Ploneta Snellen, 1900

Wu, Jun & Han, Hui-Lin, 2023, New species and records of Paroxyplax Cai, 1984 (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) and its allies from China, with a checklist of the treated genera, Zootaxa 5254 (3), pp. 383-397 : 389-390

Genus Ploneta Snellen, 1900

Ploneta Snellen in Piepers & Snellen, 1900, Tijdschr. Entomol. 43 (1): 105.

Type species: Ploneta diducta Snellen, 1900 .

Darna (Ploneta) : Holloway, 1986. Malay. Nat. J. 40 (1–2): 137.

Note. The genus includes middle-sized moths and usually has sexual dimorphism: the female tending to have uniform brown forewings, and the males have a fine, pale postmedial line on generally darker ground. The tibial spurs are 0-2-4. In the male genitalia, the uncus and gnathos are more or less fused together, the rows of scales same as in Oxyplax and Darna are reduced or lost. In some members, e.g. diducta Snellen, 1900 , flavina ( Hering, 1931) , and bradleyi ( Holloway, 1987) , the tegumen has prominent socii. The costal process to the valva is more cylindrical than flattened, not down cross the interior face of the valva.

The male genitalia of P. hosei ( Holloway, 1987) and the external descriptions of P. cotesi ( Swinhoe, 1893) are very similar to that of Paroxyplax species. Perhaps, they belong to the genus Paroxyplax , but since the former one was described based on a single worn male, and we were not able to examine the types of both species, later examination of more material to determine the exact status is needed.

The genus is reported for the first time from China.