Miltochrista hollowai ( Kirti & Gill, 2009 )

Singh, Santosh, Kirti, Jagbir Singh, Joshi, Rahul & Singh, Navneet, 2023, Taxonomic review of the Miltochrista hollowai and M. curvifascia species-groups with descriptions of two new species from India (Erebidae: Arctiinae: Lithosiini), Zootaxa 5315 (2), pp. 150-160 : 151

Miltochrista hollowai ( Kirti & Gill, 2009)

( Figs 1, 2 , 17, 18 )

Lyclene hollowai Kirti & Gill, 2009: 112 (Type locality: Saputara , Gujarat, India).

Material examined. India: Gujarat: Saputara , 29.xi.2015, 1 ♂, S. Singh leg. (11887/H10) ; Waghai , 3.xii.2015, 1 ♂, S. Singh leg. (11888/H10).

Diagnosis. Miltochrista hollowai is distinct from its closely similar species, M. madathumala sp. nov. and M. kumarkaustubhi sp. nov. due to the more apically rounded valva bearing a ventro-subapical spine (absent in both the similar species), and a short, heavily sclerotised and leaf-shaped distal saccular process.

Distribution. India: Gujarat ( Kirti & Gill 2009, Singh et al. 2021 and present study), Maharashtra ( Volynkin & Huang 2022).

Remark. In the original publication ( Kirti & Gill 2009) the adult image is of female, published erroneously as the females of M. hollowai are unknown, so far.

Figures

FIGURES 1–8. Miltochrista spp. adults. 1, M. hollowai ♂, India, Gujarat, Saputara (NZCZSI); 2, M. hollowai, ♂, India, Gujarat, Waghai (NZCZSI); 3, M. madathumala holotype ♂, India, Kerala, Ranipuram (NZCZSI); 4, M. madathumala paratype ♂, India, Kerala, Ranipuram (NZCZSI); 5, M. kumarkaustubhi holotype, ♂, India, Karnataka, Ganeshgudi (NZCZSI); 6, M. curvifascia ♂, India, Tamil Nadu, Thalamalai (NZCZSI); 7, M. curvifascia ♂, India, Odisha, Gajapati, Gumma (NZCZSI); 8, M. curvifascia ♀, India, Tamil Nadu (NZCZSI).

FIGURES 17–20. Miltochrista spp.: male genitalia. 17, M. hollowai ♂, India, Gujarat, Saputara; 18, M. hollowai, ♂, India, Gujarat, Waghai; 19, M. madathumala holotype ♂, India, Kerala, Ranipuram; 20, M. madathumala paratype ♂, India, Kerala, Ranipuram (NZCZSI).