Rothinjoa leucomelas ( Rothschild & Jordan , 1915 )

Jiang, Zhuo-Heng, Xu, Zhen-Bang, Lin, Yi-Ting, Liu, Chang-Qiu, Wang, Xin & Hu, Shao-Ji, 2025, New records and notes of hawkmoths from China (Lepidoptera, Bombycoidea), Zootaxa 5673 (2), pp. 151-188 : 154-156

Rothinjoa leucomelas ( Rothschild & Jordan, 1915) [nDzsñ天ẽ]

( Figures 3–5 )

Poliana leucomelas Rothschild & Jordan, 1915 ; Novit. zool., 22: 283; TL: ‘Phnom Penh, Cambodia’.

Material examined. CHINA: 2♂♂, Nabanhe National Nature Reserve, Xishuangbanna ( 1070 m), Yunnan, 24- VIII-2024, Chang-Qiu Liu leg. [ LCQC, XZBC] .

Diagnosis. Male ( Figures 3A–B , 5 ): The head is greyish-black with white hairs. The thorax is similarly greyish-black with a prominent white patch dorsally on the upperside, while the underside is densely covered with white hair. The abdomen is greyish-black dorsally, with two wavy white stripes, a black lateral stripe on each segment, and a central black patch on the white underside. The forewing is narrow and triangular with a sharp apex; the outer margin is smooth, and the distal part of the inner margin is slightly concave. The upperside ground color is white, scattered with grey scales; a large black-greyish patch and a curved line are present in the basal area. The medial area contains a black zigzag line and an expanded black-greyish patch extending between veins M 3 and CuA 2. The discal spot is white, and there are two dark grey patches near the apex and tornus. On the underside, the ground color is brownish-black, with grey curved lines across the middle area, and yellow hairs cover the area from the basal to the tornus. The hindwing upperside is blackish, with a grey-white tornal area and two white oval patches near the tornus; the margin has alternating black and white hairs. The underside ground color is brownish-black, with grey curved lines in the medial area, and dense white scales are scattered from the base to the tornus.

Female ( Figures 2C–D ): Similar to the male but with broader wings, a slightly darker and more extensive ground pattern, and significantly more slender antennae.

Male genitalia ( Figures 3A–C ): The uncus and gnathos form the characteristic “bird-beak” structure typical of Sphinginae . The uncus is curved upwards with a sharp apical hook, while the gnathos is straight, shorter, and thicker, with a blunt apex. The valve is tongue-shaped, with the terminal part broader than the basal part and with a blunt apex. The sacculus is robust, apically divided into two sharp-hooked lobes; the longer upper lobe is curved and points upwards, while the shorter lower lobe is thicker and curves downwards. The phallus is slender, with a weakly sclerotized anterior lobe bearing tiny teeth dorsally and ventrally.

Distribution. China (S Yunnan), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam ( Figure 1 ).

Biological notes. Adults were collected from middle elevation subtropical rainforest, attracted to a light trap at night ( Figure 5 ).

Remarks. This species was initially classified within the genus Poliana Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 , before being reassigned to Rothinjoa by Zolotuhin & Ryabov (2012). Rothinjoa is a monotypic genus, previously recorded only in regions of the Indochina Peninsula and now, as documented in this study, in southern Yunnan, China ( Figure 1 ).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Geographic distribution of Smerinthinae and Sphinginae species included in this study.

FIGURE 2. Distribution of Macroglossinae species analyzed in this study.

FIGURE 3. Habitus of Rothinjoa leucomelas, male, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China. (A) Upperside; (B) underside. Scale bar = 10 mm.

FIGURE 4. Male genitalia of Rothinjoa leucomelas, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China. (A) Lateral view, left valve removed; (B) Left valve; (C) Phallus.

FIGURE 5. Habitat and living adult (male) of Rothinjoa leucomelas in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China.