Apochrysa lutea (Walker)

Winterton, Shaun L. & Gupta, Ankita, 2020, Review of the green lacewing genus Apochrysa Schneider (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae), Zootaxa 4729 (3), pp. 329-346 : 336

Apochrysa lutea (Walker)

( Figs 2 , 4 , 6A , 9D , 12 )

Chrysopa lutea Walker, 1853: 272 .

Oligochrysa lutea ( Walker, 1853) — New, 1980; Brooks & Barnard, 1990.

Apochrysa lutea ( Walker, 1853) — Winterton & Brooks, 2002; Winterton, 2006.

Oligochrysa gracilis Esben-Petersen 1914: 639 .

Synthochrysa gracilis ( Esben-Petersen, 1914) — Banks, 1931.

Synthochrysa lutea ( Walker, 1853) — Kimmins, 1940.

Common name. ‘Yellow-green delicate lacewing’.

Diagnosis. Forewing with costal area relatively broad along length, dark ovoid spot midway along inner gradate series, otherwise slight markings only along inner gradate series and distally on RA-RP cross-vein; hind wing with small mark on pterostigma; both wings with two gradate series; forewing RA area with RA-RP cross-veins simple, lacking interconnecting cross-veins; basal half of both wings without irregular cross-veins connecting RP branches, only with inner gradate series extending to base of wing; inner gradate series of hind wing broadly curved, angled anteriorly at midpoint; end-twigging (forked veinlets) present only in distal half of posterior margin of both wings.

Comments. Apochrysa lutea is found throughout eastern coastal Australia. Distinctive characters of this species include the presence of only two gradate series and lack of irregular RP cross-veins basally in both wings, as well as the relatively broad costal area in the forewing. Winterton (2006) ( Fig. 12 ) described the occurrence of a female A. lutea with apparently malformed, aberrant wing venation where the cross-veins were highly irregular and not symmetrical. This phenomenon appears to be rare and has not been recorded in other chrysopids. The holotype specimens of both names are housed in the Natural History Museum, London.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Apochrysa lutea (Walker) adult, Brisbane, Australia (photo: Shaun L. Winterton).

FIGURE 4. Wing venation of Apochrysa lutea (Walker) modified after Breitkreuz et al. (2017) with actual wing veins highlighted by different colours. Composite wing veins and cross-veins are labelled.

FIGURE 6. Apochrysa spp.: A. Apochrysa lutea (Walker); B. Apochrysa montrouzieri (Girard) (photos: Laura Breitkreuz).

FIGURE 9. Wings of Apochrysa spp.: A. Apochrysa cognata (Kimmins) (after Kimmins, 1953: fig 4); B. Apochrysa evanida Gerstaecker (drawn here from type image); C. Apochrysa leptalea (Rambur) (after Kimmins, 1952: fig. 7); D. Apochrysa lutea (Walker) (after Kimmins, 1952: fig. 2) (Note: figures not to scale and vestiture omitted).

FIGURE 12. Aberrant wing venation in Apochrysa lutea (Walker) (after Winterton, 2006: fig. 1 A–B) (vestiture and markings omitted).