Acronicta (Viminia) lutea ( Bremer & Grey, 1852 )

Volynkin, Anton V., Stüning, Dieter & Matov, Alexej Yu., 2016, On the taxonomy of the genus Acronicta (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae). III. Acronicta lutea species group, Zootaxa 4193 (3), pp. 595-599 : 595-596

Acronicta (Viminia) lutea ( Bremer & Grey, 1852)

( Figs 5–7 , 17 –20, 25, 28)

Acronycta lutea Bremer & Grey, 1852 , in Motschulsky, Études Entomologiques, 1: 65 (Type-locality: China: Beijing). = Pharetra leucoptera Butler, 1881 , Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, 1881: 595 (Type locality: Japan,

Yokohama), syn. rev.

= Acronycta suigensis Matsumura, 1926 , Insecta Matsumurana 1: 4, pl. 1, fig. 4 (Type locality: S Korea, Suwon). = Acronycta metaxantha funesta Draudt, 1950 , Mitteilungen der Münchener Entomologischen Gesellschaft, 40(1): 11, pl. I: 13, 14.

(Type locality: China, Hunan province, Hoengshan ), syn. rev.

Type material examined. Lectotype of A. lutea ( Figs 5 , 17 ) (hereby designated): male, grey handwritten label with two printed black frames " Lutea , Nobis, Pekin [Beijing]" / grey handwritten label " Tatarinoff [leg.]" / whitish printed label "Coll. Acad. Petrop." / whitish printed label "coll. Grey " (in Russian) / (preserved in coll. ZISP) ; lectotype of A. metaxantha funesta (designated by Han & Kononenko 2010) ( Figs 6 , 20): male, Hoengshan , Prov. Hunan 25.iv.1933 (preserved in coll. ZFMK) ; paralectotype of A. metaxantha funesta : female, same locality, 18.vii.1933 (preserved in coll. ZFMK) ; holotype of P. leucoptera ( Fig. 2 ): male, handwritten yellowish label " Japan, Yokohama, H. Pryer, 81-94" / handwritten yellowish label " Yokohama, 81-94" / printed round white label with red ring " Type ", white printed label with QR-code " NHMUK 010604268 " (preserved in coll. NHM) .

Other material examined: specimens from Russia (Altai Territory, Altai Republic, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Amur Region, Khabarovsk and Primorye Territories), Mongolia ([ Ulaanbaator ] “ Urga ”), North Korea , China (Heilongjiang, Hunan, Shandong, Shaanxi), Japan ( Colls ZISP, NHM, ZFMK, AVB) .

Diagnosis. The species has forewing pattern typical for some other Viminia species, e.g., Acronycta rumicis (Linnaeus) and Acronycta indica (Moore) , but differs from them by its yellow hindwings ground colour. Externally, A. lutea , especially dark specimens, also resembles Acronycta catocaloida (Graeser) belonging to the subgenus Hylonycta Sugi , but differs clearly by its genitalia structure. Male and female genitalia are surprisingly very close to those of A. nigricans , the differences are listed in the diagnosis of the latter.

Note. The taxon leucoptera Butler described from Japan was treated as a subspecies of A. lutea by Sugi (1982), but later it was treated as a junior synonym of A. lutea ( Kononenko et al. 1998; Kononenko 2003; 2005; 2010; Han & Kononenko 2010). Acronycta metaxantha funesta was synonymized with A. lutea by Han & Kononenko (2010) on the basis of examination of the type specimens of funesta. Unfortunately, the authors did not publish any pictures of the lectotype and paralectotype of funesta. The comparison of the genitalia of the lectotype of A. lutea (5, 17), the lectotype of A. metaxantha funesta ( Figs 6 , 20) and Japanese specimens ( Fig. 2 ) confirmed the conspecifity of these three taxa.

Distribution. Russia (South Siberia, Transbaikalia, Russian Far East), Mongolia, NE and E China, Korea, Japan.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Acronicta spp.: adults. 1, A. lutea, lectotype male, China, Beijing (ZISP); 2, A. lutea, holotype male of leucoptera, Japan, Yokohama (© NHM); 3, A. lutea, male, lectotype of A. metaxantha funesta, China, Hunan (ZFMK); 4, A. lutea, female, Mongolia (ZISP); 5, A. nigricans, male syntype, China, Washan (© NHM); 6, A. nigricans, female syntype, China, Washan (© NHM); 7, A. nigricans, male syntype of A. regifica, China, Yunnan (ZFMK); 8, A. nigricans, female, China, Yunnan (ZFMK).

FIGURES 15 – 19. Acronicta spp.: female genitalia, ventral view (15 – 17) and magnified dorsal view with diagnostic features marked (18, 19). 15, A. lutea, Russia, Altai Mts, slide AV 1547 Volynkin; 16, A. lutea, Japan, Hokkaido, Oiwake, slide NHM Noct. 22097 Volynkin (© NHM); 17, A. nigricans, China, Likiang, slide ZFMK- 2290 - DS Stüning; 18, ditto; 19, A. lutea, slide AV 1547 Volynkin.