Episothalma cognataria Swinhoe, 1903

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 : 19-20

Episothalma cognataria Swinhoe, 1903

Fig. 7

Episothalma cognataria Swinhoe, 1903 , Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (7) 11: 510. Syntype (s) ɗ, Siam [ Thailand]: Muok-Lek, 1000 ft. (BMNH)

Redescription. Head: Antenna ciliate in male. Frons dark brown, smooth-scaled. Labial palpus not extending beyond frons. Vertex grass green. Thorax: Dorsum grass green. Hind tibia in male with one pair of terminal spurs. Length of forewing: ɗ 15.5 mm. Forewing with outer margin under apex slightly concave; outer margin of hind wing concave between M1 and M3, forming a process on both veins. Wings ground colour grass green. Forewing with costa orange yellow, densely diffused with black scales; antemedial line on forewing indistinct; postmedial lines on both wings yellowish green, irregularly dentate, indistinct, posteriorly accompanied by white dots on veins. Discal spot black. Terminal line dark brown, interrupted on veins. Fringes greyish brown. Ventral side nearly white, with slight pale green tinge; discal spot dark brown; postmedial line indistinct, only visible on veins; terminal line same as that on dorsal side. Abdomen: Dorsum reddish brown mixed with black, crests reddish brown, developed from second to third segment. Male genitalia ( Figs. 20 , 31 ): Uncus fairly sclerotized, with apex blunt. Socii slightly sclerotized, tapered, with a process at middle proximately. Gnathos with lateral arms not joined in the middle. Valva broad and short, with terminal part membranous, tapered and blunt; costa nearly straight; densely hairy in the middle; a pointed sclerotized hook-like tooth present near center, posterior to which, is a transverse sclerotized band extending to ventral margin of valva, with a series of large teeth on margin, and bearing a large blunt posterior process. Transtilla a large, lightly sclerotized plate, with apex shallowly concave. Juxta sclerotized, posterior margin inverse U-shaped. Saccus not protruding. Coremata developed. Aedeagus developed, with terminal part strongly sclerotized, vesica densely wrinkled, manica with one sclerotized process. Female genitalia unknown.

Material examined. THAILAND: syntype ɗ, Siam, Muok-Lek, 1000 feet, Januar, H. Fruhstorfer, 1903- 177 (other labels: red “ Type ” label; Episothalma cognataria Swinho. Ψ type) ( BMNH); CHINA: Yunnan: Xishuangbanna Bubeng, 700 m, 14.IX.1993, coll. Cheng Xinyue, 1ɗ ( IZCAS).

Distribution. China (Yunnan), Thailand.

Biology. Unknown.

Notes. In the original description, the author did not state how many specimens were examined, but made it clear that this species was described on the basis of a female. In the collection of the BMNH, there is only a single male specimen, which bears a label matching the record in the original description, as well as the type label. There therefore seems little doubt that this is the holotype, and that Swinhoe’s designation of it as “Ψ” was an error.

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.