Spoladea recurvalis (Fabricius, 1775)

Bernard Landry, 2016, Taxonomic revision of the Spilomelinae (Lepidoptera, Pyralidae s. l.) of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, Revue suisse de Zoologie 123 (2), pp. 315-399 : 387-389

Spoladea recurvalis (Fabricius, 1775)

Figs 63 , 130 , 176

Phalaena recurvalis Fabricius, 1775: 644 .

Zinckenia fascialis Cramer : Schaus, 1923: 28.

Hymenia recurvalis (Fabricius) : Linsley & Usinger, 1966: 162.

Spoladea recurvalis (Fabricius) : Peck et al., 1998: 227. ‒ Causton et al., 2006: 141. ‒ Roque-Albelo & Landry, 2015.

Material examined: 5 ♂, 7 ♀, 43 of undetermined sex from the Galápagos Islands. – Española: Bahía Manzanillo ; Las Tunas trail, 100 m elev[ation]. – Floreana: Punta Cormoran; Charles [no precise locality]. – Isabela: Albermarle, Cobea [?] Settlement; V[olcan]. Darwin, 300 m elev.; NE slope Alcedo, ca. 400 m up (S) Los Guayabillos camp, GPS: 892 m elev., S 00° 25.208’, W 91° 04.765’; V. Darwin, 1000 m elev. – San Cristóbal: Chatham [no precise locality]. – Santa Cruz: Academy Bay, Charles Darwin Research Station; Charles Darwin Research Station; Horneman Farm, 200 m; Horneman Farm, 220 m elev.; [no precise locality], reared from larva ex Sesuvium portulacastrum . – Santiago: Jaboncillo [camp], ± 850 m elev. Deposited in BMNH, CAS, CDRS, MCZ, and MHNG.

Diagnosis: Measuring between 17 and 21 mm in wingspan in the Galápagos this species is most similar to Hymenia perspectalis (Hübner) ( Figs 22, 23 ) and Cryptobotys zoilusalis (Walker) ( Figs 10, 11 ), both treated above. Spoladea recurvalis (Fabricius) ( Fig. 63 ) is somewhat paler brown than H. perspectalis . Their white markings differ in the forewing by the wide median fascia from the dorsum touching the discocellular stigma in S. recurvalis , thin and not touching the discocellular stigma in H. perspectalis , and on the hindwing by the wide and evenly margined fascia of S. recurvalis compared to the thin fascia presenting a median bilobed projection medially on the external margin in H. perspectalis . Cryptobotys zoilusalis (Walker) also has white to cream fasciae, but these are very thin.

Biology: The larva of this species is polyphagous and has been recorded on a wide variety of plants, for example Aizoaceae ( Trianthema sp.), Amaranthaceae ( Alternanthera sp., Amaranthus sp., Celosia sp., Gomphrena sp.), Arecaceae [ Chrysalidocarpus (= Dypsis ) sp.], Asteraceae ( Chrysanthemum sp., Eupatorium sp.), Chenopodiaceae ( Beta sp., Chenopodium sp.), Convolvulaceae ( Ipomoea sp.), Fabaceae ( Glycine sp., Vigna sp.), Nyctaginaceae ( Boerhavia sp.), Poaceae ( Zea sp.), Portulacaceae ( Portulaca sp., Spinacia sp.), Solanaceae ( Lycopersicon sp.), etc. ( Robinson et al., 2014). In the CDRS collection there is a pair of specimens associated with a number 69, which refers to a notebook entry mentioning Sesuvium portulacastrum (L.) L. and Portulaca oleraceae L. ( Aizoaceae ) as hosts in the Galápagos. Moths in the archipelago have been collected from sea level up to 1000 m in elevation in pristine as well as anthropized habitats, from February to May and in December.

Distribution: Based on the literature (for example De Prins & De Prins, 2015; Shaffer & Munroe, 2007; Zimmerman, 1958) and museum specimens this species is widespread around the world under warm climates, but it is also probably resident in Southern Europe and occasionally reaches northern Europe ( Slamka, 2013) and south-eastern Canada ( Patterson et al., 2015). In the Galápagos it has been collected on the islands of Española, Floreana, Isabela, San Cristóbal, Santa Cruz, and Santiago.

Remarks: I have identified a Galápagos specimen of this species by comparing it with BMNH identified material, including the types of some of its synonyms. The type was not examined as it is lost ( Clarke, 1986).

Figures

Figs 57 - 64. Galápagos specimens of Spilomelinae, size not to scale. (57, 58) Samea inconspicuella. (57) ♂ holotype, CNC. (58) ♀ paratype, Santiago, close to Caseta, 686 m, 6. iii. 2005, MHNG. (59, 60) Sisyracera inabsconsalis. (59) ♀, Santa Cruz, NNW Bella Vista, 225 m, 18. ii. 2005, MHNG. (60) ♂, Rábida, tourist trail, 3. iv. 1992, MHNG. (61, 62) Sisyracera jacquelinae. (61) ♀ holotype, MHNG. (62) ♂ paratype, Isabela, Sierra Negra, Corazon Verde, xi-xii. 1974, BMNH ©, the Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London. (63) Spoladea recurvalis ♂, Santa Cruz, E. C. C. D., 4. iii. 1992, MHNG. (64) Syngamia florella ♀, Santa Cruz, agriculture zone, near (NNW) Bella Vista, 223 m, 7. iv. 2004, MHNG.

Figs 128 - 130. Male genitalia of Galápagos Spilomelinae, a and b from same slides, but not to scale, (a) showing the genitalia without phallus and (b), the phallus. (128) Sisyracera inabsconsalis: slide MHNG-ENTO- 9030, Genovesa. (129) S. jacquelinae paratype: slide BMNH Pyr 21188, BMNH ©, the Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London. (130) Spoladea recurvalis: slide MHNG-ENTO- 8983, Española.

Figs 173 - 177. Female genitalia of Neotropical Spilomelinae, not to scale. (173) Samea inconspicuella paratype: slide MHNG- ENTO- 8705. (174) Sisyracera inabsconsalis holotype. (175) Sisyracera jacquelinae paratype: slide MHNG- ENTO- 8688. (176) Spoladea recurvalis: slide MHNG-ENTO- 8984, Galápagos, Floreana. (177) Synclera jarbusalis: slide MHNG-ENTO- 9031, Galápagos, Santa Cruz.

Figs 17 - 24. Neotropical specimens of Spilomelinae, size not to scale. (17) Diaphania nitidalis ♀, Brazil, Bahía, Camacan, Res. Serra Bonita, 800 m, 8. iv. 2011, MHNG. (18) Ercta vittata ♂, Galápagos, Marchena, 12. iii. 1992, MHNG. (19) Herpetogramma bipunctalis ♂, Galápagos, Santa Cruz, CDRS, Barranco, 20 m, 30. iv. 2002, MHNG. (20, 21) Herpetogramma phaeopteralis. (20) ♂, Galápagos, Isabela, NE slope Alcedo, Los Guayabillos camp, 869 m, 2. iv. 2004, MHNG. (21) ♀, Galápagos, San Cristóbal, near La Loberia, sea level, 24. ii. 2005, MHNG. (22, 23) Hymenia perspectalis. (22) ♀, Galápagos, Santa Cruz, Los Gemelos, 4. v. 2002, MHNG. (23) ♀, same locality, 27. v. 1992, MHNG. (24) Lineodes integra ♂, Pinta, Cabo Ibbetson, 8 m, MHNG.

Figs 9 - 16. Specimens of Spilomelinae, size not to scale. (9) Cheverella galapagensis ♀, Galápagos, Santa Cruz, Los Gemelos, 27. v. 1992, MHNG. (10, 11) Cryptobotys zoilusalis. (10) ♀, Brazil, Bahía, Camacan, Res. Serra Bonita, 800 m, 8. iv. 2011, MHNG. (11) ♂, same locality, 27. iii. 2011, MHNG. (12, 13) Desmia mordor. (12) ♂ paratype, Galápagos, Santa Cruz, Los Gemelos, 4. v. 2002, MHNG. (13) ♀ holotype, CNC. (14) Diaphania galapagensis ♂ paratype, Galápagos, Isabela, NE slope Alcedo, near pega-pega camp, 483 m, 31. iii. 2004, MHNG. (15) Diaphania hyalinata ♂, Galápagos, Santa Cruz, Los Gemelos, 4. v. 2002, MHNG. (16) Diaphania indica ♂, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haut Katanga, Tshinkolobwe, 12. iii. 1931, MHNG.