Sesamia epunctifera Hampson, 1902

Sesamia epunctifera – Hampson (1902: 298; 1910: 329), Gaede (1934–1935: 98), Janse (1939: 371), Tams and Bowden (1953: 667), Poole (1989: 907 [catalogue]).

Type material.

Lectotype ♂, [REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA], [Eastern Cape Province], C [ape] Colony, Annshaw, [18] 98–167, 1947 / 321, (Miss F. Barrett Leg.) (NHM), by present designation.

Other material.

MOZAMBIQUE: one ♀, Manica Province, Chimoio, Ripango, 19 ° 26 ′ 16 ″ S, 33 ° 17 ′ 41 ″ E, 640 m a. s. l., III. 2005, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: one ♂, C [ape] Colony, Annshaw, 98–9, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1237, (Miss F. Barrett Leg.) (NHM); one ♂, C [ape] Colony, Annshaw, 97–185, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1402, (Miss F. Barrett Leg.) (NHM); one ♂, C [ape] Colony, Annshaw, 97–186, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1401, (Miss F. Barrett Leg.) (NHM); one ♂, [Eastern Cape], Umkomaas, 22. I. [19] 14, Joicey Bequest. Brit. Mus. 1934-120, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1234, (A. J. T. Janse Leg.) [NHM]; one ♂, [Kwazulu] - Natal, Durban, 1907–236, 1947 / 323, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1236, (G. F. Leigh Leg.) (NHM); one ♂, [Kwazulu] - Natal, 1902–74, 1952 / 27, Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1403, (NHM); one ♂, Transvaal, Zoutpansberg District, Khalavha District, 3,700 ft., 23. IV. 1954, at light, (very open bush and grassveld), Stn No. 140,, B. M. 1954-797, (J. Balfour-Browne) (NHM); one ♂, six ♀, Free state, Theunissen, Oss River, 28 ° 25 ′ 14 ″ S, 26 ° 45 ′ 48 ″ E, 1386 m a. s. l., II. 2009, ex larvae in stems of Sorghum arundinaceum, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); five ♂, three ♀, Kwazulu-Natal, Old Point, 31 ° 03 ′ 43 ″ S, 30 ° 10 ′ 59 ″ E, 76 m a. s. l., II. 2007, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); six ♂, four ♀, Kwazulu-Natal, Oribi Gorge, 31 ° 41 ′ 04 ″ S, 30 ° 15 ′ 57 ″ E, 400 m a. s. l., II. 2006, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); eight ♂, six ♀, Eastern Cape, Addo, Happy Land, 33 ° 28 ′ 38 ″ S, 25 ° 35 ′ 50 ″ E, 63 m a. s. l., XII. 2013, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, males gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 610-631, female gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 632, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); one ♂, two ♀, Kwazulu-Natal, Clanstal, 30 ° 14 ′ 58 ″ S, 30 ° 46.47 ″ E, 29 m a. s. l., XI. 2014, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, female gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 765, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); one ♂, four ♀, Kwazulu-Natal, Eston Beaufort, 29 ° 55 ′ 06 ″ S, 30 ° 37 ′ 13 ″ E, 673 m a. s. l., XI. 2014, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, female gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 769, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); one ♂, two ♀, Kwazulu-Natal, Dukuduku 3, 28 ° 28 ′ 03 ″ S, 32 ° 12 ′ 10 ″ E, 14 m a. s. l., XI. 2014, ex larvae in stems of Megathyrsus maximus, (Jacq.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L Jacobs, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); one ♂, Kwazulu-Natal, Dukuduku 2, 28 ° 26 ′ 46 ″ S, 32 ° 17 ′ 26 ″ E, 27 m a. s. l., XI. 2014, ex light trap, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); one ♀, Limpopo, Louis Trichardt, Nooitgedacht, 23 ° 04 ′ 35 ″ S, 30 ° 00 ′ 33 ″ E, 836 m a. s. l., I. 2007, ex larvae in stems of M. maximus, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN); ZAMBIA: one ♂, Kasese District, Northern Province, Mbala, Chalwe, 10 ° 26 ′ 24 ″ S, 29 ° 30 ′ 02 ″ E, 1295 m a. s. l., III. 2012, ex light trap, gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 119, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN).

Diagnosis.

(See also the identification key of incerta subgroup, section 3.4. 2.). This species can be distinguished from the other known members of the incerta subgroup by the combination of the following characters of the male and female genitalia: tegumen with large squat peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin and w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large sized saccus, almost trapezoidal; juxta large, the inferior plate shaped like a rounded triangle produced into a sharp point, the sides pointed, the superior plate broad and short, shortly bifid terminally; phallus short and thick; vesica with a large almost ovoid flat cornutus; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 very large, broad, sclerotized, trapezoidal, the anterior side straight outward swollen inwards, at least 1.2 times longer than wide; ostium bursae funnel-shaped with pointed tip on each side; ductus bursae with two narrow slightly more sclerotized areas posteriorly, at least 12 times longer than wide.

Description.

(Fig. 6 A – D). The male of this species has been previously described in great detail by Janse (1937–1939) and Tams and Bowden (1953). The female is described here for the first time. It is characterised by its more elongated wings than the male and its filiform antennae; otherwise both sexes are very similar. — Forewing length: male 23–27 mm (x ̅ = 24.5 mm, N = 11); female 28–31 mm (x ̅ = 29.9 mm, N = 11). — Male genitalia (Fig. 8 A, L). Tegumen with large squat peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin and w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large sized saccus, almost trapezoidal. Valve with sacculus and cucullus separate; costa short and narrow, heavily sclerotized, ending with a stout and short straight spine, with an apical tooth; sacculus heavily sclerotized rounded at base, a broad and short apical extension, curved inwards, strongly club-shaped, bearing numerous short and stout spines; cucullus longer than sacculus, weakly sclerotized, slightly clavate at apex, with scattered and papillated hairs; juxta large, the inferior plate shaped like a rounded triangle produced into a sharp point, the sides pointed, the superior plate broad and short, shortly bifid terminally; uncus angled and stout at base, narrowed in distal part, pointed at apex, tufted with long hairs on upper side; phallus short and thick, a bit curved in the middle; lamina ventralis with an elongate carinal crest, produced into paired lateral lobes; vesica with a large almost ovoid flat cornutus. — Female genitalia (Fig. 9 A). Apophyses anteriores with spatulate tips; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 very large, broad, sclerotized, trapezoidal, the anterior side straight outward swollen inwards, at least 1.2 times longer than wide; ostium bursae funnel-shaped with pointed tip on each side; ductus bursae long and narrow, slightly sclerotized posteriorly, and with two narrow posterior slightly more sclerotized areas, at least 12 times longer than wide; corpus bursae long, without signa; ovipositor lobes at least 2.7 times longer than wide with dorsal surface bearing numerous short and stout setae, the ventral side of each lobe slightly curved; apophyses posteriores more slender than apophyses anteriores. — L 5 instar larva (Fig. 5 D). Length 30–35 mm, width 4.0 mm; head smooth, red brown, prothoracic shield pale yellow brown, body with ground colour salmon pink with pearly reflections, pinacula and caudal plate dark brown. Young larvae are similar in appearance to mature ones.

Distribution.

Mozambique, Republic of South Africa and Zambia. Known from many localities from Eastern Cape and Kwazulu Natal Provinces, from one locality in South Mozambique and one locality in North-Western Province in Zambia belonging to the ‘ East African Coastal (Tongaland-Pondoland) ’ (Mosaic # 16 c), ‘ drier Zambezian miombo woodland dominated by Brachystegia and Julbernardia ’ (Mosaic # 26), ‘ undifferentiated woodland, North Zambezian’ (Mosaic # 29 c), ‘ undifferentiated woodland, South Zambezian’ (Mosaic # 29 d) and ‘ semi-evergreen bushland and thicket’ (Mosaic # 39) vegetation mosaics (White 1983) (Fig. 10) belonging to the Southern African bioregion (sensu Linder et al. 2012).

Ecology.

Larvae were collected on young stems and shoots of Digitaria natalensis Stent, Megathyrsus maximus B. K. Simon & S, W. L. Jacobs and Sorghum arundinaceum (Desv.) Stapf, growing in grassland inhabited with various Poales belonging to the following genera: Cymbopogon, Digitaria, Hyparrhenia, Megathyrsus (Pilg.) B. K. Simon & S, W. L. Jacobs and Panicum. It should be noted that 83 % of the larvae were collected on Megathyrsus maximus (101 larvae reared from this host plant and found in 10 of the 13 collection sites for this species), which suggests that S. epunctifera shows a preference for this host plant.

Remarks.

This species was described succinctly on the basis of two syntypes by Hampson (1902), one from Kenya and the other from the Republic of South Africa, without description of the genitalia. Later, Janse (1937–1939) and Tams and Bowden (1953) provided detailed descriptions of the species based on male specimens from the Republic of South Africa only. This study clearly indicates that the syntype from Kenya belongs to a different species that has never been recorded in the Republic of South Africa; therefore the syntype from the Republic of South Africa is selected here as the lectotype of S. epunctifera.