Trisuloides Butler, 1881

Behounek, Gottfried, Han, Hui-Lin & Kononenko, Vladimir, 2011, A revision of the genus Trisuloides Butler, 1881 with descriptions of three new species from China (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae). Revision of Pantheinae, contribution I, Zootaxa 3069, pp. 1-25 : 3

Genus Trisuloides Butler, 1881

Trisuloides Butler, 1881 , Annals and Magazine of Natural History (5) 7: 36. Type-species: Trisuloides sericea Butler, 1881 , Annals and Magazine of Natural History (5) 7: 36, by monotypy. Syntypes, [ India]: Darjiling (BMNH); Assam, Shillong (BMNH).

Synonymy: Smilepholcia Prout, 1924 , in Prout & Talbot, Bulletin of the Hill Museum, Witley 1: 406.

Type-species: Trisuloides luteifascia Hampson, 1894 , Fauna Br. India (Moths) 2: 437, by original designation. Lectotype male, [ India]: [Assam], Khasis (BMNH), designated (as type) by Hampson, 1913, Catalogue of the Lepidoptera Phalaenae in the British Museum 13: 342, a junior synonym of Trisuloides catocalina Moore, 1883 .

The usage of the name Trisuloides in the old literature ( Warren 1912; Hampson 1913; Draudt 1937, 1950) was confusing and incorrectly associated with Tambana Moore 1882 and Anacronicta Warren, 1909 as synonyms, along with other related genera ( Anepholcia Prout, 1924 and Xanthomantis Warren, 1909 ). Prout & Talbot (1924), in a preliminary revision of Trisuloides , placed Trisuloides caerulea Butler, 1889 to the genus Disepholcia Prout, 1924 , but left albiplaga Warren, 1912 in Trisuloides (it is currently placed in Tambana: Speidel & Kononenko 1998 ). They also noted that Tambana catocalina Moore, 1882 (presently Antitrisuloides catocalina = polyphaenaria Warren, 1919) may belong to Trisuloides .

Sugi (1976) restricted the genus to T. sericea Butler, 1881 (type-species), associated with trigonoleuca Prout, 1922 , from Ceram, and hawkeri Prout, 1924, from Buru (both considered to be subspecies of sericea by Prout & Talbot 1924) and papuensis Warren, 1912 , known from southeast New Guinea. Sugi also described two new species T. rotundipennis Sugi, 1976 and T. taiwana Sugi, 1976 from Japan and Taiwan.

Poole (1989) incorrectly referred Tambana (type-species: Tambana variegata Moore, 1882 ( Fig 40, 43 ), Xanthomantis Warren, 1909 (type-species: Acronycta cornelia Staudinger, 1888 ( Figs 41, 44 , 71 ) and Disepholcia (type species: Trisuloides caerulea Butler, 1889 ( Figs. 39, 42 ) as junior subjective synonyms of Trisuloides . He listed 21 valid names in Trisuloides ; however, ten of these belong to Tambana ( albiplaga Warren, 1912 , albitessellata Hampson, 1913 , bella Mell, 1935 , c-album Leech, 1900, enoxantha Hampson, 1894, glauca Hampson, 1898 , klapperichii Mell, 1958 , subflava Wileman, 1911 , succinta Berio, 1983, and variegata Moore, 1882 ), three to Xanthomantis ( contaminata Draudt, 1937 = tamsi Park & Lee, 1977 , referred by Poole as full species, and cornelia Staudinger, 1888 ), one to Disepholcia ( caerulea Butler 1889 ), one to Anacronicta (pulcherrima Draudt, 1950), and one to Antitrisuloides Holloway, 1985 ( catocalina Moore1882 = polyphaenaria Warren, 1919). Only T. rotundipennis , T. papuensis Warren, 1912 , T. sericea Butler, 1881 ( sericea ssp. trigonoleuca A.E. Prout, 1922 , sericea ssp. hawkeri A.E. Prout, 1924), and T. taiwana listed by Poole (1989) belong to the genus Trisuloides . The name Smilepholcia A.E. Prout, 1924 with the type species Trisuloides luteifascia Hampson, 1894 (with catocalina Moore, 1883 , as synonym) was referred by Poole (1989) as a distinct genus containing luteifascia (currently in Trisuloides ) and burmana Berio, 1873 (currently placed in Tambana by Speidel & Kononenko (1998).

These positions were repeated by Chen (1982), who reported for China ten species of Trisuloides ; however, eight of these belong to Tambana , Anacronicta and Elydnodes . Subsequently Chen (1999) placed 11 species in Trisuloides , of which only sericea and zhangi belong to the genus, the other nine species belonging to Disepholcia , Xanthomantis and Tambana ; Trisuloides luteifscia in this work was placed in Smilepholcia ; Hua (2005) continued a similar treatment.

Speidel & Kononenko (1998) separated Trisuloides and Tambana as distinct genera, presented an updated checklist of Tambana from Vietnam, and illustrated Vietnamese species of Tambana with photographs of imagines and genitalia. Kononenko & Pinratana (2005) gave full status to Disepholcia , Xanthomantis and Tambana . Nevertheless, the genera Trisuloides and Tambana are often still confused.

To summarize, Trisuloides is a small Oriental pantheine genus distributed from Pakistan and North India to Japan and South Korea eastward and southward to Indonesia. In the current concept the genus contains 11 taxa: T. catocalina (North India, Thailand and Vietnam to Sumatra), T. serice a (wide ranging, Pakistan to Japan and Indonesia with subspecies trigonoleuca and hawkeri), T. rotundipennis ( Japan and Korea), T. taiwana ( Taiwan) , T. zhangi Chen, 1994 ( China) , T. papuensis ( Papua New Guinea) and three species from China described herein.

Diagnosis. Medium sized moths with brown-grey forewing and basally yellow with broad terminal band on hindwing. Wingspan 40–70 mm. By external morphology, i.e. structure of antennae, frons, labial palps, venation and wing pattern all species are very similar to each other, and in some cases hardly distinguishable. Antennae of male bipectinate, those of female filiform, fasciculate, labial palps short, compressed, 3rd segment short, less than half of length of 2nd; frons smooth, proboscis short, weakly developed; forewing broad; M 2 in hindwing well developed. Abdomen with crest formed by erected scales on 1–5 segments. Forewing dark brown, grey or brownish; hindwing yellow or yellowish-orange in basal part, with dark wide terminal band. In male genitalia uncus short, wide, with pointer apex or short, medially expanded; tegument broad, without peniculus, equal to vinculum in height; juxta shield-shaped, leaf-like or cordate; valva relatively short, lobe-like, narrower or abrupt apically; sacculus large, massive; costa with extremely developed sclerotised tongue-like editum, covered with strong setae; harpe directed longitudinally, heavily sclerotised, elongate, tooth or comb-like, serrate; Apex of valva rounded, without cucullus or corona. Aedeagus relatively short, massive, in some cases protruded apically; vesica tubularwide, with 1–2 small diverticula, projecting ventrally. In female genitalia papillae anales short, quadrangular; apophyses anterior and posterior ones short, equal in length; ductus bursae short, proximally sclerotised; corpus bursae large, saccular. Compared to Tambana , the male genitalia of Trisuloides have a short and massive uncus, the valva is relatively short and bearing the tongue-like and well developed editum (costal flap-like process). The harpe is digitate, comb-like, or tooth-like and serrated, positioned longitudinally in the middle of the valva. The aedeagus of Trisuloides is short and the vesica lacks cornuti, unlike Tambana . The monotypic genus Disepholcia (type-species Trisuloides caerulea Butler, 1889 ( Figs 39, 42 , 70 ) is closest to Trisuloides (see below).

Figures

FIGURES 39 – 44. Discepholcia, Tambana, Xanthomanthis, adults and male genitalia. 39 – Discepholcia caerulea, male, Thailand (AP); 40 – Tambana variegata, male, Vietnam (GR); 41 – Xanthomantis cornelia, male, South Korea (NIAST); 42 – Discepholcia caerulea, male genitalia, China, genit. prep. HHL- 1767 - 1 (NEFU); 43 – Tambana variegata, male genitalia, Vietnam, genit. prep. 378 Speidel (WS); 44 – Xanthomantis cornelia, male genitalia, South Korea, genit. prep. 94 - 1 (NIAST).

FIGURES 67 – 71. Trisuloides and Disepholcia, female genitalia. 67 – T. sericea, North India, genit. Prep. Z 4219 GB; 68 – T. rotundipennis, South Korea, genit. prep. HHL- 480 a- 2; 69 – T. becheri, China, genit. prep. HHL- 1508 - 2; 70 – Discepholcia caerulea, China, genit. prep. HHL- 1766 - 2; 71 – Xanthomantis cornelia, Russia, Primorye terr., 1295 IBP.