EDITOR'S FILE COPY US. Department of Agriculture Canada Forest Service United States Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station Spruce Budworms General Technical Report PNW-100 Program February 1980 Nomenclature of Nearctic Con ifer - Feedi ng- Choris tone ura (Lep ido pt e ra: Tort ric idae): HISTORICAL REVIEW AND PRESENT STATUS Jerry A. Powell This file was created by scanning the printed publication. Mis-scans identified by the software have been corrected; however, some errors may remain. ABSTRACT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS There have been 18 species-group I thank USDA Forest Service names proposed for Nearctic researchers V. M. Carolin Jr. , G. E. conifer-feeding moths in the genus Daterman, R. E. Stevens, and T. R. Choristoneura. Of these, houstonana Torgersen; and W. J. A. Volney, (Grote) and its synonym, retana University of California, Berkeley, for (Walsingham) , apply to Cupress- review of a draft of the manuscript. aceae-feeding populations now assigned Although not all my nomenclatural to Cudonigera Obraztsov & Powell. The decisions are necessarily endorsed by remaining species are Pinaceae-feeders, any one reviewer, their comments and mostly members of two series: (1) the criticisms were helpful in clarifying Fumiferana complex, associated with the discussion and in developing the spruces and firs (subfamily conclusions. Field travel during Abietoideae) and considered to consist 1966-70 and study at the British Museum of 5 allopatric species (with three in 1971 were in part funded by National synonyms) ; and (2) the Lamber- Science Foundation grants GB-4014 and tiana complex, feeding on pines GB-6813X. USDA Forest Service (subfamily Pinoideae) and consisting of personnel allowed me to use facilities two allopatric species, the western C. in the Modoc and Shasta National lambertiana (Busck) with three Forests in 1970-74 and provided field subspecies and the eastern C. pinus collections from the 1974 pilot study Freeman with two subspecies. A third of the effects of Dylox. group, the Carnana complex, is believed to be associated with Douglas-fir J. A. DeBenedictis and D. L. Wagner, (Pseudotsuga). Its populations occur University of California, Berkeley, in California, with two named races, assisted with field survey and sympatric with elements of both the laboratory rearing work during 1978-79, Abietoideae- and Pinoideae-feeding funded in part by the CANUSA Spruce complexes. One named entity, Budworms Program-Wes t (FS-PNW-G-5 9) . spaldingiana Obraztsov, in Utah, is of The maps were prepared by J. T. unknown affinities. Sorensen, University of California, Be r keley. Keywords: Nomenclature (insect), Chor istoneura. AUTHOR Jerry A. Powell is Professor, Division of Entomology and Parasitology, College of Natural Resources, University of California, Be r k e ley. Possibly no species of Lepidoptera Moreover, a revised checklist of has been more intensively studied North American Lepidoptera, which has during the past quarter, century than been several years in preparation by a the spruce budworm in North America, team of specialists, is nearly yet the nomenclature of the completed--the first updated list in 40 Choristoneura fumiferana group has years (Hodges et al., in press). continued to be confusing. Although Acceptance of the nomenclature in this some problems are traceable to pre- list by the U.S. Department of mature or careless taxonomic work, the Agriculture and the Entomological principal source of turmoil lies in the Society of America (and therefore the complexity of variation among E.S.A. common names list--Sutherland et populations. An array of inter- al. 1978) is anticipated. This should re lat ionships exis t s : sympatric provide a considerably stronger base populations exhibit varying degrees of for stabilization of names of all North re productive i solation, and allopatric American Lepidoptera. I have con- populations show geographical tributed the text for the Tortricidae, variations in size and color of adults, aided by reviews and contributions from larvae, and pupae and in preferences severa 1 contempora ry spec iali s t s, for host plants. There are both including R. W. Brown, R. W. Hodges, polymorphic and continuously variable and W. E. Miller. Table I lists valid features, and characters conven- and synonymous names ,applied to tionally used by taxonomists in conife r -f eed ing Choristoneura and defining species in moths are not Cudonigera as they will be' treated in sufficiently differentiated in this Hodges' (in press) checklist. group to provide reliable morphological indicators of genetic and behavioral In general, the checklist is not compatibility among populations. envisioned as a vehicle for revising taxonomic work, but there will be many An increase in research on the nomenclatural changes. Names formerly Nearctic conifer-feeding Choristoneura applied in many taxa have become ob- as a result of the Canada/U.S. Spruce solete as a result of taxonomic study Budworms Program, launched in 1977, has of Nearctic or other faunas, parti- broadened interest in and the need €or cularly the Palearctic. Authors have better communication about these been expected to incorporate insects. De spite considerable fund ing nomenclatural changes where firsthand and intricate organizational planning , taxonomic expertise enables generic disagreement exists concerning the reassignments and synonymies. number, level of taxonomic distinct- Therefore , many new combinations and ness, and geographical distributions of new synonymies will be published in the species and races, as well as the names checklist without explanations. In applied to them. Thus, an updated most instances, explanations would be summary of nomenclature in this species of interest only to specialists, but in group and agreement among researchers a few cases the importance of the about correct application of names seem insects in agricultural entomology or e ssenti al. other applied fields is such that 2 CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF THE SPECIES GROUP NAMES published interpretation is war- fumiferana Clemens, 1865, Proc. ranted. Because the Canada/U.S. Spruce Entomol. Soc. Phila. 5:129 (Tortrix) Budworms Program is in its early phases, the spruce budworm complex is The earliest name applied to any such a case. North American conifer-feeding Choristoneura is fumiferana, described from "Virginia." A lectotype was Table 1--Checklist of valid and designated by Darlington (1947) , who synonymous names used for North indicted there are no data associated American conifer-feeding Choristoneura with the specimen, as is true of and Cudonigera (synonyms underlined)1/ Clemens' material generally (see Miller (1973) for a review of the history and Choristoneura Lederer, 1859 status of Clemens' types and associated f umiferana (Clemens, 1865) catalog numbers). Thus, the accuracy nigridia (Robinson, 1869) or any restriction of the type locality retiniana (Walsingham, 1879) cannot be determined. Treated in lindseyana Obraztsov, 1962 Tortrix or Harmologa, a New Zealand viridis Freeman, 1967 genus, in early literature, the species occidentalis Freeman, 1967 later was placed in Archips (= Cacoecia) biennis Freeman, 1967 until Freeman (1947) assigned orae Freeman, 1967 fumiferana to the Palearctic genus carnana (Barnes & Busck, 1920) Choristoneura. c. californica Powell, 1964 lambertiana (Busck, 1915) 1. ponderosana Obraztsov, 1962 nigridia Robinson, 1869, Trans. Am. 1. subretiniana Obraztsov, 1962 Entomol. Soc. 2:268 (Tortrix) pinus Freeman, 1953 p. maritima Freeman, 1967 Described from "Ohio, Pa., and spaldingiana Obraztsov, 1962 Mass., " this is the only synonymous Cudonigera Obraztsov & Powell, 1977 name proposed for the widespread houstonana (Grote, 187 3) spruce budworm of eastern Nearctic re tana (Walsingham, 1879) boreal forests. Darlington (1947) mentioned a cotype at the Academy of 1/After Powell -in Hodges et al. Natural Sciences, Philadelphia; but (in press). apparently no formal designation of a lectotype and restriction of the type locality has been made. Representative specimens of type material of nigridia and fumiferana were examined by Fernald in the 1870's (Darlington 1947, p. 86), who concluded the two are synonyms (Fernald 1881, p. 63). 3 houstonana Grote, 1873, Bull. Buffalo retiniana Walsingham, 1879, illus. Soc. Nat. Sci. :15 (Tortrix) Lepid. Het. Br. Mus. 4:12 (Lozotaenia) The next oldest name used for a The earliest name applied to any conif e r-f eeding moth former 1y western budworm is retiniana considered a member of Choristoneura is Walsingham, described from one specimen houstonana Grote, which was based on a collected at Mount Shasta, California, specimen from "Texas." The type in 1871. Failure to recognize its specimen is believed to be no longer status by most subsequent taxonomists e'xtant. A synonym, retana Walsingham, precluded use of this name in is available, but the species is literature on budworms. Generally, it distinctive, and Grote' s description was listed in the genus Archips by seems unequivocal so that neither earlier worker s, but Freeman (1958) suppression of it as a nomen dubium nor transferred retiniana to Choristoneura, designation of a neotype seems suggesting that it might be related to necessary. This species was included the pine-feeding species. Freeman in Choristoneura (Freeman 1958, Powell illustrated a specimen from Mono 1964); but recently Cudonigera County, California, as representing Obraztsov and Powell was proposed for ret iniana. houstonana, primarily on the basis of morphological features