Karschiola Gaede, 1926

László, Gyula M. & Volynkin, Anton V., 2023, A new species of Karschiola Gaede from Mozambique and Zimbabwe (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae) with updated information on the distribution of the genus, Zootaxa 5375 (2), pp. 214-226 : 215-216

Genus Karschiola Gaede, 1926

Karschiola Gaede, 1926: 112 .

Type species: Caryatis holoclera Karsch, 1894: 378 , by monotypy.

Characterisation of the genus

The moths of the genus are of a large size with forewing length of 25–32 mm in males and 29–34 mm in females with a robust body, a triangular forewing with a conspicuous, rounded tornal projection in males which is less expressed in females. The body and wing colouration is uniformly blackish-brown with only the patagium being pale yellow, and the 6 th to 8 th abdominal segments bright pink. The only wing marking is a broad, oblique, pale yellow postmedial fascia of the forewing and a more or less triangular dirty white basal area of the hindwing. The male hindwing bears a well-developed androconial tuft situated near the anal margin consisting of long, pale yellow piliform scales. The conspicuous forewing fascia makes Karschiola somewhat reminiscent of Caryatis but the latter comprises markedly smaller species, and the unique genitalia characters of the former genus, especially the configuration of the uncus undoubtedly separates it from Caryatis . Whilst Caryatis species have a simple pointed uncus associated with rounded socii, the heavily sclerotized and rather complex uncus of Karschiola consists of a broad, anteriorly rounded basal, and a constricted, elongate medial part which is dilated into a shield-like posterior plate bearing a medial lobe with notched posterior margin directed ventrad (in the genital preparats, it is either folded upwards or downwards), a short longitudinal dorsal crest and a short but robust, apically pointed, thorn-shaped apical process; in addition, Karschiola lacks socii. This unique, complex configuration of the uncus and the unmodified, membranous juxta (which is well-sclerotized in Caryatis ) clearly support the distinctness of the genus.