Lemyra (Thyrgorina) obliquivitta ( Moore, 1879 )

Singh, Harsimranjeet, Raha, Angshuman, Kirti, Jagbir Singh & Singh, Navneet, 2024, Taxonomic review of the genus Lemyra Walker (Erebidae: Arctiinae) from India, Zootaxa 5454 (1), pp. 1-69 : 12-13

Lemyra (Thyrgorina) obliquivitta ( Moore, 1879) : 40 ( Spilarctia )

( Figs 18–20 , 115, 116 , 203 )

TL: Darjiling [Darjeeling, West Bengal, India]

= Spilarctia jucunda Butler, 1881: 32 (TL: Darjiling [Darjeeling, West Bengal, India])

Material Examined: India , West Bengal: [Kalimpong district], Rishop , 3 ♂, 5.ix.2016, K. Bhattacharyya & Party leg. ( NZCZSI; 12746/H10); 2 ♂, 12.ix.2018, H. Singh leg. ( NZCZSI; 12740/H10); Lava, 1 ♂, 17.iii.2018, P.C. Pathania leg. ( NZCZSI; 12747/H10); [Darjeeling district], Manebhanjyang, 2 ♂, 4 ♀, 16.ix.2018, H. Singh leg. ( NZCZSI; 12739/H10) ; Mizoram: [Mamit district], Zamuang , 1 ♂, 16.ix.2016, S.S. Bisht leg. ( NZCZSI; 12742/ H10); 1 ♂, 14.ix.2016, H. Singh leg. ( NZCZSI; 12741/H10) ; Arunachal Pradesh: [Dibang valley district], Anini, Chaipani, 1 ♂, 16.iv.2017, S. Gayan & Party, leg. ( NZCZSI; 12749/H10), Meyhoopey, 1 ♂, 17.v.2018, S. Gayan & Party, leg. ( NZCZSI; 12748/H10); [ Tawang district ], Tawang, 1 ♂, 29.vi.2018, H. Singh leg. ( NZCZSI; 12744/ H10), 2 ♂, 1.vii.2018, H. Singh leg. ( NZCZSI; 12743/H10) ; Sikkim: [East Sikkim district], Padamchen , 1 ♀, 31.v.2017, K. Mondal & Party leg. ( NZCZSI; 12745/H10) .

Diagnosis: Forewing Length: ♂ 18 mm, ♀ 23 mm. Externally, L. (T.) obliquivitta ( Figs 18, 19 ) is reminiscent of L. (T.) flavalis ( Figs 12–17 ) (particularly of its synonym I. punctilinea ) in having blackish, maculate transverse band on yellowish white forewing but in former, the band is narrower and somewhat complete from apex to the middle of inner margin. In L. (T.) flavalis , the forewing is buff yellow (yellowish white in I. punctilinea ), often with a reddish tinge, having greyish and thicker maculate transverse band which is rarely complete and ending much before the apex. In L. (T.) obliquivitta , the abdomen is yellow with dorsal black spots which is red or orange red with dorsal black spots in L. (T.) flavalis . In male genitalia, L. (T.) obliquivitta ( Figs 115, 116 ) is clearly distinct from L. (T.) flavalis ( Figs 105–114 ) by the truncate valva, without any subapical process and the straight aedeagus, while in the latter, the valva is complete with a small subapical process and the aedeagus is distinctly curved. Lemyra (T.) rubidorsa ( Moore, 1865) ( Figs 117, 118 ), although dissimilar externally by pure white wings and red abdomen, is closely similar to L. (T.) obliquivitta by the male genitalia having truncate valva, without any process and straight aedeagus with vesica having a lateral spined plate and a large, distal patch of spines. However, both the species are distinct by the shorter and blunt uncus, shorter valva and thinner aedeagus in L. (T.) obliquivitta ( Figs 115, 116 ).

Distribution. Indian records: Assam, Manipur, Sikkim, West Bengal (Darjeeling) ( Dubatolov 2010, Singh et al. 2021), Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram (present study). Global records: Bhutan, eastern Tibet, China (Hunan, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang), Thailand, Vietnam ( Dubatolov 2010, de Freina & Thomas 2015).

Remarks: In India, L. (T.) obliquivitta is so far reported from the Central Himalaya and Northeast. Herein, we extend its range to East Himalayan landscape of Arunachal Pradesh. Lemyra (T.) obliquivitta is found to fly in a wide altitude range of 48–3050 m in the East Himalayan subalpine wet hill forest, East Himalayan subtropical wet hill forest and East Himalayan wet temperate forest of Central and East Himalaya and Northeast India.

Figures

FIGURES 12–20. Habitus of Lemyra spp. 12–13. L. flavalis, male, dorsal and ventral sides (Pangthang, Sikkim, India); 14. ditto. Male, dorsal side (Krupra, Arunachal Pradesh, India); 15. ditto. (White form), male, dorsal side (Ghangaria, Uttarakhand, India); 16. L. punctilinea, syn. nov., male, dorsal side (Askot Vayman, Uttarakhand, India); 17. L. flavalis (red form), male, dorsal side (Ahipu, Arunachal Pradesh, India); 18–19. L. obliquivitta, male, dorsal and ventral sides (Zamuang, Mizoram, India); 20. L. obliquivitta, female, dorsal side (Manebhanjyang, West Bengal, India).

FIGURES 107–118. Genitalia of Lemyra spp. 107–108. L. flavalis, male: 107, ventral view, 108, Aedeagus; 109–110, ditto (white form), male: 109, ventral view, 110,Aedeagus; 111–112. L. punctilinea, syn. nov., male:111, ventral view, 112,Aedeagus; 113–114. L. flavalis (red form), male: 113, ventral view, 114, Aedeagus; 115–116. L. obliquivitta, male: 115, ventral view, 116, Aedeagus; 117–118. L. rubidorsa, male: 117, ventral view, 118, Aedeagus.

FIGURES 201–206. Genitalia of Lemyra spp. 201. L. rubripecta sp. nov., female, ventral view; 202. L. biseriata, female, ventral view; 203. L. obliquivitta, female, ventral view; 204. L. eximia, female, ventral view; 205. L. multivittata, female, ventral view; 206. L. stigmata stigmata, female, ventral view.

FIGURES 95–106. Genitalia of Lemyra spp. 95–96. L. neglecta, male: 95, ventral view, 96. Aedeagus; 97–98. ditto; 99–100. L. rubripecta sp. nov., holotype male: 99, ventral view, 100, Aedeagus; 101–102. L. biseriata, male: 101, ventral view, 102, Aedeagus; 103–104. L. densimacula sp. nov., holotype male: 103, ventral view, 104, Aedeagus; 105–106. L. flavalis, male: 105, ventral view, 106, Aedeagus.