Phlogophora costalis ( Moore, 1882 )

Bandyopadhyay, Uttaran, Dey, Rushati, Bhattacharyya, Kamalika, Mallick, Kaushik, Mazumder, Arna, Gayen, Subrata, Das, Moumita, Raha, Angshuman, Sanyal, Abesh Kumar, Kumar, Vikas, Uniyal, Virendra Prasad & Chandra, Kailash, 2021, Taxonomy and ecology of genus Phlogophora Treitschke, 1825 (Lepidoptera Noctuidae) in Indian Himalaya with description of a new species, Zootaxa 5004 (2), pp. 311-342 : 316

Phlogophora costalis ( Moore, 1882)

[ Fig. 4 , 25, 26 ]

Chutapha costalis Moore, 1882 , Descr. Indian Lep. Atkinson, (2): 131. [Type species of Chutapha ]

Euplexia olivacea Leech, 1900 , Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., (1): 84.

Chutapha costalis Moore : Hampson, 1908, Cat. Lepid. Phalaenae Br. Mus., 7: 495.

Chutapha olivacea (Leech) : Hampson, 1908, Cat. Lepid. Phalaenae Br. Mus., 7: 496.

Phlogophora costalis (Moore) : Yoshimoto, 1992, in Haruta, Tinea , 13: 59.

Phlogophora costalis (Moore) : Fibiger & Hacker, 2007, Noct. Eur., 9: 186.

Type locality: Darjiling [=Darjeeling, India, West Bengal] .

Material examined: India: 3 ♂♂, Uttarakhand, Dist. Pithoragarh, Askot Wildlife Sanctuary, Jimjhini , 29.92121° N, 080.39719° E, 2627 m, 18. VI. 2018; coll. A. K. Sanyal & team .

1 ♂, Sikkim, Dist. West Sikkim, Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve, Yuksom , 27.37864° N, 088.22087° E, 1879 m, 19. XI. 2019; coll. A. K. Sanyal & team .

2 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀, West Bengal, Dist. Darjeeling, Singalila National Park, Chitre , 26.99126° N, 088.11189° E, 2295 m, 15. V. 2018 ; 1 ♂, Meghma , 27.03270° N, 088.08314° E, 2971 m, 18. V. 2018 ; 6 ♂♂, 1 ♀, Gairibas , 27.05090° N, 088.03360° E, 2494 m, 21. V. 2018; coll. K. Bhattacharyya & team.

1 ♂, Arunachal Pradesh, Dist. Dibang Valley, Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve, Anini , Amika , 28.76411° N, 095.96115° E, 3070 m, 05. VI. 2018; coll. S. Gayen & team .

Diagnosis: Wing expanse: Male: 38–40 mm. This species closely resembles P. humilis but can be distinguished by relatively less elongated forewing and the pale olive-green forewing ground colour with paler costal border. Fresh specimens are with more prominent olive-green suffusion. However, P. costalis can be distinctly told apart from humilis by having an indistinct postmedial line just before the marginal dark suffusion of hindwing.

Male genitalia: Uncus narrow, hook shaped; valva spindle shaped with typical harpe-digitus complex which is characterized by a slender, distally bent harpe and a triangular digitus from the middle of valva extended beyond the saccular margin; aedeagus vesica moderately scobinate with a patch of minute cornuti.

Distribution: India: Uttarakhand, Sikkim, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh ( Moore 1882; Kirti et al. 2014).

Global: Nepal, China ( Leech 1900; Yoshimoto 1992).

Bionomics: Distributed from Western to Eastern Himalaya, preferably within a wide altitudinal range of 1500–3000 m with annual mean temperature of 9–16 ºC and annual precipitation of 1100– 2600 mm. Individuals were active all through the year mainly in Wet Temperate Forest and rarely up to sub-alpine zone in Eastern Himalaya, with population blooms detected in May and October.

Figures

FIGURES 3–10. Habitus images of Phlogophora spp. 3. Phlogophora nobilis Hreblay & Ronkay, 1998; 4. Phlogophora costalis (Moore, 1882); 5. Phlogophora humilis Hreblay & Ronkay, 1998; 6. Phlogophora meticulodina (Draudt, 1950)*; 7. Phlogophora conservuloides (Hampson, 1898); 8. Phlogophora distorta (Moore, 1881); 9. Phlogophora szecsenyii (Hreblay & Ronkay, 1998); 10. Phlogophora sinuata (Moore, 1882). *Image procured from Dr Péter Gyulai, Hungary, through personal correspondence.

FIGURES 23–30. Male genitalia images of Phlogophora spp. 23–24. Phlogophora nobilis Hreblay & Ronkay, 1998, West Bengal, Gen. prep. SN/MND21/1/29.X.18/60; 25–26. Phlogophora costalis (Moore, 1882), West Bengal, Gen. prep. SN/ GAR24_2/2/21.V.18/37; 27–28. Phlogophora humilis Hreblay & Ronkay, 1998, West Bengal, Gen. prep. SN/PAL19_1/1/03. XI.18/166; 29–30. Phlogophora meticulodina (Draudt, 1950), Sichuan, China, Gen. prep. GYP 5267*. *Image procured from Dr Péter Gyulai, Hungary, through personal correspondence.