Episothalma irrobustaria Xue & Wang

Xue, Dayong, Wang, Xuejian & Han, Hongxiang, 2009, A revision of Episothalma Swinhoe, 1893, with descriptions of two new species and one new genus (Lepidoptera, Geometridae, Geometrinae), Zootaxa 2033, pp. 12-25 : 18

Episothalma irrobustaria Xue & Wang , sp. nov.

Fig. 6

Description. Head: Antenna ciliate in male. Frons reddish brown, smooth-scaled. Labial palpus pale brown, ventrally whitish, not extending beyond frons in male. Vertex with anterior half white, posterior half grass green. Thorax: Dorsum grass green. Hind tibia in male with one pair of terminal spurs. Length of forewing: ɗ 19 mm. Forewing with apex pointed; outer margin under apex concave, forming a small process on vein M3; outer margin of hind wing concave between M1 and M3, forming processes on both veins. Wings: ground colour grass green. Forewing with costa orange yellow, diffused with black scales; antemedial line yellowish green, indistinct; postmedial lines on both wings yellowish green, irregularly dentate, forming an irregular dark brown patch on the inner margin on both wings. Discal spot black. Terminal line dark brown, interrupted on veins. Fringes yellowish green mixed with dark brown. Ventral side pale green, diffused with dark brown scales, denser proximate to postmedial line on forewing; distinct discal spot dark brown; postmedial line dark brown, dentate, much thicker on veins. Abdomen: Dorsum reddish brown mixed with black, with developed reddish brown crests from second to fourth segment. Male genitalia ( Figs. 19 , 30 ). Uncus sclerotized, tapered and not blunt at apex. Socii slightly sclerotized, tapered, similar length to uncus. Gnathos with lateral arms not joined in the middle. Valva long and narrow; terminal half broader than base, blunt; costal margin sclerotized basally to one quarter, slightly concave, then straight at middle and slightly protruding near apex; an irregularly wrinkled ridge with dense hair present at center; a pointed sclerotized hook-like tooth present near center, posterior to which is a small sclerotized lobe, the area anterior to the lobe sclerotized and extending to ventral margin. Transtilla a large weakly sclerotized plate, posterior margin almost straight. Juxta slightly sclerotized with posterior margin well sclerotized, arced. Saccus not protruding, but vinculum protruding far beyond valva base. Coremata fairly developed. Aedeagus slender, sclerotized posteriorly, vesica sclerotized and wrinkled, without cornutus; manica with one sclerotized process. Female genitalia unknown.

Diagnosis. This new species is quite close to E. robustaria on both external features and male genitalia. The apex of the forewing in E. irrobustaria is a little more protruding than that of E. robustaria . E. irrobustaria is distinctive in the male genitalia ( Fig. 19 ): the small sclerotized lobe on the valva is much further from the ventral margin, located almost in the middle between costa and ventral margin, whereas, this lobe is close to the ventral margin in E. robustaria ; the area anterior to the lobe is also sclerotized and extends to the ventral margin, whereas in E. robustaria this area is unmodified. In addition, the uncus of E. irrobustaria is tapering and not as blunt as in E. robustaria .

Material examined. Holotype ɗ, THAILAND: Thailand: Changwat Nan, 30 km E of Pua, 1700 m, 20.II.1996, leg. Márton Hreblay and Csaba Szabóky ( SOMM.M.).

Etymology. This species name is combined from Latin prefix in- and robustaria , which means not robustaria .

Distribution. Thailand.

Biology. Unknown.

Figures

FIGURES 17 – 22. Male genitalia. 17 – 18. E. robustaria. 17, From Thailand; 18, From Xishuangbanna Bubeng, Yunnan, China; 19, E. irrobustaria sp. nov.; 20, E. cognataria; 21, E. cuspidata sp. nov.; 22, Pseudepisothalma ocellata. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 23 – 33. 23. Female genitalia of E. robustaria. 24 – 29. Aedeagus of E. robustaria. 24, From Xishuangbanna Bubeng, Yunnan, China; 25, From Vietnam; 26, From South India; 27, From Hainan, China. 28, From Thailand; 29, From Xishuangbanna Bubeng, Yunnan, China; 30, E. irrobustaria sp. nov.; 31, E. cognataria; 32, E. cuspidata sp. nov.; 33. Pseudepisothalma ocellata. Scale bar = 1 mm.