovi Fibiger, Kononenko & Nilsson , new species

( Figs. 1, 2, 4 , 9, 12 , 17, 22, 23 )

Type material. Holotype: male, RUSSIA: Primorye Territory, Arsenjev, 25.vii.1987, G. A. Grigoriev leg., in coll. Siberian Zoological Museum, Institute for Systematics and Ecology of Animals (Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk). Paratypes: 2 males, same locality and collector, 1 and 27.vii.1987, in coll. G. A. Grigoryev, St. Peterburg; 2 males, Primorye territory, Gornotaezhnoe, 18 km SE Ussuriisk, 8.viii.1995, V. Dubatolov leg., genit. prep. 5852 M. Fibiger, in coll. Siberian Zoological Museum, Institute for Systematics and Ecology of Animals; 2 females, same locality, 25–26.vii.2002, D. Nilsson & K. Larsen leg., one genit. prep. 5699 M. Fibiger, in colls. D. Nilsson and M. Fibiger (to be deposited at the Zoological Museum of Copenhagen University, Denmark). CHINA: 1 male, Prov. Liaoning, Jianchang, 14.viii.2007, H.L. Han leg., in coll. School of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin.

Description. Adult ( Figs. 1, 2, 4 ). Wingspan: 44–47 mm. Antennae of male ciliate; those of female also ciliate, with shorter lamellae. Proboscis fully developed; eyes large, round; lower part of clypeofrons with deciduous scales; head above this area with long brown scales; coal-black scales between antennae and above on head and patagia; thorax and ground colour of forewing grey, suffused with brown scales, including fringes; all cross-lines present, well marked; postmedial area blackish brown; terminal line marked by small, black intervenal dots; reniform stigma dark brown, with four black spots; orbicular stigma absent. Hindwing blackish brown, with a narrow medial line, and a broad blackish subterminal band; fringes brown, outwards gradually whitish. Underside light brown, with medial lines and blackish postmedial bands on both wings; reniform stigma light brown, narrow, outlined by dark brown. Male genitalia ( Figs. 9, 12 ). Uncus relatively short, much shorter compared to L. ludicra ( Figs. 11, 14 ) and L. maxima ( Figs. 10, 13 ); distal part of uncus subapically high; tegumen long, three times longer then vinculum; saccus short, apically broad, V-shaped; juxta anchor-shaped; valva narrow, much narrower than in L. maxima and L. ludicra ; harpe finger-like, parallel with valva margins, placed distally; phallus long and narrow; vesica with multiple small diverticula, a few of them long and broad. Female genitalia ( Fig. 17 ). Ovipositor lobes broadly triangular, setose; apophyses equally long and narrow, stick-like; ostium wide; antrum long, V-shaped, longer than in L. ludicra ( Fig. 19 ), but shorter than in L. maxima , heavily sclerotised; ductus bursae short, cylindrical; corpus bursae pear-shaped, relatively larger than in L. maxima ( Fig. 18 ).

Biology. L. dubatolovi occurs in rich broadleaved forests with open grass meadows ( Fig. 22 ); all specimens were collected by UV light from late July to the beginning of August. The early stages are unknown.

Distribution ( Fig. 23 ). The species is known from two localities from the Primorye Territory of Russian Far East, and from Liaoning Province in North China.

Etymology. Name for the Russian lepidopterist, Vladimir Viktorovich Dubatolov (Senior Researcher, Institute for Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk; curator of Lepidoptera, Siberian Zoological Museum).

Notes. L. dubatolovi is distinguished by a medial shadow, which is fused below the reniform, and is separated from that point into two gradually widening bands to the ventral margin; the costal patch of the postmedial area is narrow; the postmedial line is present though blurred; and the hindwing has a medial line, present at both wings on the underside. In the male genitalia, the uncus is relatively short; the distal part of the uncus is subapically high; the valva is narrow; and the vesica has a long and broad diverticulum. In the female genitalia the ostium is wide and corpus bursae pear-shaped. L. dubatolovi is smaller than Lygephila maxima ( Figs. 3, 5 , 10, 13 , 18 ) and larger than L. ludicra ( Figs. 6 , 11, 14 , 19 ). L. dubatolovi also differs from these other two Lygephila as follows: the two bands of the medial shade are not parallel; the postmedial line is blurred; a medial line is present on the hindwing; a shorter and wider uncus, and much narrower valva; a wider ostium bursae; a pear-shaped corpus bursae; and an antrum shorter than L. maxima , and longer L. ludicra .

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Lygephila spp., adults. 1, L. dubatolovi, male, holotype, Russia, Primorye Territory; 2, Ditto, female, paratype, Russia, Primorye Territory; 3, L. maxina, male, Russia, vicinity of Khabarovsk; 4, L. dubatolovi, male, Russia, Primorye terr.; 5, L. maxima, Russia, Primorye Territory, underside; 6, L. ludicra, male, Russia, Tyva; 7, L. procax, male, Hungary; 8, L. procax (= nigricostata), male, Russia, Primorye Territory.

FIGURES 9 – 16. Lygephila spp., male genitalia. 9, L. dubatolovi, paratype, genit. prep. 5852 M. Fibiger; 10, L. maxima, South Korea, genit. prep. 169 - 1 Han, Hui Lin, CIS; 11, L. ludicra, Turkey, genit. prep. 3561 M. Fibiger; 12 – 14, uncus of L. dubatolovi (12), L. maxima (13) and L. ludicra (14); 15, L. procax, Greece, genit. prep. 3560 M. Fibiger; 16, L. procax (= nigricostata), South Korea, genit. prep. 179 - 1 Han, Hui Lin, CIS.

FIGURES 17 – 23. Lygephila spp., female genitalia. 17, L. dubatolovi, paratype, genit. prep. 5699 M. Fibiger; 18, L. maxima, Russian Far East, Primorye Territory, genit. prep. 5725 M. Fibiger; 19, L. ludicra, Mongolia, prep. C 21 Barry Goater; 20, L. procax, Greece, genit. prep. C 24 B. Goater; 21, L. procax (= nigricostata), North China, genit. prep. 75 / 05 V. Kononenko, CIS; 22, habitat of L. dubatolovi, Far Eastern montane broadleaved forest with open meadows; 23, distribution map for L. dubatolovi.