Oxyplax bannaensis, Wu & Han, 2023

Wu, Jun & Han, Hui-Lin, 2023, New species and records of Paroxyplax Cai, 1984 (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) and its allies from China, with a checklist of the treated genera, Zootaxa 5254 (3), pp. 383-397 : 388

Oxyplax bannaensis sp. nov.

Figures 17, 23

Type material. Holotype: male, CHINA, Yunnan Province, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Mengla County, 14.I.2013, leg. HL. Han , genit. prep. WuJ-716-1, coll. NEFU.

Diagnosis. Externally, the new species (Figs 17, 23) is similar to O. yunnanensis Cai, 1984 (Figs 13, 19), O. caii ( Holloway, 1986) (Figs 14, 20), and O. pallivitta ( Moore, 1877) (Figs 15, 16, 21, 22), but it can be separated by the following morphological characters: 1) the overall color is grayish brown in O. bannaensis sp. nov., whereas ochreous to dark brown in O. caii , O. yunnanensis , and O. pallivitta ; 2) the postmedial line is straight, the terminal area is greyish white, whereas the same line and area are slightly out-curved and dark brown, respectively; 3) in the male genitalia, the costa of valva is strongly arched, however, it is only slightly arched in O. caii and O. yunnanensis , and concaved in O. pallivitta ; 4) the process in subcosta is slender, about 1/5 of its own length beyond the lower margin of valva, however, the process is wider than the former and barely extends beyond the lower margin of the valva in O. caii and O. yunnanensis , and lacking the same structure in O. pallivitta ; 5) the base of sacculus is smooth, without setae, whereas sparsely covered with setae in O. pallivitta and densely in O. caii and O. yunnanensis ; 6) the phallus is short, slightly curved, whereas it is relatively long in the three comparative species, and in O. caii and O. pallivitta is straight.

Description. Adult (Fig. 17). Forewing length 12 mm, wingspan 26 mm in male.

Head and labial palpus dark brown tinted grey; male antennae dark, broad bipectinate till to tip.

Thorax dark brown tinted grey. Costal margin of forewing slightly concave; ground color dark brown to greyish brown; postmedial line distinct, grey, straight, runs from apex to middle of inner margin; terminal area greyish white tinted some pale brown; fringe greyish brown. Hindwing ground color dark rufous brown; fringe along outer margin rufous brown at base with an outer greyish brown layer. Scales on legs greyish brown.

Abdomen dark rufous brown.

Male genitalia (Fig. 23). Uncus bifid into two lateral parts, each part densely covered with black scales. Gnathos slender, hook-shaped. Tegumen broad. Valva elongated, cucullus narrow; costa distinctly arched in the middle, costal processes slender, ca. 1/5 of its length beyond the lower margin of valva, blunt and slightly curved apically; base of sacculus swollen, smooth, without setae. Juxta small, shield-shaped. Phallus small, short, slightly curved; terminal part pointed and sclerotized, with an angled incision on one side.

Bionomics. The specimen was collected with a light trap at Mengla county in southern Yunnan, the collecting site is close to the tropical rainforest .

Distribution. China (Yunnan).

Etymology. The specific name is derived from “banna”, the abbreviation of the type locality Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture in the southwestern part of Yunnan Province, China.