Pteroteinon concaenira Belcastro & Larsen, 1996

Cock, Matthew J. W., Congdon, Colin E. & Collins, Steve C., 2014, Observations on the biology of Afrotropical Hesperiidae (Lepidoptera). Part 6. Hesperiinae incertae sedis: palm feeders, Zootaxa 3831 (1), pp. 1-61 : 46-48

Pteroteinon concaenira Belcastro & Larsen, 1996

This species was described from Ghana ( Belcastro & Larsen 1996) and is found from there, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria to western Uganda, north-western Tanzania and Zambia ( Larsen 2005). Pteroteinon concaenira is distinguished from P. ceucaenira and P. caenira by the presence of a white forewing band in the female, the other species having white spots. The male of nominate P. concaenira has a narrower forewing band than P. caenira . The Zambian material ( Figure 46 ) appears to represent an undescribed subspecies, having a much wider male forewing band than other populations. In Tanzania it is found in Kikuru and Munene forests, Kagera Region.

Food plants. TCEC found this species in western Zambia feeding on Raphia farinifera ( Heath et al. 2002) , and anticipates that it feeds on the same plant in Tanzania. Doubtless, this is the source of the record from Raphia in Vande weghe (2010).

Life history. An ovum ( Figure 47 ), caterpillars ( Figure 48 ) and an emerged pupa ( Figure 49 ) are shown. The caterpillars pull the sides of the end of a leaflet into a tube, in which they rest, eating the leaflet lamina basal to this. This leads to a much longer and more untidy tube than is made by other palm-feeders such as Zophopetes spp.

Figures

FIGURE 46. Adult male Pteroteinon concaenira, reared from caterpillar collected on Raphia farinifera, Hillwood, north-west Zambia, 28 Dec 2005 [TCEC].

FIGURE 47. Ovum of Pteroteinon concaenira collected on Raphia farinifera, Hillwood, north-west Zambia, 11 May 2000 [TCEC]. 1, lateral view; 2, dorsal view.

FIGURE 48. Caterpillars of Pteroteinon concaenira, collected on Raphia farinifera, north-west Zambia [TCEC]. 1, young instar, dorsal view; Lisombo Stream, 15 May 2000; 2, final instar, dorsolateral view, Hillwood, 24 Apr 2000; 3, final instar, dorsal view, as #2, 26 Apr 2000.

FIGURE 49. Emerged pupa of Pteroteinon concaenira, collected on Raphia farinifera, Ikelenge, north-west Zambia, 9 Aug 1999 [TCEC]. Note the frontal projection is missing; it is similar to that of P. caenira (Figure 46.1–2.