Condica capensis (Guenée 1852)

Rijllo, Giuseppe, Zucco, Giada & Scalercio, Stefano, 2024, Gone with the wind? Condica capensis (Guenée 1852), a migrant species new for Italy (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), Natural History Sciences 11 (1), pp. 61-64 : 62-64

Condica capensis (Guenée 1852) ( Noctuidae : Condicinae )

( Fig. 2 )

1 male, 01.XI.2023, Research Centre for Forestry and Wood, experimental farm, Trap A, contrada Li Rocchi, Rende, Cosenza, Italy, 205m a.s.l., 39.3674°N; 16.2279°E ( Fig. 3 ) .

From the 27 th to the 29 th October 2023 the wind map centred on Calabria showed the presence of West dominant winds at about 1500 m of elevation not compatible with a wind mediated migration event from North Africa to South Italy ( Fig. 4 ). The days immediately before the collecting night were characterized by strong southerly winds, likely favouring the northward migration of C. capensis and other species ( Fig. 4 ). Wind direction and speed at 1500 m of elevation seem to be better correlated than winds at 100 m of elevation for a wind-mediated migration of C. capensis in Italy ( Fig. 4 ), as already observed for several insect species ( Riley et al., 1983; Drake, 1985; Riley et al., 1995; Chapman et al., 2002; Feng et al., 2005). In detail, the most likely period for the arrival of our specimen in the study area was during the night between the 30 th and the 31 st of October when winds reached a speed of about 45 km /h and a temperature of 18.7 °C at 1500 m of elevation ( Fig. 5 ). During the same collecting night, we observed 21 macromoth species. Among them, eight species are migrant, namely Mythimna unipuncta (Haworth 1809) , Noctua pronuba (Linnaeus 1758) , Spodoptera exigua (Hübner [1808]) , Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel 1766) , Spodoptera cilium Guenée 1852 , Utetheisa pulchella (Linnaeus 1758) , Eilema caniola (Hübner [1808]) . Most of these species are usually found all over the year, but they are particularly abundant during late summer and early autumn ( Scalercio et al., 2007; Infusino & Scalercio, 2018; Zucco & Scalercio, 2023). Similarly, in 1958 it was found in Cornwall (south-western England) together with a massive migration of several other species, as it likely also occurred for the record of 1996 from Jutland, Denmark ( Fibiger & Hacker, 2007). The recent finding in France shares some similarity with that of ours. The specimen was collected at Leucate, île des Coussoules, Aude department, only one week before our record on 24 th of October, and also with other migrants such as Hellula undalis (Fabricius 1781) , Spoladea recurvalis (Fabricius 1775) , Utetheisa pulchella (Linnaeus 1758) , Earias insulana (Boisduval 1833) , Spodoptera cilium Guenée 1852 , and Garella nilotica (Rogenhofer 1882) ( Viallet, 2021) .

In its native range, C. capensis generally lives in open semi-desert areas covered by sparse vegetation and shows multiple generations ( Fibiger & Hacker, 2007). Nonetheless, migrant individuals can be found virtually everywhere. According to Fibiger & Hacker (2007), the larvae feed on Acanthus sp. pl. and Bidens pilosa L., but in India the species can also be found as a pest in plantations of sunflower Helianthus annus L. ( Rangarajan et al., 1975), safflower Carthamus tinctorius L. ( Balikai, 2000), and Bt cotton ( Kranthi et al., 2011). Due to the amplitude of the larval diet, attention should be paid to this species in the future to prevent potential threats to European agriculture.

Figures

Fig.2 -Condica capensis, male, Rende, Italy.Wingspan: 28 mm. / Condica capensis, maschio, Rende, Italia.Apertura alare: 28 mm.

Fig. 3 - Distribution of Condica capensis in Europe with year of record. Green circle:probably resident population; yellow circles:migrantindividuals; red circle: first migrant individual in Italy (from GoogleEarth). / Distribuzione di Condica capensis in Europa con anno di segnalazione. Cerchio verde: popolazione probabilmente residente; cerchi gialli: individui migranti; cerchio rosso: primo individuo migrante in Italia (da GoogleEarth).

Fig. 4 - Wind maps of the Mediterranean area from 27th October to 1st November 2023 at 20:00 h. Maps refer to wind at 1000 hPa/100 m of elevation (left) and at 850 hPa/1500 m of elevation (right) (Beccario, 2020). / Mappe dei venti dell’area mediterranea dal 27 ottobre al 1 novembre 2023 alle ore 20:00. Le mappe si riferiscono al vento a 1000 hPa/100 m di altitudine (a sinistra) e a 850 hPa/1500 m di altitudine (a destra) (Beccario, 2020).

Fig. 5 - Wind maps of Mediterranean area with air temperatures at 01:00 on 31st October 2023. Map refers to wind at 850hPa/1500 m of elevation (Beccario, 2020). / Mappe del vento nell’area mediterranea con temperature dell’aria alle ore 01:00 del 31 ottobre 2023. La mappa si riferisce al vento a 850hPa/1500 m di altitudine (Beccario, 2020).