Pelagodes Holloway, 1996

Han, Hongxiang & Xue, Dayong, 2011, Thalassodes and related taxa of emerald moths in China (Geometridae, Geometrinae), Zootaxa 3019, pp. 26-50 : 33-34

Pelagodes Holloway, 1996

Pelagodes Holloway, 1996 , Malay. Nat . J., 49 (3–4): 261. Type species: Thalassodes aucta Prout, 1912 , by original designation. N.E. Himalaya.

Description. Head: Similar to that of Thalassodes . Thorax: Hind tibia with two pairs of spurs in both sexes. Male hind tibia not dilated, without hair-pencil and terminal extension. Wing pattern: Outer margin of both fore- and hind wings smooth; hind wing with outer margin slightly projecting at middle, straight or shallowly curved before middle, straight from middle to anal angle; inner margin elongated. Apex of forewing pointed or blunt, that of hind wing slightly protruding, rounded. Wings bluish green, semitransparent, diffused with white striations. Forewing with yellowish-brown costa; antemedial line directed obliquely distally, straight, sometimes indistinct; postmedial line straight. Hind wing with postmedial line straight or slightly wavy at upper half, bending proximally under CuA1, then wavy to inner margin. Fringes whitish to pale yellowish. Venter paler than dorsum, streaks on dorsum discernible. Venation identical to that of Thalassodes . Abdomen: Third sternite of male abdomen without setal patches. Eighth sternite usually with a pair of large pointed lateral processes, adorned with various small spines, occasionally smooth; tergite projecting, occasionally concave on posterior margin. Male genitalia: Uncus rod-like, slightly tapering posteriorly. Socii usually very broad and evenly wide, occasionally slightly tapering or threedimensional. Gnathos with sclerotized simple median process. Valva long and narrow; costa extending to form a sclerotized free arm at middle or near apex of valva; sacculus simple or slightly protruding anteriorly. Transtilla a pair of lightly sclerotized processes. Juxta sometimes with two sclerotized lateral processes on posterior margin. Saccus semicircular, occasionally with two tiny protrusions on the terminal margin. Coremata absent. Aedeagus short and thick, sclerotized posteriorly and sometimes spinulose; cornutus usually indistinctly shaped; coecum penis short and broad. Female genitalia: Region around ostium wrinkled, sclerotized, usually with developed sterigma. Lamella postvaginalis often containing a pair of deeply dentate lateral sclerites. Lamella antevaginalis often with small lateral processes. Ductus bursae short. Corpus bursae spherical, or elongate; signum bicornute or absent.

Diagnosis. On the wing pattern, Pelagodes is extremely close to Thalassodes , but it can be distinguished by lacking the red scales on the outer margin; unlike Thalassodes , the fringes are usually white or pale yellow, rather than the outer margin diffused with red, at least on the hind wing ( Holloway 1996). In the male genitalia, the very broad socii and the costal extension in Pelagodes distinguish it from the other three genera in this study. The eighth sternite is characterised by two large sclerotized lateral processes. The genus also lacks coremata and setal patches on the third sternite similar to Orothalassodes and Remiformvalva.

Distribution. China, Japan, India to South East Asia, New Guinea, Australia.