Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 September 2021 | 13(11): 19657–19659

 

ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print) 

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.7062.13.11.19657-19659

#7062 | Received 08 January 2021 | Final received 19 July 2021 | Finally accepted 21 August 2021

 

 

First record of the genus Tibetanja (Lepidoptera: Eupterotidae: Janinae) from India

 

Alka Vaidya 1  & H. Sankararaman 2

 

1 J-145, Lokmanya Nagar, Kataria Marg, Mahim, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400016, India.

2 Parasitoid Taxonomy and Biocontrol laboratory, Department of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu 608002, India.

1 chitralka@gmail.com, 2 sankararaman05@gmail.com (corresponding author)

 

 

 

Editor: Jatishwor Singh irungbam, Biology Centre CAS, České Budějovice, Czech Republic.           Date of publication: 26 September 2021 (online & print)

 

Citation: Vaidya, A. & H. Sankararaman (2021). First record of the genus Tibetanja (Lepidoptera: Eupterotidae: Janinae) from India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 13(11): 19657–19659. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.7062.13.11.19657-19659

 

Copyright: © Vaidya & Sankararaman 2021. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.  JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication.

 

Funding: DST-PURSE Phase II.

 

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

 

Acknowledgements: We are grateful to Mr. Peter Smetacek, Butterfly Research Centre, Bhimtal and Dr. Stefan Naumann, Berlin, Germany for the help rendered in identification of moths. HS is thankful to Dr. S. Manickavasagam and DST PURSE phase II of Annamalai University for travel grants. We also extend our thanks to Ms. Koj Rinya, IFS, Punyo Chada, for organizing Ziro Butterfly Meet 2019 and Mr. Sanjay Sondhi, Titli Trust, Dehradun for providing LepiLED Maxi during the 2019 survey.

 

 

The family Eupterotidae Swinhoe, 1892, is represented by 60 genera and 396 described species worldwide (Kitching et al. 2018) of which, only 12 genera and about 40 species are known from India (Hampson 1892; Nässig & Oberprieler 2008). Hampson (1892) remains the only comprehensive work on Indian Eupterotidae, having provided a key to 14 genera occurring in the Indian subcontinent, of which two genera Gangarides Moore and Thaumetopoea Hübner (= Cnethocampa Stephens) have since been transferred to Notodontidae (Grünberg 1912).

A new genus Tibetanja Naumann, Nässig, & Rougerie was described by Naumann et al. (2020) from Tibet. Although the affinities of this new genus were not clear, it was placed in the subfamily Janinae based on the morphological characters of the male genitalia. This genus currently comprises of the single species T. tagoroides which is known only from Tibet. In the present paper, we report this genus from India.

Moths were surveyed from 23–25 September 2014 and 5–7 September 2019 in two locations of Arunachal Pradesh, namely, the lower Dibang valley (28°764’N, 95°961’E) and Tale Valley Wildlife Sanctuary (27°328’N, 93°538’E), respectively. In the September 2014 survey, a mercury vapour lamp of 160W was hung in front of a white cloth for documenting moths and during September 2019, a LepiLED Maxi (Brehm 2017) supported by three 20,000-mAH Li-polymer power bank was used. No insects were collected, and individual moths were only photographed on the moth screen in both the surveys. The field images of live moths were taken using Nikon D3200 with an AF-S DX Nikkor 18–55mm f/3.5–5.6G VR II lens.

The images were sent by the second author to Mr. Peter Smetacek, Butterfly Research Centre, Bhimtal for identification and confirmed by Dr. Stefan Naumann, Berlin, Germany (pers. comm. 14 December 2020).

 

Genus Tibetanja Naumann, Nässig & Rougerie, 2020

(Naumann, Nässig & Rougerie, 2020; Nachr. entomol. Ver. Apollo, N. F.41 (3/4): 148)

Type species: Tibetanja tagoroides Naumann, Nässig & Rougerie, 2020

Type locality: Xizang Zizhiqu, Tibet, China.

Diagnostic characters: This genus is recognized by a typically broad and crenulate median line on both the wings and forewing margin rounded and ending in an acute tip, markedly pointed apex. Male genitalia with long, slender scoop-like uncus with two apical lateral teeth, gnathos with two long lateral processes. Valves rectangular with internal process emerging from the ventral margin and with two longer projections. Juxta small, rounded and phallus not fused with juxta as given by Naumann et al. (2020). Within Janinae, the genitalia of Tibetanja is somewhat close to Hoplojana Aurivillius, 1901 and also some ‘Ganisa-group’ as discussed in Naumann et al. (2020) while describing this new genus.

 

Tibetanja tagoroides Naumann, Nässig &

Rougerie, 2020

(Images 1 & 2)

Diagnostic characters: This species has been adequately described and illustrated by Naumann et al. (2020) can be easily identified by: the forewing with dark grey median line and zigzag postmedian line; a small black dot  present in the basal-median area of both the wings; forewing with apex acute. T. tagoroides superficially resembles some species of the genus Tagora Walker, 1855 by having forewing with produced apex. The immature stages and female of this species still remain unknown. 

Distribution: India (Arunachal Pradesh – new record) and China (Tibet) [Naumann et al. (2020)].

Remarks: The present sightings of Tibetanja tagoroides from Tale valley and lower Dibang valley of Arunachal Pradesh form significant records and extend the known distributional range of this genus to northeastern parts of India, from its earlier reported distribution in Xizang Zizhiqu of southern Tibet, Chinese province (Image 3) and increases the known Indian Eupterotidae fauna to 41 species of 13 genera.

 

For images - - click here

 

References

 

Brehm, G. (2017). A new LED lamp for the collection of nocturnal Lepidoptera and a spectral comparison of light-trapping lamps. Nota Lepidopterologica 40(1): 87–108. 

Grünberg, K. (1912). Notodontidae. In: Seitz, A. (ed.). Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde, II Palaearktischen Bombyciden und Sphingiden. Werkes, Stuttgart, pp. 284-319; pls. 44-49, 56. A. Kernen, Stuttgart.

Hampson, G.F. (1892). The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Moths, Volume 1. Taylor & Francis, London, 527 pp.

Kitching, I., R. Rougerie, A. Zwick, C. Hamilton, R. St. Laurent, S. Naumann, L.B. Mejia & A. Kawahara (2018). A global checklist of the Bombycoidea (Insecta: Lepidoptera). Biodiversity Data Journal 6: e22236. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.6.e22236

Nässig, W.A. & R.G. Oberprieler (2008). An annotated catalogue of the genera of Eupterotidae (Insecta, Lepidoptera, Bombycoidea). Senckenbergiana Biologica 88(1): 53–80.

Naumann, S., W.A. Nässig & R. Rougerie (2020). Tibetanja tagoroides gen. et sp. n., a new genus and species from Tibet (Lepidoptera, Eupterotidae) Nachrichten des Entomologischen Vereins Apollo 41(3/4): 147–153.