Naarda calligrapha, Tóth, Balázs & Ronkay, László, 2015

Tóth, Balázs & Ronkay, László, 2015, Revision of the Palaearctic and Oriental species of the genus Naarda Walker, 1866 (Lepidoptera: Erebidae, Hypeninae). Part 5. Description of 13 new species from Asia, Zootaxa 3925 (2), pp. 179-201 : 183-184

Naarda calligrapha sp. n.

male: fig. 32, female: fig. 33

Type material. Holotype. ♂: “Khasis; May, 1894; Nat. Coll.; Paravicini Coll.; B.M. 1937–383”, slide No. BM Noct. 21808♂ (coll. BMNH).

Paratype. Burma: 1 ♀, “Upper Burma: Hpimaw Fort, Nr. Myitkyina. 8000 ft. 14–18. viii. 1923. Capt. A.E.Swann; Brit. Mus. 1923–488”, slide No. BM Noct. 21809♀ (coll. BMNH).

Additional material examined. Indonesia: 1 ♀, “23. 22. Gamoe ‘Mrapat, Central West Buru, 5000 ft., iii–iv. ’22. C.,F., & J.Pratt.; Joicey Bequest. Brit. Mus. 1934–120” (coll. BMNH).

Diagnosis. This new species is related to N. coerulea Tóth & Ronkay, 2014b ( Nepal) but the male antenna is bipectinate instead of being ciliate, the palps are longer, and the overall appearance is even more variegated than those of the latter species. In the male genitalia, the saccus is much shorter, the costa is much less developed, the sacculus is much broader and the aedeagus has no cornutus, in the female genitalia the apophyses posteriores are longer in relation with apophyses anteriores and the corpus bursae is also longer compared to N. coerulea . In comparison with N. blepharota ( Strand, 1920) , the uncus of N. calligrapha is broader, the sacculus is broader and shorter, the costa is less domed, the aedeagus has smaller carinal process, the ductus bursae is much shorter and the corpus bursae is longer and narrower than in N. blepharota .

Description. Wingspan 18–19 mm, length of forewing 8,5– 9 mm. Antennae bipectinate in male, with longest rami being twice as long as the diameter of flagellum, cilia present on rami, being twice to four times longer than diameter of flagellum, ca 10 cilia per ramus; flagellum without cilia but having setae as long as rami; female having filiform and sparsely ciliate antennae with setae; cilia as well as setae as long as diameter of flagellum. Labial palps long, showing sexual dimorphism: male palps 5.5 times longer than diameter of eye, relatively narrow; 3rd segment conspicuous, pointed; 2nd segment slightly curved downwards with more or less parallel dorsal and ventral edges; female palps four times longer than diameter of eye; 3rd segment shorter and narrower than in male; 2nd segment porrect, domed, with straight ventral edge. Scale-hood of vertex broad, angular; short in male but very long in female. Characteristic wing pattern features: unusually multi-coloured forewing; ground colour dark bluish-grey with minute brownish shade; subterminal line grey, slightly jagged in male, strongly sinuous in female with broad black shadow near its inner side; postmedial line black, sinuous of the same shape in both sexes but broader in female than in male; medial line also black, very broad, conspicuous, slightly curved in both sexes; antemedial line jagged, broader in female than in male; reniform stigma similar in both sexes: deep ochreous, honey-coloured, flask-shaped, angular, with black margin inside cell and with black dot in lower third; orbicular stigma large, half the size of reniform stigma, circular, with filling of the same colour as of reniform, having narrow dark ring. Hindwing light grey, much lighter than forewing, without any bluish or brown hue, transverse lines present but indistinct; field between vein cu2 and inner margin darker coloured and more variegated than rest of hindwing, its hue being similar to that of forewing. Male genitalia (fig. 4). Uncus medium-long, straight, broad, apically hooked. Scaphium straight, slightly shorter than uncus. Tegumen as long as vinculum; saccus tiny, rounded. Juxta plain, heart-shaped, with the two broad lobes directed dorsally. Valva medium broad, apically tapering; cucullus medium broad, apically rounded, its dorsal edge strongly sclerotised in a narrow stripe, concave just proximally to valval tip. Sacculus extremely broad, half as long as valva, truncate, its dorsal edge slightly dentate, with rounded, strongly sclerotised, and dorsally directed lobe close to tip. Sacculus with a weakly sclerotised field ventrally to the lobe, cucullus being separate from sacculus from this point so most distal section of sacculus overlapping with most basal part of cucullus. Aedeagus straight, very thick, carina with straight, finely dentate process, vesica (partially everted) with smooth and scobinate sections. Female genitalia (fig. 5). Ovipositor lobes elongate. Apophyses posteriores very long; ca 1.5 times longer than apophyses anteriores. Sternum A7 simple, not bilobed. Antrum broad. Ductus bursae broad and short, strongly sclerotised, its shape like a right-angled triangle, mouth to corpus bursae narrow. Corpus bursae long and narrow, its whole surface densely scobinate by tiny grains, with large, rounded field composed by elongate grains in very dense arrangement, situated close to the junction with ductus bursae.

Distribution. The known area of this species is very disjunct: recorded from the Khasia Hills ( India, Assam) and Northeast Burma from the continental SE Asia and from the Buru Island in Indonesia. Altitude of the localities varies from 1500 to 2400 m. No data from the last 90 years.

Etymology. “ Calligrapha ” means “beautifully drawn”, the name refers to the delicately marked forewing.

Taxonomic remarks. The relationship of the new species with N. coerulea is supported by, besides the general configuration of the female genitalia, the bluish colouration of the forewing.