Leona maracanda Hewitson, 1876

Cock, Matthew J. W., Congdon, Colin E. & Collins, Steve C., 2014, Observations on the biology of Afrotropical Hesperiidae (Lepidoptera). Part 6. Hesperiinae incertae sedis: palm feeders, Zootaxa 3831 (1), pp. 1-61 : 51-52

Leona maracanda Hewitson, 1876

This species is found from Côte d’Ivoire Nigeria, Cameroon, Angola (TL), DR Congo and Zambia ( Larsen 2005). The material from western Zambia, which was reared by TCEC, probably represents an undescribed subspecies ( Heath et al. 2002).

Food plant. TCEC found the food plant to be a rattan palm, Eremospatha sp. , in western Zambia, which Heath et al. (2002) refer to as a ‘rattan palm’ and Vande weghe (2010) as Arecaceae .

Life history. The ovum in Figure 51.1 is laid on the leaflet upper surface, but we do not have enough observations to say this is consistently the case; it is domed and relatively tall compared with Zophopetes dysmephila ( Figure 4.1 ). In the final instar ( Figure 51.3–4 ), the dorsal surface is shining white (cuticle colouring not white waxy powder), and the spiracles are black, thus differing from the younger caterpillars ( Figures 51.2–3 ). The head is c. 4.2 x 5mm wide x high; plain pale orange-brown throughout; the black marking on the pronotum widens laterally.

The pale brown pupa ( Figure 52 ) has a strong, blunt frontal projection, the thoracic sutures are dark, and the abdomen has scattered dots and dark transverse lines, both of which are actually very small dark indentations, the latter arranged in rows.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Feeding signs and food plants of Zophopetes dysmephila on the campus of the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Gigiri, Nairobi, 15 Nov 2013, MJWC 13/03–04. 1, remains of leaf shelter and feeding characteristic of Hesperiinae on palms, in this case on Chamaerops humilis (compare with Figure 5.5); 2, clump of Phoenix reclinata, 3, P. sylvestris; 4, solitary form of C. humilis.

FIGURE 51. Ovum and caterpillars of Leona maracanda, collected on Eremospatha sp., Chikonke stream, north-west Zambia, 17 May 2000 [TCEC]. 1, ovum, lateral view; 2, young caterpillar (instar 2 or 3), dorsolateral view; 3, Final instar, detail of head, frontal view; 4, Final instar caterpillars, dorsal (above) and dorsolateral views.

FIGURE 52. Pupa of Leona maracanda, collected on Eremospatha sp., Chikonke stream, north-west Zambia, 30 May 2000 [TCEC]. 1, dorsal view; 2, lateral view.