Mythimna (Aletia) exsanguis Guenée

Leucania exsanguis Guenee, 1852, Hist. nat. Insectes. Spec. gen. Lepid. 5:82.

Leucania hamifera Walker, 1862, J. Linn. Soc. Lond. (Zool.) 6: 179, syn. n.

Leucania subnitens Swinhoe, 1890, Trans. ent. Soc. Lond. , 1890: 218 syn. n.

Cirphis subdecora Wileman, 1912, Entomologist 45: 147.

Diagnosis

The species has the wings silvered below as in decississima Walker and, to a lesser extent, calorai sp. n.; all three species have a black tuft of hair-like scales at the base of the abdomen below. It is most similar to calorai, having greyish rather uniform forewings; decississima has the forewings straw colour, marked with brown, the brown particularly intense around a longitudinal pale streak in the cell. In the male genitalia the harpe from the sacculus is shorter than in the next two species and not curved; the neck of the cucullus is longer than in the next species, and the cucullus itself distinctly asymmetrical. The aedeagus vesica lacks lateral lobes and has a terminal group of long cornuti, one much thicker than the rest.

Taxonomic notes

The taxa exsanguis and hamifera were regarded as distinct by Calora (1966), but it was not possible to confirm the differences he observed. The taxa are therefore brought into synonymy.

Geographical range

Indian Subregion to Taiwan, Sundaland, Philippines and Sulawesi.

Habitat preference

No material has been taken in recent surveys. Bornean material seen is mainly from lowland localities.

Biology

Piepers & Snellen (1906) described the Javan larva. It is smooth, mottled yellowish-grey with a median line and several others in a paler colour. The intersegmental region is reddish. The host-plant recorded was Saccharum

Genitalia: