Bryolymnia semifascia ( Smith, 1900 )

Lafontaine, Donald, Walsh, J. & Holland, Richard, 2010, A revision of the genus Bryolymnia Hampson in North America with descriptions of three new species (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Noctuinae, Elaphriini), ZooKeys 39 (39), pp. 187-204 : 202

Bryolymnia semifascia ( Smith, 1900)

Figs 20–22, 32, 40

Chytonix semifascia Smith 1900: 415 .

Type material. Lectotype ♁. USNM, examined. Designated by Todd (1982). Type locality: USA, Colorado, Garfield Co.

Other material examined and distribution. USA: Arizona: Cochise Co. (Huachuca Mts), Graham Co. ( Pinaleno Mts ), Pima Co. ( Santa Catalina Mts ), Santa Cruz Co. ( Atascosa , Patagonia , and Santa Rita Mts ), and Yavapai Co .; Colorado: Grand Co. and Garfield Co. New Mexico: Los Alamos Co. , and Socorro Co .; Utah: San Juan Co.

Diagnosis. Bryolymnia semifascia can be recognized by the brown forewing with blackish-brown shading and streaks, especially toward the hind margin of the wing, and usually with a contrasting white patch in the lower part of the medial area. The white patch, the best character to recognize this species, may consist of only a few scattered white scales, but in most specimens it covers most, sometimes all, of the lower half of the medial area. In many specimens light-gray scales form partial highlights to the otherwise obscure reniform and orbicular spots, and the postmedial and subterminal lines. Forewing length ranges from 11 to 14 mm. Th e hindwing is pale fuscous with darker fuscous on the veins, discal spot, postmedial line and wing margin with that of the female only slightly darker than in the male. Male genitalia. These are most similar to those of Bryolymnia anthracitaria . As in B. anthracitaria the dorsal surface of the clasper is serrated, the clasper is without a subbasal process, and the digitus is large and heavily sclerotized. The main differences from the genitalia of B. anthracitaria are that the dorsal surface of the digitus is densely hairy, the clasper in much smaller, and the vesica has only a single slender tapered cornutus. Female genitalia. The corpus bursae is rounded, about 0.6 × as long as the heavily sclerotized, parallel-sided ductus bursae, and gives rise to a rounded lightly sclerotized appendix bursae ventrally at the junction with the ductus bursae. The sclerotized plate in the ostium bursae has a wide V-shaped notch on the posterior margin.

Distribution and biology. Bryolymnia semifascia occurs from northern Colorado and southern Utah southward to southeastern Arizona and south-central New Mexico. Adults have been collected from mid-June to mid-September in conifer forests.