Dysaethria plicata Snellen comb. n.stat. rev.

Erosia plicata Snellen, 1877, Tijdschr. Ent., 20: 44.

Epiplema conflictaria Walker sensu Barlow, 1982, p1. 47: 9.

Diagnosis

This is a small, pale, bone-coloured or occasionally greyish species with the conflictaria facies type.

The anterior part of the hindwing is conspicuously paler, the antemedial within it strongly bowed.

The male genitalia have the uncus trifid, the valves rather narrow with a tuft of long, curved setae arising centrally from its basal margin.

Taxonomic Notes

This is another erstwhile synonym of conflictaria, and is the species from Vanuatu and Queensland referred to by Holloway (1979) when describing D. spatulata comb. n. from New Caledonia (also in Seram: slides 127, 129).

Geographical range

Taiwan, Sundaland to Queensland, Solomons and Vanuatu.

Habitat preference

All material is from lowland, forested localities, but the species is uncommon.

Biology

The larva has been reared in Taiwan (Chen, 1997; S.-H. Yen, in litt.). It is glistening black, with the dorsal part just posterior to T2 (T3 to A2) and posterior to A6 extensively pale ochreous brown within which are transverse rows of pale tubercles on each segment.

The body at the anterior ochreous zone is swollen.

The host-plant was a species of Artabotrys in the family Annonaceae.

Another record of this host for the general conflictaria complex is from Thailand (Pholboon, 1965). A specimen from New Guinea dissected was reared from Cananga in the same family.

Genitalia: