Plutodes flavescens Butler, 1880: 223

Singh, Manpreet, Raha, Angshuman, Mallick, Kaushik, Kirti, Jagbir Singh & Singh, Navneet, 2023, A review of the genus Plutodes Guenée (Geometridae: Ennominae) from India with description of one new species, Zootaxa 5323 (4), pp. 499-523 : 511-512

Plutodes flavescens Butler, 1880: 223

( Figs 16–17 , 44–45 )

TL: N.E. Himalayas

Material examined: India, Arunachal Pradesh, Dibang valley dist.: 1 ♂, Anini, Chapupani , 30.v.2017, leg. A.K. Sanyal & party (13667/H10, NZCZSI), 5 ♂, 1 ♀, Hunli , 16.ix.2011, leg. T. Goyal (13671/H10, NZCZSI); Lower Subansiri dist. : 1 ♂, Yachuli, 8.xi.2018, leg. M. Singh (13670/H10, NZCZSI) . Sikkim, Gangtok dist.: 1 ♂, Singtam, 26.vii.2019, leg. M. Singh (13672/H10, NZCZSI); West Sikkim dist. : 2 ♂, Nerdang, 3.xi.2019, leg. A. K. Sanyal & party (13668–69/H10, NZCZSI), 1 ♂, Yoksum, 19.xi.2019, leg. A. K. Sanyal & party (13665/H10, NZCZSI), 1 ♂, Yoksum, 22.xi.2019, leg. A.K. Sanyal & party (13666/H10, NZCZSI) . West Bengal, Darjeeling dist.: 1 ♂, Charkhole , 6.viii.2019, leg. R. Lenka & party (13673/H10, NZCZSI) .

Diagnosis: Forewing length: ♂ 13–16 mm. Plutodes flavescens belongs to the ‘ cyclaria species group’ and closely resembles P. discigera Butler, 1880 and P. philornis Prout, 1926 ( Yazaki and Wang 2004: 118, fig. 11) in external appearance. The identifying character that separates this species from its allied congeners is the highly zigzag shaped, rufous line with multiple angles which traverses the distal patches on both the wings. This line looks darker due to the presence of a faint yellowish background which is lacking in other species of the group. In P. discigera , the same line is irregular and slightly paler, and in P. philornis , it is curved with a single angle medially, on the distal patch of forewing, forming the silhouette of flying bird. The male genitalia have a characteristic uncus with a large spatulate tip and valva with a sacculus having an internal row of short and pointed dentation, a ventral, subapical, small, curved spine and a slender, acute, distal spine-like extension. The aedeagus is slightly curved and slender, and the vesica has a small basal patch of short cornuti.

Distribution: India: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya (Khasia Hills), Sikkim, West Bengal ( Cotes & Swinhoe 1887, Swinhoe 1900, Arandhara et al. 2017). Global: China, Indonesia (Borneo, Sumatra, Java), Malaysia, Nepal, Thailand (Holloway [1994], Yazaki 1994, Michaux 1996, Kendrick & Ades 2004, Koçak & Kemal 2010).

Remarks: Due to external similarity, Hampson (1895) and Swinhoe (1900) treated P. flavescens and P. discigera as a single species. This species also flies in the mid to upper montane semi-evergreen undisturbed forests up to 2200 m, mostly during the post-monsoon period.

Figures

FIGURES 10–17. Habitus of Plutodes spp. 10–11, P. nilgirica, male, Kalakad WLS (Image source, Dr. D. Sţning); 12–13, P. subcaudata, male, Darjeeling (Image source, Dr. D. Sţning); 14–15, P. exquisita, female, Singtam; 16–17, P. flavescens, male, Singtam. Ventral sides: 11, 13, 15, 17.

FIGURES 44–49. Genitalia of Plutodes spp. 44–45, P. flavescens, male, Singtam: 44, ventral view, 45, aedeagus; 46–47, P. pseudocyclaria, male, Munnar: 46, ventral view, 47, aedeagus (vesica not fully everted); 48–49, P. discigera, male, Chatakpur: 48, ventral view, 49, aedeagus.