Spilosoma vandepolli Rothschild

Diacrisia vandepolli Rothschild, 1910, Novit. zool. 17: 155.

Diagnosis

This is a markedly sexually dimorphic species with fawn antennae, and brownish forewings that contrast with bright yellow hindwings. The hind-wings are much darker in the smaller male but both sexes have almost entire rows of spots on the curved postmedial and antemedial fasciae.

Taxonomic notes

The single Bornean female shows abnormally extensive development of the hindwing marginal spots (typically as in the Sumatran male illustrated), and also distinctive clouding of the forewing margin.

Leong & Chang (2010) described and illustrated the larvae of S. hypogopa in Singapore, feeding on the bird’s nest fern, Asplenium nidus (Aspleniaceae), individually or in groups. The larvae were typical of the genus, densely invested with plumose secondary setae arising from low verrucae. These and the body were black at the anterior and posterior ends, with an orange‑brown central section. The larvae dispersed to pupate. Those retained formed dense ovate cocoons incorporating larval setae woven together.

Though this one observation cannot be taken as indicative of specialism, it is interesting to note that the only host record for the related Sundanian species S. vandepolli is from Angiopteris (Marattiaceae), another fern (Robinson et al., 2001). Cerný (2011) has recorded both species from the Philippines, hypogopa from Palawan and vandepolli from Mindanao and Negros. The record of hypogopa from Thailand (Cerný & Pinratana, 2009) is probably of a distinct species (K. Cerný, pers. comm.).

Geographical range

Sundaland.

Habitat preference

The single Bornean specimen was taken in lowland rain forest at Ulu Temburong, Brunei.

Taxonomic Note

Leong & Chang (2010) described and illustrated the larvae of S. hypogopa in Singapore, feeding on the bird’s nest fern, Asplenium nidus (Aspleniaceae), individually or in groups. The larvae were typical of the genus, densely invested with plumose secondary setae arising from low verrucae. These and the body were black at the anterior and posterior ends, with an orange‐brown central section. The larvae dispersed to pupate. Those retained formed dense ovate cocoons incorporating larval setae woven together. Though this one observation cannot be taken as indicative of specialism, it is interesting to note that the only host record for the related Sundanian species S. vandepolli is from Angiopteris (Marattiaceae), another fern (Robinson et al., 2001). Cerný (2011) has recorded both species from the Philippines, hypogopa from Palawan and vandepolli from Mindanao and Negros. The record of hypogopa from Thailand (Cerný & Pinratana, 2009) is probably of a distinct species (K. Cerný, pers. comm.).

Genitalia: