Phintia podarce Walker, 1854

Miller, James S, 2009, Generic Revision Of The Dioptinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuoidea: Notodontidae) Part 2: Josiini, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2009 (321), pp. 675-1022 : 790-791

Phintia podarce Walker , revised status Figures 329F, 329G , 330 ; plate 31 [EX]

Phintia podarce Walker, 1854: 306 .

TYPE LOCALITY: Brazil, Pará.

TYPE: Syntype ♀ ( BMNH).

Phintia cercostis Walker, 1854: 307 . New synonymy. TYPE LOCALITY: Brazil, Pará. TYPE: Syntype ♀, Bates Collection

(BMNH).

DISCUSSION: This species is here taken from Josia , where it had most recently been placed ( Bryk, 1930), and reassigned to Phintia following its original author ( Walker, 1854). Specimens of P. podarce are widely distributed across the world’s collections, but the moth rarely occurs in larges series. The holdings of the BMNH (23 specimens) and ZMH (13 specimens) are by far the largest. Males are much less common than females. The bulk of P. podarce material was collected in Brazil.

My examination of Walker’s P. cercostis and P. podarce types suggests that these are conspecific. Not only do they show identical wing patterns, but also both possess exactly the same (sparse) label data—‘‘ Pará ’’. In placing one of the names in synonymy, I have chosen podarce to take precedence over cercostis on the basis of page priority. At first it seems remarkable that Walker described these as distinct species, rather than treating them as a single entity. However, two factors were at work: First, this attests to the remarkable speed at which he was naming species. Second, since Walker was paid piecework for each genus and species described, there was little incentive to proceed with care. Within the Dioptinae , there are numerous species that he described more than once.

An AMNH female from Mexico exhibits genitalia differing from those of other Phintia species. This specimen not only represents a third species, but is also the first record of the genus for Central America. Its description will await the discovery of Central American males. Label data are as follows: Mexico, Veracruz, Presídio, Aug 1939, leg. C.C. Hoffmann, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-1510).

DISTRIBUTION: Brazil (BMNH, CAS, CUIC, CMNH, OUMNH, USNM, ZMC, ZMH); Peru (AMNH, CUIC, ZMH); French Guiana (AMNH, BMNH).

DISSECTED: ³, Brazil, Pará, Benevides , Oct 1918, leg. S.M. Klages, CMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-313 ) ; ³, Peru, Madre de Dios, 12 ° 51 9 S, 69 ° 18 9 W, 200 m, Tambopata Reserve , day coll., 6 Dec 1996, leg. A. V. Z. Brower, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-1746 ) ; ³, Peru, Achinamiza , 30 Aug 1927, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-1466 ) ; ♀, Brazil, Santarém , May 1919, leg. S.M. Klages, CMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-314 ) ; ♀, Peru, Achinamiza , 24 Aug 1929, ‘‘F6001’’, H. Bassler Collection, AMNH (genitalia slide no. JSM-1511 ) .

NOTASCEA MILLER , new genus

Figures

Fig. 329. Genitalia of Phintia. A, ³ of P. broweri (JSM-848); B, P. broweri ³ St8; C, aedeagus of P. broweri; D, ♀ of P. broweri (JSM-849); E, P. broweri ³ Tg8; F, P. podarce (JSM-313) ³ St8; G, P. podarce ³ Tg8 (illustration by J.S. Miller).

Fig. 330. Genitalia of Phintia podarce (³ JSM-1466, ♀ JSM-1511). A, ³ genitalia; B, aedeagus; C,