Ecpatia grisescens, Pellinen & Mutanen, 2019

Pellinen, Markku J. & Mutanen, Marko, 2019, Two new species of Ecpatia Turner, 1902, and the first records of Ecpatia sciachroa Hampson, 1926 and Ecpatia obscura Holloway, 2009 from Thailand (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae, Noctuinae), Zootaxa 4609 (3), pp. 574-582 : 575-576

Ecpatia grisescens sp. n. Pellinen

Barcode Index Number: BOLD:ADL2288

( Figs 1 a–b, 6 a–b and 7)

Type material. Holotype male: Thailand, Lampang, Chae Hom , 09.xi. 2016, 350 m, 18°43’25’’N, 99°32’44’’E, M. J. Pellinen leg., genitalia slide MJP1005. In coll. Pellinen ( Finland). The holotype will be deposited in a public museum . Paratypes: 30 males and 8 females, all specimens collected by first author. Males: Chiangmai, Thoeng Dang, 02.iv. 2006, 500 m, 19°39’52’’N, 99°12’14’’E, Lampang, Phraya Chae, 20.x. 2009, 350 m, 18°17’75’’N, 99°56’02’’E, genitalia slide MJP174, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 21.ix. 2010, 240 m, 18°18’15’’N, 99°31’06’’E, idem. 20.v.2011 , idem., 29.v.2013 , idem. genitalia slide MJP812, idem., 09.vi.2014 , Lampang, Chae Hom, 27.ix. 2014, 350 m, 18°43’25’’N, 99°32’44’’E, genitalia slide MJP838, idem., 07.x.2014 , idem., 17.x.2014 , idem., 01.xi.2014 , idem., 14. iii.2015 , genitalia slide MJP829, idem., 14.iii.2015 , genitalia slide MJP994, idem., 09.v.2015 , idem., 26.vi.2015 , idem., 26.vi.2015 , idem., 26.vi.2015 , genitalia slide MJP730, idem., 26.viii.2015 , Lampang, Phraya Chae, 23.xi. 2016, 350 m, 18°17’75’’N, 99°56’02’’E, Lampang, Chae Hom, 26.xi. 2016, 350 m, 18°43’25’’N, 99°32’44’’E, idem., 26.xi.2016 , genitalia slide MJP1004, idem., 17.xii.2016 , genitalia slide 1012, idem., 29.vii.2017 , idem., 09.ix.2017 , genitalia slide 1252, idem., 18.xi.2017 , idem., 24.ii.2018 , genitalia slide MJP1256, idem., 14.iv.2018 , idem., 25.v.2018 , idem., 25.v.2018 , idem., 14.x.2018 , idem., 27.x.2018 ,. Females: Lampang, Muban Phichai, 21.iii. 2011, 240 m, 18°18’15’’N, 99°31’06’’E, Lampang, Chae Hom, 04.v. 2015, 350 m, 18°43’25’’N, 99°32’44’’E, M. J. Pellinen leg., genitalia slide MJP825,, idem., 26.vi.2015 , idem., 26.vi.2015 , genitalia slide MJP731, idem., 18.vii.2015 , Lampang, Chae Hom, 12.ix. 2015, 350 m, 18°43’25’’N, 99°32’44’’E, M. J. Pellinen leg., idem., 17.x.2015 ., idem., 27.x.2018 . Paratypes in coll. Pellinen ( Finland). All type specimens have red or green rectangle label, indicating the type status (holotype / paratype) .

Morphological diagnosis. Ecpatia grisescens is slightly smaller than other Ecpatia species. Externally it differs in having dark hindwings; all other known Ecpatia species have at least some part of the hindwing white. It has forewing markings, with a small faint red blotch between orbicular and reniform stigma, unlike other Ecpatia species. As in other congenera, the penicular process bears strong setae, separated from the sacculus by a distinct constriction. Ecpatia grisescens is bilaterally asymmetrical with respect to the harpe, as in E. elliptica . Female genitalia have no signum in the corpus bursae (otherwise a common feature to other Ecpatica species), which is pyriform and partly corrugated.

Genetic characterization. Sequences of the two barcoded specimens of E. grisescens are identical. Among five species occurring in Thailand, the barcode sequence of E. grisescens is most similar to that of E. spiculivalva (6.73%). Among 10 species of Ecpatia (described or putative) available in to us BOLD, the most similar are E. dulcistriga and E. melas (both differing by 6.06% from E. grisescens ).

Description. External characters. Wingspan of both sexes 22–24 mm. Frons smooth, lower half whitish with narrow scales and upper half grey with wide scales. Labial palps upturned, medium size, covered with grey-brown scales mixed with some white, third segment less than half the length of second segment. Antennae of males fasciculate and filiform in females, cilia in males about 1.5x the length of flagellomere. Otherwise sexes are externally similar. Thorax grey-brown with broad scales, patagia and tegulae of same color. Legs grey-brown, with whitish tips on segments. Forewing grey with dark brown patches between black lines. Orbicular stigma small, reniform obscure with posterior reddish spot. Postmedial line wavy and double, cilia grey. Hindwing uniformly grey-brown, except for small faint dot dorsally, terminal line blackish, cilia grey. Underside pale greyish-brown. Vein M2 on hindwing present, almost equidistant between M1 and M3, weaker compared to other veins, arising from close dstans of mcell. Abdomen similar in color to the wings, with tuft of scales on tergites 4–7, underside color grey, mixed with white scales. Male genitalia. ( Figs. 5 a–b) Uncus narrow, bent, apically sharp, penicular process in tegumen obtuse triangular, juxta roundish, valvae with distally notched plate at the basal area of the costal margin, sacculus terminating in strong harpe, bifid on the right side only, cucullus axe-shaped with setae, separated distally from the sacculus by a narrow constriction. Saccus v-shape, narrow. Aedeagus: vesica with two cornuti and small round patch. Female genitalia. ( Fig. 6 ) Papillae anales triangular, sharp, setose, apophyses posteriores slightly longer than apophyses anteriores, ostium bursae broad, ventrally cleft, ductus bursae short, corpus bursae pyriform, corrugated, without basal appendix.

Etymology. The species name refers to grey color of the adults.

Distribution. North Thailand. Specimens were collected in various biotopes between 240–350 m, all year round. It is most commonly encountered Ecpatia species in Northern Thailand.

Biology. Pre-imaginal stages of the new species are unknown.

Remark. Figure of this species is illustrated in the Moths of Thailand Vol. 3, part two ( Kononenko & Pinratana 2013) erroneously as Beana nitida Tams , plate 21, fig. 51.

Figures

FIGURES 1–5. 1a. Ecpatia grisescens sp. n., paratype male (Thailand, Lampang, Chae Hom, 07.x.2014.), wingspan 23 mm. 1b. E. grisescens sp. n., paratype female (Thailand, Lampang, Chae Hom, 26.vi.2015), wingspan 24 mm. 2a. E. spiculivalva sp. n., paratype male (Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 12.vi.2013), wingspan 24 mm. 2b. E. spiculivalva sp. n., paratype female (Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 23.v.2015), wingspan 24 mm. 3a. E. sciachroa male (Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 30.v.2009), wingspan 27 mm. 3b. E. sciachroa female (Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 29.vi.2011), wingspan 27 mm. 4. E. obscura male (Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 02.iii.2011), wingspan 26 mm. 5. E. longinquua male (Japan, Kagoshima pref. Amamioshima Is. 08.vi.2010, Teruhiko Fukuda leg.)

FIGURES 6–9. 6a. Male genitalia of E. grisescens sp. n., slide MJP1012 (paratype, Thailand, Lampang, Chae Hom, 17. xii.2016), 6b. aedeagus slide MJP1012 (paratype). 7. Female genitalia, slide MJP825 (paratype, Thailand,Chae Hom,04.v.2015. 8a. Male genitalia of E. spiculivalva sp. n., slide MJP109 (paratype, Thailand, Lampang, Muban Phichai, 09.vii.2009), 8b. aedeagus slide MJP109 (paratype). 9. Female genitalia, slide MJP1020 (paratype, Thailand, Chae Hom, 23.v.2015).