Schaus, 1894: 233 Hampson 1905: 527 L. rivorum Poole 1989: 583 L. rivorum Cirphis rivorum Draudt 1924: 165 Köhler 1947: 98 Taxonomy of the rivorum species-group of Leucania Ochsenheimer, 1816 (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Dolibaina, Diego Rodrigo Casagrande, Mirna Martins Specht, Alexandre Mielke, Olaf Hermann Hendrik Legrain, Albert Zilli, Alberto Goldstein, Paul Zootaxa 2019 2019-12-17 4711 3 545 560 Schaus, 1894 , Schaus 1894 [151,523,1197,1223] Insecta Noctuidae Leucania Animalia Lepidoptera 5 550 Arthropoda species pampa stat. nov.  ( Figs 9–12, 19, 23, 27, 31, 35, 39, 41)     Leucania pampa  Schaus, 1894: 233.—  Hampson 1905: 527[ as a junior synonym of  L. rivorum].—   Poole1989: 583, 595 [ as a junior synonym of  L. rivorum].    Cirphis rivorum[ misidentification possibly based on Hampson (1905)];  Draudt 1924: 165(in part).—  Köhler 1947: 98.   Diagnosis.  Leucania pampais immediately distinguished from other New World  Leucaniaby the presence of only two transverse black bands crossing the patagium ( Figs 17–18), versus the three bands in congeners ( Figs 13–16). The combination of other diagnostic features of this species includes the reddish-rust coloration of the forewing upperside, white-lined veins, absence of a postdiscal row of black dots over the veins, the beige area beyond the discal cell not extending up to R 5, and the uniformly white hind wing ( Figs 9, 11). Male genitalia are distinctive in the short and rounded cucullus, not narrowed basally as in most American  Leucania; inner margin of sacculus with a patch of long setae; ventral margin of valva distinctly produced into short acute process before indentation differentiating the cucullus; large, sub-rectangular clasper, produced into a stout spine at the postero-ventral corner; and vesica with a row of long straight, broader-based cornuti with finely rounded tips ( Figs 23–24, 31–33, 38–39).   Redescription. Head: As in  L. rivorum.  Thorax: As in  L. rivorum, but patagium lighter and with two darker brown transverse bands, proximal band narrowest.  Forewing: Length 15.7–17.0 mm in males (n = 5), 16.0–17.7 mm in females (n = 4). Upper side as in  L. rivorum, but with black dot at end of discal cell poorly defined or absent; black dot below origin of CuA 2reduced or absent; beige area beyond discal cell not extending beyond R 5; anal area with a thick black line. Underside as in  L. rivorum.  Hind wing: As in  L. rivorum, but outer margin slightly angled near CuA 1. Upper side white, sometimes rust at apical area; outer margin with small dark brown dots in space between veins Sc+R 1and CuA 2; fringe white. Underside as in upper side, except with rust and black scales covering costa, extending along part of outer area until CuA 2; fringe rust at apex, replaced by white towards tornus.  Abdomen: As in  L. rivorum.  Male genitalia: Tegumen and saccus as in  L. rivorum. Valva almost rectangular, very wide, about twice as long as wide, with ventral margin produced into distinct short acute spine before indentation with cucullus; sacculus with a patch of long setae at base of inner margin; editum triangular, longer than in other species of group; clasper about same size as cucullus, with postero-ventral tip produced into stout thorn-like projection; ampulla finger-shaped, uniformly slender and shorter than digitus; digitus sickle-shaped, about as long as clasper, slightly curved, tapered into pointed tip; costal sensory plate very narrow and long, reaching ventral indentation between main section of valva and base of cucullus; cucullus rounded, about one fourth of length and half of width of valva, not narrowed at base. Poma similar in shape to that of  L. rivorumbut markedly smaller. Uncus slender, almost completely covered by setae, sharply curved ventrally, narrowed from terminal quarter to apically pointed hook. Fultura inferior small, roughly triangular and smooth, without projections. Aedeagus similar to that of  L. rivorum, but distal margin less projected laterally; vesica simple, tubular, with about 60–70 long narrow cornuti with minutely rounded tips ar- ranged in a row, decreasing in size along vesica towards gonopore. Subscaphium joined to tegumen by membrane.  Female genitalia: As in  L. rivorum, but with appendix bursae slightly longer and corpus bursae slightly short- er.   FIGURES 1–16.Male (left) and female (right) adults of  Leucaniaspecies in dorsal and ventral views. Figs 1–4.  L. rivorum, male from Tibagi, Paraná, Brazil (DZ 40.461), female from São José do Barreiro, São Paulo, Brazil (DD 477). Figs 5–8.  L. multistria  stat. rev., comb. nov., male from Tibagi, Paraná, Brazil (DZ 40.462), female from Cambará do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (DZ 40.449). Figs 9–12.  L. pampa,  stat. rev., male from Castro, Paraná, Brazil (USNM), female from São Francisco de Paula, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (MCTP 9962). Figs 13–16.  L. chejela, male from Miranda, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil (CPAC 3951), female from Conquista D’Oeste, Mato Grosso, Brazil (DZ 40.516). Scale bar: 1cm.  Geographical distribution and phenology.This species is restricted to natural open environments such as grasslands in Braziland Argentinaranging from 600 to 1000min elevation ( Fig. 41). The apparently disjunct distribution of some populations of  L. pampamay be due to under-sampling, as the habitats of this species are sometimes neglected by collectors. Its distribution includes biomes such as Cerrado and Caatinga to the north, Southeastern Atlantic Forest to the south, and Chacoto the west. The record of  L. rivorumfrom Tucumánby Köhler (1947)probably refers to  L. pampa. This species has been recorded in January, February, June, September, October and November.   Comments.  Leucania pampais rarely mentioned in the literature. As noted, Hampson (1905)considered it a junior subjective synonym of  L. rivorumsoon after its description, and this was followed by subsequent authors ( Draudt 1924;  Poole1989). The absence of systematic studies on South American  Leucaniaperpetuated this interpretation for more than a century. Although related to  L. rivorum,  L. pampais supported as a distinct species by features of the habitus (patagium and forewing pattern) and morphology of the male genitalia; for this reason, its status as a valid species is revised. The reddish-rust forewing, with lined-white veins and near absence of black dots of  L. pampais uncommon among the South American  Leucania. In addition, the configuration of the male genitalia of  L. pampais unique to this fauna, particularly the thick patch of setae at the base of the sacculus. The configuration of the clasper and the spine on ventral edge of valva before constriction with cucullus is also unique among American  Leucania. In the description of  L. pampa, Schaus (1894)mentioned the presence of only one dark transverse line on the patagium, which probably refers to the thicker distal band. This character is unique among the members of the  rivorumspecies-group, three dark patagial bands being the norm for the genus. To our knowledge, only  L. sonroja Adams, 2001, an endemic species from Dominican Republic, has two transverse bands crossing the patagium. However, the absence in its description of details concerning the development and position of these bands leaves us unable to consider their homology with those of  L. pampa. On the other hand, the general aspect of the forewing color pattern and the male and female genitalia of  L. pampaare consistent with its inclusion in the  rivorumspecies -group of  Leucania, whereas the male genitalia of  L. sonrojasuggests its inclusion in a distinct and more diverse group of American  Leucaniaexemplified by  L. subpunctata, where the cucullus is club-shaped and fused to the valva by a long narrow area.   Type material.  Leucania pampawas described from an unspecified number of specimens from Castro, Paraná, Brazil. Three males and one female from the type locality were found at the USNM, all from the Schaus collection, with the exception of a male from the Dognin collection. Only one male bears a handwritten label “  Leucania pampaType Schs.” This specimen is here designated lectotypein order to ensure nomenclatural stability in this complex of closely looking similar species. It has the following labels: / Castro. Parana. [ Brazil] / Collection W m Schaus / Type No. 10484 U.S.N.M. /  Leucania pampaType. Schs. / Genitalia slide ♂MS Adams USNM 50176 / USNMENT 00973011 /, and the following labels will be added: / LECTOTYPUS/ Lectotype  Leucania pampa Schaus, 1894Dolibaina et al.des. 2019 /. The remaining two males and one female from Schaus collection are therefore paralectotypesand will be labeled similarly.  Material Examined.  19♂and 18♀. BRAZIL:  Bahia:  Jequié,  600‒750m,  11‒22.XI.1995, 1♂, V. O. Becker leg.105493 ( VOB). Distrito Federal:   Planaltina,  1000m,  10.II.1976, 1♀, V. O. Becker leg.18782 ( VOB).  São Paulo:  Salto Grande( Paranapanema), 3♂, E. D. Jones leg.010915320, 010915321, 010915323 ( NHMUK).   São Paulo, 2♂and 4♀, E. D. Jones leg. 010915102, 010915103, 010915104, 010915307, 010915319 ( NHMUK), ( USNM).  Paraná: 1905, 2♂, Jason leg.010915311, 010915312 ( NHMUK),  1♂, E. D. Jones leg.010915322 ( NHMUK).   Castro, 1♂, lectotypedesignated above ( USNM),  1♂and 4♀, E. D. Jones leg.010915304, 010915309, 010915310, 010915324, 010915325 ( NHMUK),  7♂and 5♀010915305, 010915306, 010915308, 010915313, 010915314, 010915315, 010915316, 010915317, 010915318 ( NHMUK), ( USNM).   Curitiba,  920m,  8.I.1975, 1♀,  5.VI.1975, 1♀, V. O. Becker leg.3354 ( VOB, USNM).  Rio Grande do Sul:  São Francisco de Paula,  24.IX.1997, 1♀,  24.X.1997, 1♂, A. Specht leg.9962, 9958 ( MCTP).  ARGENTINA: Tucumán, no locality, 1♀, J. Steinbach leg.010915105 ( NHMUK). 2521262989 [450,729,152,179] Brazil BRAZIL 8 553 37 18 19 2521262958 1995-11-11 1995-11-22 1995-11-11 VOB V. O. Becker Brazil 675 Jequie 8 553 1 1 Bahia 2521262993 [588,1380,188,215] 1976-02-10 VOB V. O. Becker Brazil 1000 Planaltina 8 553 1 1 2521262970 NHMUK E. D. Jones Brazil Paranapanema Salto Grande 8 553 3 3 Sao Paulo 2521263006 NHMUK, USNM E. D. Jones Brazil Sao Paulo 8 553 6 4 2 Sao Paulo 2521262988 [270,1035,296,323] NHMUK Jason Brazil Parana 8 553 2 2 Parana 2521262999 NHMUK E. D. Jones Brazil 8 553 1 1 2521262994 [289,840,332,359] USNM Brazil Castro 8 553 1 1 lectotype 2521263016 NHMUK E. D. Jones Brazil 8 553 5 4 1 lectotype 2521262977 NHMUK, USNM Brazil 8 553 12 5 7 lectotype 2521263010 1975-01-08 1975-06-05 1975-01-08 VOB, USNM V. O. Becker Brazil 920 8 553 2 2 lectotype 2521262966 1997-09-24 1997-10-24 1997-09-24 MCTP A. Specht Brazil Sao Francisco de Paula 8 553 2 1 1 Rio Grande do Sul lectotype 2521262991 NHMUK J. Steinbach Argentina Tucuman 8 553 1 1 Tucuman lectotype