Evecliptopera Inoue, 1982

CHOI, SEI-WOONG, 2001, Phylogeny of Eulithis Hübner and Related Genera (Lepidoptera: Geometridae), with an Implication of Wing Pattern Evolution, American Museum Novitates 3318, pp. 1-40 : 30

Evecliptopera Inoue

Figures 10B , 15B

Evecliptopera Inoue, 1982, Moths of Japan 1: 484. Type species: Cidaria decurrens Moore, 1888, Descr. New Indian Lepid. Insects Coll. late Mr. W.S. Atkinson (3): 276, by original designation .

DIAGNOSIS: Species of Evecliptopera are distinguished by long labial palps, the absence of sexual tufts on underside of male forewing, and the wings’ blackish ground color, with many oblique lines. Members of the genus are similar to Eustroma in the wing pattern, but differ in the absence of sexual tufts, the yellowish marking at the termen of forewing, and the presence of coremata on the male eighth sternite. The male genitalia of Evecliptopera (fig. 10B) are distinguished by the long, triangular tegumen, the shallow saccus, V­shaped connection between anellus lobe and juxta, the expanded apical part of an anellus lobe, the slender, membranous valva, and two small groups of spinular cornuti on the vesica. The female genitalia (fig. 15B) are distinguished by the large, fork­shaped signum of the corpus bursae.

BIOLOGY: Members of the genus are bivoltine. In northern India E. decurrens was collected from December to February and from June to July; E. illitata from Japan and Korea in May and August. In Japan E. illitata occurs on Akebia ( Lardizabalaceae ) (Sato and Nakajima, 1987).

DISTRIBUTION: Members of the genus are known from northern India, Nepal, southwestern China ( decurrens ), Taiwan and the Far East countries ( illitata ).

DISCUSSION: In the present analysis, one species of Evecliptopera has seven autapomorphies: long labial palp; frons with mixed scales; dorsum of thorax and abdomen indistinct without white, parallel lines; yellow marking on the tornus of the forewing; wing pattern consisting of lines; membranous subscaphium; and two patches of cornuti. This genus seems to be monophyletic. Species of Evecliptopera are similar to Eustroma and Lobogonodes , but have distinctive wing markings on the tornus of the forewing, wing patterns, and male and female genitalia. One taxon, E. illitata , is upgraded to full species status. The original description (Wileman, 1911) was based on a single male specimen showing strikingly different wing pattern from the typical species of Evecliptopera . Inoue (1982) placed this taxon as a subspecies of E. decurrens . Genitalic examination of the holotype in the BMNH (genitalia slide number 19899) confirms that this species is an Evecliptopera , distinct from E. decurrens .

SPECIES INCLUDED:

decurrens (Moore, 1888)

illitata (Wileman, 1911) REVISED STATUS

= excurrens (Prout, 1930) NEW SYNONYMY

= insurgens (Prout, 1930) NEW SYNONYMY

ssp. acreta (Prout, 1940)

Figures

Fig. 10. Male genital capsule. Scale bar = 1 mm. A. Ecliptopera (= Gandaritis) atricolorata; B. Evecliptopera illitata; C. Eustroma (= Antepirrhoe) semiatratum; D. Eustroma melancholicum.

Fig. 15. Female genitalia. Scale bar = 1 mm. A. Eustroma (= Antepirrhoe) semiatratum; B. Evecliptopera illitata; C. Eulithis luteolata; D. E. explanata; E. E. (= Gandaritis) powellata.