Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta ( Haworth, 1809 )

Madruga, Janaína, Specht, Alexandre, Blas, German San, Mielke, Olaf H H & Casagrande, Mirna M, 2022, Revision of the species of Mythimna Ochsenheimer, 1816 (Pseudaletia Franclemont, 1951) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Noctuinae: Leucaniini) occurring in Brazil, Revista Brasileira de Entomologia (e 20220026) 66 (3), pp. 1-21 : 7-9

Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta ( Haworth, 1809) ( Figs. 5-7 )

Noctua unipuncta Haworth, 1809 . Lepid. Brit. 2, 174.- Hampson, 1905. Cat. Lep. Phalaenae 5, 547.

Leucania impuncta [sic]; Stephens, 1829. Illustr. Brit. Entomol. 3, 80.

Leucania unipuncta ; Stephens, 1829. Illustr. Brit. Entomol. 3, 338.- Butler, 1890. Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. 1890(4), 661.- Hampson, 1894. Fauna Brit. India 2, 275; syn.: Leucania extranea , Leucania antica , Leucania convecta , Leucania separata , Leucania adusta , Leucania consimilis , Leucania trifolii , Leucania saccharivora .- McDunnough, 1938. Mem. South. Calif. Acad. Sci. 1, 77; syn.: Leucania extranea .- Koutsaftikis, 1974. Ann. Goulandris Museum. 2, 96.- Poole, 1989. Lep. Cat. (n.s.) 118, Noctuidae 2, 844; syn.: Leucania extranea Guenée, 1852 , Leucania antica Walker, 1856 , Leucania unipuncta quechua Franclemont, 1951 , Leucania unipuncta tseki Koutsaftikis, 1974 .

Leucania extranea Guenée, 1852 . Hist. Nat. Ins., Spec. Gén. Lépid. 5, 77.- Walker,1856. List Spec. Lepid. Insects Coll.Brit. Mus. 9 ,93.- Hampson, 1894. Fauna Brit. India 2, 275.- Hampson, 1905. Cat. Lep. Phalaenae 6, 547.- Franclemont,1951. Proc. Ent. Soc.Wash. 53 ,65, lectotype,without sex or locality, deposited in USNM .- Viette, 1951. Bull. mens. Soc. Linnéenne Lyon 20(7), 159; lectotype female, Montevideo, coll. Feisthamel, MNHN.

Leucania antica Walker, 1856 . List Spec. Lepid. Insects Coll. Brit. Mus. 9, 100.- Hampson, 1894. Fauna Brit. India 2, 275.- Hampson, 1905. Cat. Lep. Phalaenae 5, 547.

Leucania unipuncta var.antica ; Butler, 1890. Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. 1890(4), 661.

Leucania unipuncta var. extranea ; Butler, 1890. Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. 1890(4), 662.

Cirphis unipuncta ; Hampson, 1905. Cat. Lep. Phalaenae 5, 547; syn.: Spaelotis punctulata , Leucania extranea , Leucania antica , Leucania convecta , Leucania separata , Leucania consimilis , Leucania trifolii , Leucania saccharivora , Leucania adultera .- Draudt, 1919. Gross-Schmetterlinge Erde 12, 167; syn.: Leucania extranea , Leucania antica , Leucania trifolii , Leucania adultera .- Specht and Corseuil, 1996. Biociências 4(2), 146.

Leucania unpuncta [sic]; Franclemont, 1951. Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. 53(2), 64.

Pseudaletia unipuncta ; Franclemont, 1951. Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. 53(2), 65, figs 10, 10a, 11, 11a (male gen.), 33 (female gen.); syn.: Leucania extranea .- Godfrey, 1972. Tech. Bull. 1450, 86.- Nye, 1975. Gen. Nam. Moth World 1, 410; lectotype male, Great Britain:[England] Anglia (BMNH).- Franclemont and Todd, 1983. Check List Lep. Amer. N. Mexico, 150.- Poole, 1989. Lep. Cat. (n.s.). 118, Noctuidae 2, 844; syn.: Leucania extranea , Leucania antica , Pseudaletia unipuncta quechua, Leucania unipuncta tseki.

Pseudaletia unipuncta antica ; Franclemont, 1951. Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. 53(2), 66, figs 12, 12a (male gen.), 34 (female gen.).

Pseudaletia unipuncta quechua Franclemont, 1951. Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. 53(2), 67, figs 13, 13a (male gen.).

Pseudaletia roraimae Franclemont, 1951 . Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. 53(2), 68, figs 15, 15a (male gen.).- Poole, 1989. Lep. Cat. (n.s.). 118, Noctuidae 2, 844. New synonymy.

Leucania unipuncta tseki Koutsaftikis, 1974 . Ann. Goulandris Museum 2, 96.

Mythimna (Pseudaletia) roraimae ; Hacker et al., 2002. Noctuidae Europaeae 4, 168.

Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta ; Hacker et al., 2002. Noctuidae Europaeae 4, 179.

Mythimna unipuncta ; Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010. Zookeys 40, 91.

Systematic history

Haworth (1809) described Noctua unipuncta , and later came the descriptions of Leucania extranea Guené, 1852 and Leucania antica Walker, 1856 . Stephens (1829) transferred N. unipuncta to Leucania . Butler (1890) mentions L. antica and L. extranea as varieties of L. unipuncta . Hampson (1905) and Draudt (1919) transferred it to Cirphis Walker, 1865 and treat these variations, var.saccharivora Butler, 1882 , var. trifolii Butler, 1882 , var. convecta Walker, 1857 and var. separata Walker, 1865 , as synonyms of Cirphis unipuncta . Franclemont (1951) in a thorough study that included genitalia morphology, revealed the incorrect classification in Cirphis , given that the American species do not correspond to the description of this genus. Thus, Franclemont (1951) described the genus Pseudaletia , designating Noctua unipuncta as its type species; he also revalidated Leucania antica as a subspecies of Pseudaletia unipuncta and described Pseudaletia unipuncta quechua and Pseudaletia roraimae . Leucania unipuncta tseki was described by Koutsaftikis in 1974; this species and the above-mentioned subspecies were treated as synonyms of Pseudaletia unipuncta by Poole (1989), while Hacker et al. (2002) cited unipuncta in Mythimna (Pseudaletia) , and Lafontaine and Schmidt (2010) considered it in Mythimna .

Type material

Noctua unipuncta Haworth, 1809 . Described from Anglia ( England) without any mention of the number of specimens and sex. Lectotype designated by Nye (1975) and deposited at the NHMUK, with the following labels: /NHMUK010354729/ Stainton Coll. 1893-134./ Type/ Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 896 ♂ / unipuncta [illegible]/.

Leucania extranea Guenée, 1852 . Described from North America, Brazil, Colombia, etc. (several collections), Java [Oceania], East Indies (Collections of the India Company), and Nouvelle Hollande [New York] (M.N. [MNHN]) without any mention of the number of specimens or their sex. Two lectotypes have been designated for this taxon, one by Franclemont (1951, published on April), without sex or locality, with the number 60993 and deposited at the USNM . The other was designated by Viette (1951, published on September); it is a female from Montevideo [ Uruguay], from Feisthamel collection, deposited at the MNHN. Thus, the first designation is valid, confirming what had already been said by Poole (1989). The lectotype designated by Franclemont (1951) was not found in the above-mentioned collection (Paul Goldstein, curator of the collection, personal communication, 2018).

Leucania antica Walker, 1856 . Described from the West Coast of the United States, without any mention of the number of specimens or their sex (NHMUK). Hampson (1905) cited 4 ♀ [syn]types from Venezuela deposited at the NHMUK; however, these specimens cannot belong to the type series, since they are not from the type locality. The series of syntypes from the West Coast of the US has not been found, rendering a lectotype designation impossible. In case its existence cannot be attested, a neotype should be designated.

Pseudaletia unipuncta quechua Franclemont, 1951. Subspecies described based on the male holotype from Incachaca, Cochabamba, Bolívia, a male from Napo, Equador, another male from Env[iron]. d’Ambato, Equador, two males and four females from Aqualani, Carabaya, Peru. Male holotype collected by J. Steinbach [leg], Type Nº. 60994, deposited at the USNM with the following labels: /Incachaca Cochabamba Bolivia JSteinbach/ Collection WmSchaus/ ♂ Genitalia Slide: USNM 1182 J. G. Franclemont/ HOLOTYPE Pseudaletia unipuncta quechua J. G. Franclemont/ USNMENT (QRcode) 00973212/.

Pseudaletia roraimae Franclemont, 1951 . Species described based on the male holotype from Monte Roraima, [Uiramutã], Roraima, Brazil, deposited at the AMNH, with the following labels: /Mt. Roraima, Brazil Alt. Summit 8860 No. 1927/ Acc.29780 Tate No./ ♂ Genitalia Slide A-69 J.G. Franclemont/ HOLOTYPE Pseudaletia roraimae J.G. Franclemont /. / NO. A-69 TYPE Pseudaletia roraimae Braz [il]. Franc[lemont]. DATE 19 jan 1951 J.G. FRANCLEMONT/.

Leucania unipuncta tseki Koutsaftikis, 1974 . Subspecies described based on the male [holotype] from de Simi, Greece, deposited at the Goulandris Museum, Greece. The [holotype] could not be found (Maria Dimaki, curator of the collection, personal communication, 2018) .

Diagnosis

Both sexes with beige or orange-beige forewings, mixed with dark scales. In males, cucullus with a straight dorsal margin, usually ending in a distal process; vesica with a basal diverticulum, bearing more than four cornuti, all closely positioned, the distalmost cornutus being thinner and longer.

Description

MALE. Head: Beige or orange-beige, mixed with dark scales of different hues.Eyes brown and pilose. Antenna beige dorsally and brown ventrally, both surfaces bearing microsetae. Thorax: Ground color as head; patagium with dark subapical line. Forewing: length 2cm (n=1). Ground color beige to orange-beige, mixed with dark scales of different hues, postmedial line as dark spots over the veins and terminal line as dark spots between veins, other transversal lines absent; with an oblique line of dark scales from the apex to M 2, rarely with an anterior area lighter than ground color; a dark patch with a spot of central white scales next to the bases of M 2 and M 3; dark patch over cubital vein absent in most specimens; orbicular and reniform spots circular, inconspicuous, orange with smooth darker center; subterminal area of the wing with white or light beige scales over the veins; fringe beige with dark medial and terminal lines. Hindwing: pale, with a marginal brown shading toward the base; fringe pale. Abdomen: Dorsally greyish-beige; ventral view as head, with two black transversal lines subventral. Genitalia: Tegumen and uncus fused, the former wider than base of uncus, ventral arms robust in posterior view, covered with setae near the articulation with the dorsal arm of saccus. Saccus round and bent toward the ventral arm of the tegumen, with an irregular distal portion, twisted toward its inner surface. Uncus elongated, flat and bent ventrally, widened on medial area, apical half abruptally narrowed to 1/5-1/6 of its width, covered with setae dorsally. Valva subtriangular; sacculus projected ventrally, forming an oval lobe; cucullus elongated, with a straight dorsal margin and usually ending in a distal process; distal portion lobate, corona present, with multiple rows of spines; clasper short; ampulla distinct, as a small ear-shaped dorsal projection; digitus slim, as long as clasper. Fultura inferior (=juxta) subtriangular, with approximately one third the length of the ventral arm of the tegumen and thrice as long as its smallest width, distal portion bifid. Aedeagus pipe-shaped; vesica tubular and elongate, with a continuous band of cornuti from posterior the diverticulum to subapical area, basal diverticulum elongate, with over four closely arranged cornuti, the distalmost thinner and longer than the others.

FEMALE. Similar to male. Forewing length 1.8cm (n=1). Abdomen: Genitalia almost totally sclerotized. Eighth tergite straight and narrow. Papilla analis subtriangular covered with setae. Lamella antevaginalis subrectangular.Ductus bursae sclerotized and with a wide fold at the last portion, which leads to appendix bursae; corpus bursae membranous and round; appendix bursae more than twice as long as ductus bursae, with its same width, sclerotized basally and with membranous apex. Ductus seminalis originating on appendix bursae apex.

Geographic distribution

Northern U.S.A. to North Brazil (Roraima), South and Southwest Europe, Western Asia, and Central Africa ( Franclemont, 1951; Capinera, 2006).

Host plants

Native and cultivated grass ( Poaceae ) such as barley, corn, rye, oat, rice, sugar cane, sorghum, and wheat, but there are cases of damage to other cultures such as carrot, bean, cabbage, celery, cucumber, sweet potato, pepper, and watermelon ( Capinera, 2006).

Discussion

Mythimna (P.) unipuncta , restricted to the extreme North of Brazil, is similar to Mythimna (P.) sequax , widely distributed in the country ( Madruga et al., 2019). However, both species are easily distinguished from each other through the exam of their genitalia, especially male genitalia. The former species differs in the basal diverticulum, which bears a sequence with more than four closely arranged cornuti, while in Mythimna . (P.) sequax it usually has one cornutus, rarely more, up to four. Yet, misidentifications are common in Brazilian collections, and all the revised records are of Mythimna (P.) sequax or, still, of Mythimna (P.) celiae sp. nov.

Pseudaletia roraimae syn. nov. has the male genitalia very similar to that of Mythimna (P.) unipuncta , and according to Franclemont (1951), the difference between them is represented by the robustness of the genitalia of P. roraimae . However, considering that the species was described based on a single male from Monte Roraima, [Uiramutã], Brazil, and no other specimen could be found in either the examined collections or the material collected, including that collected close to the type locality (Alto Alegre - Roraima), we opted for synonymizing it under Mythimna (P.) unipuncta .

The original description of Leucania extranea Guenée, 1852 mentions that it occurs in Brazil; however, since this material could not be found and given that there was no mention to the specific collecting site, the distribuition of Mythimna (P.) unipuncta in the country is restricted to the information of Mythimna (P.) roraimae .

Material examined

Images of the wings and genitalia of the lectotype of Mythimna (P.) unipuncta , of the “ syntype ” of Leucania antica , with the following labels: /NHMUK 010915614/ Type/ Agrotidae genitalia slide No 852/ Venezuela 47-9./ 52. Leucania antica ./ and of the holotype of Pseudaletia roraimae , in addition to the illustrations in Franclemont (1951) and molecular data from Bold Systems.

Figures

Figure 5 Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta. a - male lectotype in dorsal view. Scale bar = 1cm. b: male genitalia in posterior view with aedeagus in lateral view. Specimen from NHMUK 010354729. There is no scale in the genitalia.

Figure 6 Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta.a: female in dorsal view. Scale bar = 1cm. b: female genitalia in ventral view. Specimen identified as Leucania antica at the NHMUK 010915614. There is no scale of the genitalia.

Figure 7 Mythimna (Pseudaletia) unipuncta. a: male in dorsal view. b: male genitalia in posterior view with aedeagus in lateral view. Holotype of Pseudaletia roraimae at the AMNH 29780. There are no scales.