Monopetalotaxis Wallengren, 1859

Bartsch, Daniel, 2013, Revisionary checklist of the Southern African Sesiini (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) with description of new species, Zootaxa 3741 (1), pp. 1-54 : 23

Monopetalotaxis Wallengren, 1859

Type species. Monopetalotaxis wahlbergi Wallengren, 1859 , by monotypy.

Literature. Wallengren 1859: 135; Hampson 1919: 58; Dalla Torre & Strand 1925: 7; Gaede 1929: 520; Naumann 1971: 21; Heppner & Duckworth 1981: 42; Fletcher & Nye 1982: 105; Vári, Kroon & Krüger 2002: 67; Pühringer & Kallies 2004: 44.

Redescription. Medium sized robust clearwing moths of distinct wasp-like appearance. Head with frons 1.5–1.7× the diameter of the eye; haustellum very short, weakly sclerotized and non-functional; labial palpus proximally slightly upturned, distally straight; first and third palpomere equal in length, second one somewhat longer, first and second dorsally somewhat rough, ventrally rough with medially appressed and partially hair-like scales, terminal palpomere smooth; antenna clavate, strong and relative short, in male ciliate, unilaterally pectinate, only anterior row of rami present, rami proximally very long, distally tapering, lacking at tip, densely covered with minute ciliae ( Figs 97 , 104 ); female antenna without pectination or ciliae. Thorax and abdomen compact; abdomen cylindrical, all segments with yellow posterior margins; anal tuft developed, but rather small. Legs strong; mid- and hind tibia and first hind tarsomere with tufts of long and rough, hair-like scales; all pairs of spurs with lateral spur half as long as mesal one. Forewing with transparent areas and apical area well developed; longitudinal transparent area extends to discal spot; anterior one with fine longitudinal scale line medially; external one round; discal spot narrow, distally red; hindwing with discal spot short and small. Wing venation ( Fig. 89 ) with forewing veins R1– R3 approximated, R4 and R5 short stalked, veins M1 to CuA1 arise equally spaced from cross vein; hindwing with very short common stalk of M3 and CuA1.

Male genitalia ( Fig. 119 ). Tegumen short and broad, distally ventrad curved; gnathos absent; uncus ventrad angled about 80°, rather short, somewhat flexibly linked with tegumen, ventro-lateral edges with short rows of thorn-like, basad pointing, in particular proximally extremely long setae; valva distally enlarged, mushroomshaped, ventral margin straight, subdistally constricted, dorsal margin concave, distal margin round, distal margin and dorso-apical part of inner surface covered with basad pointing, thorn-like setae; juxta broad somewhat triangular, manica with numerous short spines; saccus short and broad, apically rounded; phallus thick, slightly s-curved with short, somewhat bilobed coecum penis; vesica dorso-proximally with u-shaped sclerotization.

Female genitalia ( Fig. 130 ). Papillae anales and segment eight broad; lamella postvaginalis forming a broad, triangular plate; posterior apophyses somewhat longer than anterior pair; ostium bursae broad, funnel-shaped; ductus bursae short with well sclerotized, short, anteriorly wide antrum; bursa copulatrix oval, without signum. The abdomen of the examined female contained more than five-hundred eggs.

Diagnosis. Putative synapomorphies are: (1) antenna relative short, unilaterally pectinate only anterior row of rami present, rami basally extraordinaryly long, lacking at tip; (2) tegumen distally angled; (3) setae of uncus extremely long, thorn-like; (4) setae of valva thorn-like, dorso-apically and located at distal margin; (5) unique, mushroom-like shape of valva.

Species of Alonina , in particular the superficially similar Alonina luteopunctata and A. pyrocraspis , are easily distinguished by the presence of a functional haustellum and by the longer and narrower, in males slightly serrate and not pectinate antennae. A rather similar structure of the antennae can be found in Lamellisphecia Kallies & Arita, 2004 and Clavisphecia Kallies, 2011 from the Oriental region. However, the genitalia of these two genera are significantly different, showing no close relationship to Monopetalotaxis .

Distribution and biology. The range of the only known species, M. doleriformis , extends in the south-eastern parts of Africa, from Natal to southern Zimbabwe. It may also occur in the subtropical regions of Mozambique. The Biology is unknown.

Remark. Based on the male genitalia of Alonina luteopunctata (as Monopetalotaxis ), but without the knowledge of the type species, Freina (2011) placed Monopetalotaxis in Sesiini . This is confirmed here.

In the current understanding Monopetalotaxis contains only a single species, M. doleriformis . Other species, which were previously assigned to this genus by various authors (e.g. Hampson 1919, Heppner & Duckworth 1981, Pühringer & Kallies 2004, Freina 2011) belong to the genera Alonina , Felderiola and Vespanthedon .

Figures

FIGURE 119. Male genitalia of Monopetalotaxis doleriformis (Walker, 1856).

FIGURES 92–98. Male antennae: (92) Alonina pyrocraspis (Hampson, 1910); (93) Alonina rygchiiformis Walker, 1856; (94) Anaudia felderi Wallengren, 1863; (95) Austrosetia semirufa Felder & Felder, 1874; (96) Felderiola candescens (Felder & Felder, 1874); (97) Monopetalotaxis doleriformis (Walker, 1856); (98) Hagnogyna bartschi (Freina, 2011).

FIGURES 99–106. Scanning electron microscope pictures of antennae: (99) Cicinnoscelis flavipes new sp., #f holotype; (100) Alonina rygchiiformis Walker, 1856; (101) Anaudia felderi Wallengren, 1863; (102) Austrosetia semirufa Felder & Felder, 1874; (103) Felderiola karooensis new sp.; (104) Monopetalotaxis doleriformis (Walker, 1856); (105) Hagnogyna bartschi (Freina, 2011); (106) Sesia bembeciformis (Hübner, 1803).

FIGURES 84–91. Wing venations: (84) Cicinnoscelis longipes Holland, 1893; (85) Alonina rygchiiformis Walker, 1856; (86) Anaudia felderi Wallengren, 1863, syntype; (87) Austrosetia semirufa Felder & Felder, 1874; (88) Felderiola candescens (Felder & Felder, 1874); (89) Monopetalotaxis doleriformis (Walker, 1856); (90) Hagnogyna sanguicosta (Hampson, 1919); (91) Vespanthedon cerceris Le Cerf, 1917, holotype.

FIGURES 130–131. Female genitalia of Monopetalotaxis Wallengren, 1859 and Hagnogyna new gen.: (130) Monopetalotaxis doleriformis (Walker, 1856): (131) Hagnogyna sanguicosta (Hampson, 1919).