Narraga, WALKER, 1861
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.1046/j.1096-3642.2002.00008.x |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03F16A20-1E13-FFAD-FC68-A793FEABDF1D |
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treatment provided by |
Carolina |
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scientific name |
Narraga |
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(Figs 4, 72–79)
Narraga Walker, 1861 . Type species: Geometra cebraria Hübner, [1799] 1796 , a junior synonym of Phalaena fasciolaria Hufnagel, 1767 . Europe.
Fernaldella Hulst, 1896 . Type species: Fidonia fimetaria Grote & Robinson, 1870 . USA. [Listed as synonym of Narraga Walker by Hodges et al. (1983).]
Description
Head. Chaetosemata extended across head as a (relatively) broad band (compared with narrow band in, for example, Semiothisa ). Antenna of male bipectinate.
Wings (Fig. 4). Brown, usually with pale yellow markings on both upperside and, prominently, on underside of hindwing. In georgiana Covell, Finkelstein and Towers , the wings are dark chocolate brown fading to paler brown in older specimens.
Male genitalia ( Figs 72, 74–76 View Figures 72–79 ). Eurasian species: Uncus: pointed, slightly beak-like; setae welldeveloped but not peg-like; horns lacking. Gnathos: with well-developed arms and medial element. Valva divided, sometimes deeply, but not completely separated into costa and sacculus. Saccus long.
American species: Uncus triangular; horns lacking. Gnathos weak. Valva: deeply excavated, yawning in fimetaria ( Fig. 76 View Figures 72–79 ), more like Eurasian species (i.e. Narraga , original sense) in georgiana ; costa with small notch. (See figs 9 and 10 in Covell et al., 1984: 168.) Pregenital abdomen of male ( Fig. 73 View Figures 72–79 ). Sternum A8 emarginated.
Female genitalia ( Figs 77, 78, 79 View Figures 72–79 ). Ostium surrounded by well-sclerotized, plate-like sterigma. Ductus bursae with conspicuous antrum, sometimes long [ nelvae (Rothschild) ]. Bursa copulatrix with or without signa; if present signum, or two signa, small with disproportionately large denticulate projections. (See also fig. 11 in Covell et al., 1984: 168.)
Diagnosis (see also ‘comments’, below). The wings of all species other than georgiana are fairly similarly shaped and marked (e.g. as in Fig. 4). In georgiana the markings resemble those of the other species, but the background colour is darker brown.
Distribution. Central and southern Europe, Asia Minor, China ( Narraga ); North Africa ( N. nelvae ); North America: Rockies; Georgia ( Fernaldella , i.e. fimetaria -group).
Habits. Narraga georgiana ( Covell et al., 1984: 167) comb. nov. was found flying in sunshine.
Foodplants. N. fasciolaria and tessularia on Artemisia ( Forster & Wohlfahrt, 1981) . N. fimetaria is recorded from Gutierrezia microcephala . N. georgiana was
MACARIINI GENERA OF THE WORLD 271
recorded from Chrysoma pauciflosculosa ( Covell et al. 1984) . All these foodplants belong to the Compositae ( Asteraceae ).
Comments. (i) Synonymy of Fernaldella with Narraga . The wing shape and pattern, and the small size of the moths, are similar in the type species of Narraga and Fernaldella . In both, furthermore, the undersurface of the forewing has a white tessellated appearance. In the male genitalia, the valva is excavated. Whereas this excavation is very deep in fimetaria (the type species of Fernaldella ), with the costa and sacculus being widely separated, the degree of separation in georgiana is more like that of the Eurasian species of Narraga . In both the North American group and the Eurasian group the saccus of the vinculum is extended.
(ii) The North American species, which include fimetaria (Grote & Robinson) , georgiana Covell, Finkelstein and Towers and stalachtaria (Strecker), almost certainly represent a monophyletic group based on the occurrence of a small process or notch on the ventral edge of the sacculus .
(iii) On the basis of sharing a tooth-like process on the costa of the valva, the Eurasian species also appear to form a monophyletic group.
(iv) The deeply cleft and spiniferous valva suggests that Narraga falls within the Platypepla -group of genera. Furthermore, the signum (or signa) on the bursa copulatrix differs considerably from that structure in the other genera.
(v) The association with Compositae ( Asteraceae ) is notable, even if not unique within Macariini .
Number of species. We note provisionally eight species (see also Parsons et al., 1999), of which we have examined five.
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