Prometopidia joshimathensis joshimathensis, Dey & Uniyal & Hausmann & Stüning, 2021

Dey, Pritha, Uniyal, Virendra Prasad, Hausmann, Axel & Stüning, Dieter, 2021, Revision of the genus Prometopidia Hampson, 1902, with description of the new species P. joshimathensis sp. nov. from West-Himalaya and its subspecies P. j yazakii ssp. nov. from Nepal (Lepidoptera: Geometridae, Ennominae), Zootaxa 4980 (1), pp. 28-44 : 39-40

Prometopidia joshimathensis joshimathensis sp. nov.

Figs 2h–k ; 4h ; 5e ; 6d, e

Material examined. Types: Holotype ♂, NW. India, Uttarakhand, Joshimath, Sunil , 2424m, 12.IV.2015, leg. P. Dey; Barcode No.: BC ZSM Lep 103734; coll. NCBS (NRC-AA-1690).

Paratypes: 3♂, 3♀, Joshimath, north-western India, Uttarakhand . 1♂, Sunil, 2418m, 01.V.2014, genitalia slide No.: ZSM G 20802, coll. NCBS (NRS-AA-1688) ; 1♂, Auli, 2893m, 25.IV.2014, Barcode No.: BC ZSM Lep 103735, coll. ZSM ; 1 ♂, Auli, 2893m, 25.IV.2012, coll. NCBS (NRC-AA-1689) ; 1♀, Sunil, 2609m, 09.V.2014, genitalia slide No.: ZSM G 20803, coll. NCBS (NRC-AA-1691) ; 1♀, Joshimath, 2210m, 09.IV.2015, Barcode No.: BC ZSM Lep 94424, genitalia slide No.: WII-G-1, coll. NCBS (NRC-AA-1692) ; 1♀, Joshimath, 2210m, 09.IV.2015, genitalia slide No.: ZSM G 21265, coll. ZSM . Paratypes in coll. NCBS, except one male and one female, donated to ZSM.

3♀, NW. India, Punjab : 2♀, “Simla, Punjab, 2500 m, Juli”, genitalia slide No. KYS-1056 ♀ ; 1♀, “Berg Kufri, Himalaya Gbg. Simla, Punjab, 2500 m ”, ZFMK .

Description. Moths of moderate size, wingspan 28–29 mm.

Head. Palps slender, straight, not reaching tip of frons in length, broadened by elongate scales, becoming gradually smaller towards tip, mixed white and shades of grey, with white tips. Terminal segment very small, almost invisible. Proboscis well developed. Frontal process large, conical, tip acutely pointed, covered with small, dark greyishbrown scales on ventral side and lighter grey scales laterally; vertex scales larger, white, extending triangularly on dorsal part of frontal conus. Antennae filiform, finely pubescent in males. Chaetosemata small, near eye-margin.

Thorax. Patagia and tegulae of large, light greyish scales with white tips, tegulae with elongate lamellar scales and hair-scales mixed. Legs long, slender, chequered with dark grey and whitish scales. Forewings almost triangular, termen evenly rounded, only slightly oblique. Apex moderately falcate. Ground colour light greyish-white, densely dusted with darker grey scales at submarginal area, a few black scales scattered over the wing surface. Antemedial and postmedial fasciae present, distinct, a submarginal fascia indistinct. Antemedial fascia consisting of three black dots, connected by a thin, waved line, postmedial evenly curved outwards at anterior half, then more strongly incurved towards hind margin, built of dots on the veins, stronger towards costa, connected by a vague broad line. Hindwings with a similar, but evenly curved or rather straight postmedial fascia, submarginal and antemedial lines absent. Margin smooth, marginal line of both wings with short, black streaks between the veins, discal dots present on both wings, weaker on hindwing. Fringes long, of the same colour as wing surface. Base of hindwings swollen (only three females from Shimla could be studied). Underside lighter, forewings with postmedial fascia only, but less distinct, dots almost absent. Wing surface homogeneously dusted with light grey scales. Postmedial fascia of hindwings similar, but wing surface almost white, irrorated with single dark grey or black scales. Discal dots present, similar to upperside.

Pregenital abdomen. Externally ground colour like wing surface, but heavily dusted with dark grey scales. Integument and tympanal organs as described in the generic description, the spatulate process posteriorly on 7 th sternite of female transversely elongate, almost rectangular ( Fig. 4h ).

Male genitalia largely as described in the generic description, slightly larger than that of the type-species, but not clearly distinguishable, only slight, gradual differences present. The broader central part of juxta and the smaller, semicircular incisions more basally may be diagnostic, but this has to be studied on a larger number of specimens. Aedeagus a little longer and the shaft broader, but the group of teeth on vesica less numerous, teeth larger and base of vesica free of many small to minute teeth, as present in P. conisaria .

Female genitalia. Largely as described in generic description, colliculum of ductus bursae present. The long, fluted posterior part of corpus bursae gradually getting wider towards bursa and there with a broad, more strongly and irregularly fluted and scobinate area. The membranous anterior part of corpus bursae copulatrix is moderately large and oval, the signum rather large with a small opening and a broad sclerotized band with big, triangular marginal teeth. Modified 8 th segment and floricomous papillae anales as described above.

Diagnosis. The present new species is distinguished from the type-species of Prometopidia , P. conisaria , by larger size and lighter grey ground colour. The apex of forewing is more strongly falcate, transverse fasciae are punctate rather than dentate. P. joshimathensis has a larger, conical frontal process with pointed tip (broader, shorter and rounded at tip in P. conisaria ). The spatulate process on posterior margin of 7 th sternite is broad but narrow and almost rectangular in P. joshimathensis , but longer and rather oval, spatulate in P. conisaria . In the male genitalia which are generally similar, the capsule is larger and the juxta broader at centre, with smaller incisions basally (has to be confirmed). The group of teeth on vesica is less numerous (but the teeth are larger) in P. joshimathensis (smaller, more numerous teeth with many tiny teeth at basal part of vesica in P. conisaria ). The female genitalia are distinguished by the length and shape of the corpus bursae and the presence or absence of a colliculum within the ductus bursae: long and narrow posterior part, colliculum absent in P. conisaria , broader and gradually widening posterior part, colliculum present in P. joshimathensis . Moreover, the signa are also different: round, with a complete set of marginal teeth in P. joshimathensis , smaller, more or less irregular, with large teeth only on distal margin in P. conisaria . In addition, the signum is situated close to the transitional zone between anterior and posterior part of corpus bursae in P. conisaria , more or less in the middle of the anterior part in P. joshimathensis .

Distribution. NW. India: Punjab (now Himachal Pradesh), Uttarakhand.

Etymology. The species is named after the type locality Joshimath, Uttarakhand, western Himalaya (compare Fig. 1 (a)).

Genetic data. BIN: BOLD:ADF3537 (n=3 from India, Uttarakhand). Intraspecific variation 0.0%. Genetic distance to subsp. yazakii 3.3% (n=3). Genetic distance to P. conisaria 6.8%.

Figures

FIGURE 1. (a) Previous and new records and the type-localities of Prometopidia conisaria, P. joshimathensis joshimathensis, its subspecies yazakii and P. arenosa within Indian territory and the neighbouring countries Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nepal; (b–d) habitats of P. joshimathensis with dominant vegetation as b: Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana), Joshimath, c: Banj Oak (Quercus leucotrichophora) and Moru Oak (Quercus floribunda), Sunil and d: Kharsu Oak (Quercus semecarpifolia), Auli.

FIGURE 2. Adults (a–f), including lectotype (g1, g2) of Prometopidia conisaria, adults of P. joshimathensis (h–o). a: P. conisaria, female (Afghanistan, ZFMK); b: P. conisaria, male, (Pakistan, CMS); c: P. conisaria, female (Pakistan, CMS); d: P. conisaria, female (Pakistan, ZFMK); e: P. conisaria, male (India, Uttarakhand; NCBS); f: P. conisaria, female (India, Uttarakhand; NCBS); g1: P. conisaria, male lectotype (Narkundah, Kashmir); g2: P. conisaria, labels of male lectotype; h: P. joshimathensis, male holotype (Uttarakhand; NCBS); i: P. joshimathensis, male paratype (Uttarakhand; NCBS); j: P. joshimathensis, female paratype (Uttarakhand; NCBS); k: P. joshimathensis, female paratype (Punjab; ZFMK); l: P. joshimathensis ssp. yazakii, male holotype (E. Nepal; ZFMK); m: P. j. yazakii, male paratype (E. Nepal; ZFMK); n: P. j. yazakii, female paratype (E. Nepal; ZSM); o: P. j. yazakii, female paratype (E. Nepal; ZFMK).

FIGURE 4. Prometopidia spp., morphological characters. a: P. conisaria, head, lateral view; b: P. joshimathensis yazakii, head, lateral view; c: P. j. yazakii, head, dorsal view; d: P. conisaria, process of 7th sternite, ventral view; e: P. j. yazakii, process of 7th sternite, ventral view; f: P. j. yazakii, process of 7th sternite, lateral view; g: P. conisaria, female, 7th tergite (left, showing rows of modified scales) and 7th sternite with distal process (left side descaled); h: P. joshimathensis, 7th sternite with distal process; i: P. conisaria, female, anterior abdominal segments (left side: sternites with tympanal organs; right side: sternites with supporting sclerites of first phragma; k: P. j. yazakii, abdomen in fluid, 7th segment with distal process (at bottom) and papillae anales with long, curved setae and rows of hooked setae (“Prometopidia-floricomus”).

FIGURE 5. Prometopidia spp., male genitalia. a: Prometopidia conisaria, lectotype (Kashmir; vesica of aedeagus everted); b: P. conisaria, (Uttarakhand; vesica not everted); c: P. conisaria, (Pakistan; vesica not everted, apical region of aedeagus enlarged to show arrangement of cornuti); d: P. conisaria, (Pakistan; vesica everted); e: P. joshimathensis (Uttarakhand; vesica incompletely everted); f: P. j. yazakii (E.Nepal; vesica everted).

FIGURE 6. Prometopidia spp., female genitalia. a: P. conisaria (Pakistan); b: P. conisaria (Punjab); c: P. conisaria (Uttarakhand); d: P. joshimathensis joshimathensis (Punjab); e: P. j. yazakii (E.Nepal); f: P. arenosa (NE Afghanistan).