Telchin evalthe tica ( Lamas, 1995 )

García-Díaz, José De Jesús, Espinoza-Sanabria, Bernardo A., Worthy, Robert, González, Jorge M., Janzen, Daniel H. & Hallwachs, Winnie, 2024, Synopsis of the Castniidae (Lepidoptera) of Costa Rica, Zootaxa 5481 (2), pp. 151-202 : 162

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5481.2.1
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DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12752773
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scientific name	Telchin evalthe tica ( Lamas, 1995 )
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6. Telchin evalthe tica ( Lamas, 1995)

( Figs. 3A, 3B View FIGURE 3 , 11A, 11B, 11C View FIGURE 11 , 13C View FIGURE 13 )

Castnia (Xanthocastnia) viryi intermedia Rothschild, 1919 ; Rothschild, 1919. Novit. Zool. 26(1), p. 11.

Xanthocastnia viryi intermedia View in CoL ; Miller, 1995, in Heppner. Castnioidea: Castniidae View in CoL : Castniinae View in CoL , Checklist part 2, Atlas Neo. Lep., p. 136.

Xanthocastnia evalthe viryi ; Lamas, 1995. Revta. Per. Ent. 37, p. 81.

Xanthocastnia evalthe tica Lamas, 1995 ; Lamas, 1995. Revta. Per. Ent. 37, p. 81.

General comments. This taxon was originally described as Castnia (Xanthocastnia) viryi intermedia Rothschild, 1919 , based on a male from Costa Rica ( Rothschild 1919). Miller (1986, 1995) considered intermedia View in CoL a valid subspecies of Xanthocastnia evalthe View in CoL ; however, Lamas (1995) proposed the replacement name Xanthocastnia evalthe tica Lamas, 1995 , since the original name was a junior primary homonym of Castnia intermedia Pfeiffer, 1917 View in CoL . Moraes & Duarte (2014) synonymized Xanthocastnia View in CoL with Telchin Hübner.

García-Díaz (2023) studied Telchin evalthe viryi (Boisduval, [1875]) in Mexico mentioning that T. e. tica is its closest relative due to their similar phenotypes. In general, Telchin evalthe is a species markedly differentiated morphologically from other species in the genus, mainly by its ventral wing pattern. In T. e. tica, as in T. e. viryi , males and females have a blackish base-color on the dorsal surface; on the forewing, there is a diagonal yellowishcreamy band that runs from the costa to the anal angle; on the hindwing, there is a yellow discal band that runs from the costa to the anal angle, where it joins a submarginal band of orange-red spots. This subspecies shows a marked sexual dimorphism due to the presence of a yellowish diagonal band in the subapical region of the female forewing.

The taxonomic status of this species is unclear, thus an extensive review including a larger number of specimens from different countries and regions is necessary ( González et al. 2010; González & Domagała 2019; García-Díaz 2023).

Ecology and behavior. Very little is known about the ecology and behavior of Telchin evalthe and up to now there is no relevant information on T. evalthe tica . García-Díaz (2023) pointed out that the probably closely related T. e. viryi has diurnal habits and flies in open sunny places such as walking trails, paths, or watercourses; males are fast fliers, territorial, and perch on dry branches or leaves on trees; females have a slower, heavier flight. Due to their close relationship, T. e. tica might exhibit behavior similar to T. e. viryi . In Sarapiquí, Octavio Ruiz (pers. comm.) once observed a male T. e. tica perching on a leaf of a Calyptrogyne H. Wendl., 1859 palm ( Arecaceae ), at night (20:34 hrs). On another occasion, during the morning, he observed a male perching on a plant, to later fly away into the forest. iNaturalist (2023) has several observations of both sexes of this subspecies which were made between 10–16 hrs in Costa Rica.

Some authors have suggested that T. evalthe could be associated with bromeliads ( Bromeliaceae ) or heliconias ( Heliconia spp. , Heliconiaceae ), based on potential host plants in areas where the species have been seen or collected ( Moss 1945; Miller 1986; González & Cock, 2004; González et al. 2010; González et al. 2017; González & Domagała 2019; Aya et al. 2022; García-Díaz 2023), but so far, no hosts have been confirmed for the species. García-Díaz (2023) mentioned that heliconias do not appear to be a host for T. e. viryi since there are many species of this plant family widely distributed, which would directly impact the distribution of the castniid, a situation also observed with T. a. futilis , but this is just simple speculation. To learn more about the ecology and behavior of T. e. tica, more fieldwork is needed.

Distribution and biogeography. Telchin evalthe is distributed from Mexico to South America, however, not much is known about the geographical limits of its currently known subspecies. Telchin evalthe viryi is found in Mexico, while T. e. tica has been cited for Costa Rica and Panama ( González & Domagała 2019; García-Díaz 2022a). In Costa Rica, this subspecies has been recorded on both the Pacific and Caribbean slopes. Based on Morrone et al. (2022), in Costa Rica, it flies in three biogeographical provinces: Puntarenas-Chiriquí, Guatuso-Talamanca, and Pacific Lowlands. The subspecies has been sighted/collected in Alajuela: San Carlos, San Ramón; Cartago: Oreamuno; Guanacaste: La Cruz; Heredia: Sarapiquí; Limón: Pococí; Puntarenas: Coto Brus, Garabito, Golfito, Osa; San José: Moravia, Vázquez de Coronado.

References

Aya, V. M., Pabon, A., Gonzalez, J. M. & Vargas, G. (2022) Morphological and molecular characterization of Castniidae (Lepidoptera) associated to sugarcane in Colombia. Bulletin of Entomological Research, 112 (3) 399 - 410. https: // doi. org / 10.1017 / S 0007485321000997

Garcia-Diaz, J. J. (2022 a) Distribution and observations on the biology of Telchin atymnius futilis (Walker, 1856) (Castniidae: Castniinae) in Mexico. Tropical Lepidoptera Research, 32 (1), 63 - 72. https: // doi. org / 10.5281 / zenodo. 6588547

Garcia-Diaz, J. J. (2023) Notes on Telchin evalthe viryi (Boisduval, [1875]) (Castniidae: Castniinae) in Mexico. Tropical Lepidoptera Research, 33 (1), 64 - 69. https: // doi. org / 10.5281 / zenodo. 7790080

Gonzalez, J. M. & Cock, M. J. W. (2004) A synopsis of the Castniidae (Lepidoptera) of Trinidad and Tobago. Zootaxa, 762 (1), 1 - 19. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 762.1.1

Gonzalez, J. M., Boone, J. H., Brilmyer, G. M. & Le, D. (2010) The Giant Butterfly-moths of the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, with notes on the Herman Strecker collection (Lepidoptera: Castniidae). SHILAP Revista de Lepidopterologia, 38 (152), 385 - 409.

Gonzalez, J. M. & Domagala, P. (2019) A catalog of the Castniidae (Lepidoptera) in the California Academy of sciences with general and historical comments. Annals of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom, Entomology, 28, 1 - 24. https: // doi. org / 10.5281 / zenodo. 2587666

Lamas, G. (1995) A critical review of J. Y. Miller´s checklist of the Neotropical Castniidae (Lepidoptera). Revista Peruana de Entomologia, 37, 73 - 87.

Miller, J. Y. (1986) The Taxonomy, Phylogeny, and Zoogeography of the Neotropical Castniidae (Lepidoptera: Castnoidea: Castniidae), Ph. D. Thesis, University of Florida, Gainesville, 571 pp.

Miller, J. Y. (1995) Castniidae. In: Heppner, J. B. (Ed.), Checklist: Part 2. Hyblaeoidea-Pyraloidea-Tortricoidea. Atlas of Neotropical Lepidoptera. Association for Tropical Lepidoptera / Scientific Publishers, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 133 - 137 + 176 - 177.

Moraes, S. & Duarte, M. (2014) Phylogeny of Neotropical Castniinae (Lepidoptera: Cossoidea: Castniidae): testing the hypothesis of the mimics as a monophyletic group and implications for the arrangement of the genera. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 170 (2), 362 - 399. https: // doi. org / 10.1111 / zoj. 12102

Morrone, J. J., Escalante, T., Rodriguez-Tapia, G., Carmona, A., Arana, M. & Mercado-Gomez, J. D. (2022) Biogeographic regionalization of the Neotropical region: New map and shapefile. Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciencias, 94, e 20211167. https: // doi. org / 10.1590 / 0001 - 3765202220211167

Moss, A. M. (1945) The Castnia of Para with notes on others (Lep. Castniidae). Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society of London (B), 14, 48 - 52.

Rothschild, L. W. (1919) Supplementary notes to the review of Houlbert and Oberthur's monograph of Castniinae by Talbot and Prout. Novitates Zoologicae, 26 (1), 1 - 27.

Figures

FIGURE 3. A–B: Telchin evalthe tica; A: ♂, San José, P. B. Carrillo, La Montura, 1050m, 23mayo 1981, I. A. Chacón, INBIOCRI001055993, MNCR-A1055993 (MNCR); B: ♀, Alajuela, Reserva de San Ramón, Río San Lorencito, 23mayo1986, I. A. Chacón, INBIOCRI001056104, MNCR-A1056104 (MNCR); C–D: Telchin licus microsticta; C: ♂, San José, P. N. Braulio Carrillo, Est. Carrillo, 730m, 20mayo85, Abelardo Chacón, INBIOCRI001055981, MNCR-A1055981 (MNCR); D: ♀, Casacode, 7 abril 97, I. Chacón (MNCR). Scale bar = 2cm.

FIGURE 11. A–C: Telchin evalthe tica; A: ♂, Pococí, Limón, 03-IV-2008 (photo: Steven Daniel); B: ♂, Coto Brus, Puntarenas, 27-V-2022 (photo: Randall Jiménez); C: ♀, Golfito, Puntarenas, 12-VII-2008 (photo: Gernot Kunz); D–E: Telchin licus microsticta; D: ♀, Alajuela, San Ramón, 22-IV-2020 (photo: Gustavo Orozco); E: ♂, San Carlos, Alajuela, 29-V-2023 (photo: Colin Allen); F–G: Telchin atymnius drucei; F: ♂, Golfito, Puntarenas, 18-I-2022 (photo: Heiner Ziegler); G: ♀, Puriscal, San José, 31-VIII-2022 (photo: Kirby Wolfe); H–I: Telchin atymnius futilis; H: ♂, Pococí, Limón, 16-I-2020 (photo: Alexandre Terrigeol); I: ♀, Sarapiquí, Heredia, 26-II-2022 (photo: Kyle Horner).

FIGURE 13. Distribution maps of the genus Telchin in Costa Rica. A: T. atymnius futilis; B: T. atymnius drucei; C: T. evalthe tica; D: T. licus microsticta.