Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga ( Kernbach, 1966 )

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 : 175-176

Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga ( Kernbach, 1966) [云南öṣ天ẽDZƜ亚Ñ]

( Figures 33–36 , 39D–F )

Acosmeryx montivaga Kernbach, 1966 ; Ergeb. Forsch. Nepal Himal. Khumbu Himal., 1: 174; TL: ‘Jubing, Nepal’. Acosmeryx tibetana Chu & Wang, 1980 ; Acta zootaxon. Sinica, 5: 419; TL: ‘Nyalam, Xizang, China’.

Material examined. CHINA: 2♂♂, Chentang (2050m), Dinggyê county, Xizang Autonomous Region (2050m), 24-V-2024, Lu Liu leg. [ JZHC] .

Diagnosis. Male ( Figures 33–34 , 39D ): Morphologically similar to the nominotypical subspecies, but with a paler body coloration. The black band on the forewing upperside appears less distinct than in the nominotypical subspecies.

Female: Resembles the male but exhibits a slightly ochraceous hue. The wings are broader with a paler ground pattern, and the antennae are noticeably slenderer than those of the male.

Male genitalia ( Figures 35 , 39E–F ): Similar in general structure to the nominotypical subspecies, but with differences in the apical process of the phallus, which is sharp and tapered rather than blunt and multidentate as in the nominotypical subspecies. Additionally, the harpe is relatively wider and flatter, contrasting with the tapered, nearly rectilinear form observed in the nominotypical subspecies.

Distribution. China (SW Xizang), Nepal, Bhutan ( Figure 1 ).

Biological notes. This subspecies was collected in high elevation evergreen broad-leaf forest, attracted to light at night ( Figure 36 ).

Remarks. This subspecies was first recorded from China in Zhangmu, Nyalam, Xizang by IZAS (Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) based on two males ( Figure 34 ), and published as [ƦỄāh天ª] Acosmeryx tibetana Chu & Wang, 1980 (Chu & Wang, 1980; Chu & Wang, 1997). This was later synonymized with Acosmeryx yunnanfuana by Inoue (1990) and then with Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga by Haxaire, Melichar & Manjunatha (2021). In the present study, we provide detailed illustrations of the habitus and male genitalia of newly collected specimens in China, offering updated data since the initial IZAS records from several decades ago.

Figures

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

FIGURE 33. Habitus of Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga, male, Chentang, Dinggyê county, Xizang Autonomous Region, China. (A) Upperside; (B) underside. Scale bar = 10 mm.

FIGURE 34. HOLOTYPE of Acosmeryx tibetana Chu & Wang, 1980. (A–B), male, Nyalma, Xizang Autonomous Region, China; (C) Male, Zhangmu, Xizang Autonomous Region, China; (D) Drawing of male genitalia (Chu et Wang, 1997). © Tony Pittaway.

FIGURE 35. Male genitalia of Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga, Chentang, Dinggyê county, Xizang Autonomous Region, China. (A) Lateral view, left valve removed; (B) Left valve; (C) Phallus; (D) Anterior lobe of the process.

FIGURE 36. Habitat of Dahira yunnanfuana montivaga in Chentang, Dinggyê county, Xizang Autonomous Region, China.

FIGURE 39. Habitus and Male genitalia of Dahira yunnanfuana from China. (A–C) D. y. yunnanfuana, Kunming, Yunnan; (D– F) D. y. montivaga, Chentang, Dinggyê county, Xizang Autonomous Region; (G–I) D. y. indicus, Nyingchi, Xizang Autonomous Region.