SYSTEMATICS Species of Lygomusotima New Genus and Neomusotima Yoshiyasu (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) from Australia and Southeastern Asia Feeding on Lygodium microphyllum (Schizaeaceae) 1 2 3 M. ALMA SOLIS, SHEN-HORN YEN, AND JOHN H. GOOLSBY Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 97(1): 64Ð76 (2004) ABSTRACT Lygomusotima Solis & Yen, newgenus, and twonewspecies, stria and constricta, are described from Australia and southeastern Asia. L. stria was discovered feeding on Lygodium micro- phyllum (Cav.) R. Br. (Schizaeaceae) during exploration for biological control agents. Its immatures and biology are described. The newgenus is compared with Neomusotima conspurcatalis (Warren), newcombination, another species that wasdiscovered feeding on L. microphyllum. N. conspurcatalis is redescribed, and its immatures and biology are described for the Þrst time. Musotima fuscalis Snellen is designated as a newsynonym of N. conspurcatalis. KEY WORDS Pyraloidea, Lygodium microphyllum, southeast Asia, Australia, pteridophagy FROM 1997 TO 2002 EXPLORATION for biological control species of Neomusotima and Lygomusotima are pro- agents of Lygodium microphyllum, the Old World vided. climbing fern, has been conducted in Australia and Although pteridophagy is uncommon among Lep- southeast Asia (Fig. 1) by the Agricultural Research idoptera, there is a preponderance of fern-feeding Service Australian Biological Control Laboratory in records in Musotiminae. Previous explorations for Brisbane, Queensland. This fern is an invasive weed in biological control agents of invasive weeds have re- southern Florida where it threatens many wetland sulted in the discovery of fern-feeding musotimines, communities, including the Everglades (Pemberton for example, a species of Panotima Meyrick from South and Ferrier 1998); newevidence indicates that it may Africa was reared on bracken fern, Pteridium aquili- also threaten the citrus and timber industries (Wood num (L.) (Kuhn) (Dennstaedtiaceae) (Lawton et al. and Garcõ´a 2002). Three external fern-feeding Muso- 1988). Published historical musotimine feeding records timinae (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), tentatively re- until the late 1990s include Musotima dryopterisivora ferred to as Musotima conspurcatalis, Musotima spp., Yoshiyasu (1985) (orginally identiÞed as M. acclaralis and “Cataclysta” camptozonale were discovered and Walker) reared on Dryopteris prob. chinensis (Baker) tested for biological control purposes in Australia and Koidz. (Dryopteridaceae) in Japan (Nakamura 1977); Florida (J.H.G., T. Wright, M. Purcell, and J. Makin- Musotima nitidalis Walker on Adiantum L. (Pteri- son, unpublished data). C. camptozonale belongs in a daceae) and Histiopteris incisa (Thunb.) J. Sm. new genus that will be treated elsewhere (Yen et al. (Dennstaedtiaceae) (Meyrick 1885; Philpott 1917); 2004); the other two species are treated in this article. and Musotima aduncalis Felder & Rogenhofer on Adi- We found that M. conspurcatalis should be transferred antum (Hudson 1928) from NewZealand. These his- to another genus, Neomusotima Yoshiyasu (1985), and torical records and recent research indicates that Mu- Musotima spp. (J.H.G., T. Wright, M. Purcell, and J. sotiminae may harbor more undiscovered fern Makinson, unpublished data) required a newgenus, feeders. Lygomusotima. In the process of searching collections Musotiminae consists of 20 genera and Ϸ200 named for additional specimens, another Lygomusotima spe- species occurring in all zoogeographical regions ex- cies was discovered from the Philippines. The imma- cept for Antarctica and the western Palaearctic. The tures of two species are described, and keys to the characters used to deÞne Musotiminae have yet to be fully investigated. But in general, the larvae of muso- 1 Systematic Entomology Laboratory, USDA, Smithsonian Institu- timines may be leaf miners or external feeders with a tion, P.O. Box 37012, National Museum Natural History, E-517, MRC 168, Washington, DC 20013Ð7012. E-mail: [email protected]. prognathous or semiprognathous head, and a round or 2 Department of Biological Sciences, Imperial College at Silwood dorsoventrally ßattened body, depending on their Park, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7YP, UK, and Department of Entomology, feeding habit. Their pupae may have a smooth head The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, with a medial dorsoventral depression or horned eye UK. 3 Australian Biological Control Laboratory, Agricultural Research caps; a pair of dorsolateral processes on the prothorax; Service, USDA, 120 Meiers Road, Indooroopilly, Queensland, Aus- spiracles normal or protruded on A1 to A4, or cone- tralia, 4068. shaped on A5 to A7; and cremaster present, usually January 2004 SOLIS ET AL.: FERN-FEEDING MUSOTIMINE PYRALOIDS 65 Fig. 1. Distributions of L. stria f, L. constricta Ⅺ, N. fuscolinealis Œ, and N. conspurcatalis F. with spiral spines. Several adult characters serve as will be discussed in a subsequent article (Yen et al. synapomorphies for Musotiminae, but the phyloge- 2004). netic signiÞcance of these characters has yet to be tested cladistically: 1) antennae laterally compressed Materials and Methods with ßattened segments, 2) R2 stalked with R3 ϩ 4,3) aedeagus with a reduced coecum, and 4) tympanal Biological Exploration Methods. Selection of search cases enlarged (Minet 1981, 1983, 1985; Yoshiyasu areas was guided by climate matching, habitat diver- 1985; Yen 1996, 1997; Munroe and Solis 1999; Solis et sity, herbarium locality data, and knowledgeable spe- al. 2004; S.-H.Y., unpublished data; Yen et al. 2004). cialists. The following countries were visited between Studies of taxonomy, phylogenetic relationships, September 1997 and March 2002: Australia, China, and global diversity of Musotiminae are still in their Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, NewCaledonia, Singa- infancy. Owing to the convergent wing patterns and pore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Each survey at genitalic structures, musotimines have been assigned each site was documented with a unique Australian to various crambid subfamilies, e.g., Nymphulinae, Biological Control Laboratory collection number, and Crambinae, Glaphyriinae, Pyraustinae, and Scopari- the following data were collected: date, time spent nae (Speidel 1984; Yoshiyasu 1985; Scoble 1992; Shaf- searching, site coordinates, temperature, plant growth fer et al. 1996; Munroe and Solis 1999; Speidel and Mey characteristics, and herbivore species. Most locations 1999). The phylogenetic relationships of Musotiminae were visited several times to account for seasonal within Crambidae are still in doubt. Yoshiyasu (1985) effects on herbivore biodiversity. Where possible, suggested that Musotiminae could be closely related other Lygodium species were surveyed for herbivores. to Scoparinae. Nuss (1999) suggested they could be Methods for collection included hand searches, closely related to Evergestinae. Recently, a prelimi- sweeping, beating of foliage, and dissection of under- nary cladistic analysis of the crambid subfamilies ground plant parts (J.H.G., T. Wright, M. Purcell, and based on adult characters also resulted in the unre- J. Makinson, unpublished data). solved relationship of Musotiminae to other subfam- Taxa Studied. Specimens were studied from the ilies (Solis and Maes 2002). A complete phylogenetic following collections, whose abbreviations are used analysis of the genera is lacking, and the relationship throughout the text: BMNH, The Natural History Mu- of Lygomusotima and Neomusotima to other genera seum, London, UK.; RMNH, National Natuurhisto- 66 ANNALS OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA Vol. 97, no. 1 Fig. 2. (A) Male adult of L. stria, Singapore, Bukit Timah Nature Preserve, Belukar. (B) Female adult of L. constricta, Philippines, Luzon, Mt. Makiling. (C) Female adult of N. conspurcatalis, Australia, Northern Territory, nr. Wangl, reared in Florida, Alachua Co., Gainesville, DPI, FBCL quarantine. (D) Live adult of N. conspurcatalis. risch Museum, Leiden, The Netherlands; and USNM, ton (1946), Klots (1970), Maes (1985, 1995, 1997), National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian In- Yoshiyasu (1985), Phillips and Solis (1996), and Solis stitution, Washington, DC. Type material is deposited and Maes (2002). in these institutions as designated within the text. To determine the identity and/or placement of the taxa Results and Discussion feeding on L. microphyllum, the type species, and Lygomusotima Solis & Yen, New Genus other species if available, of all described genera cur- (Figs. 2A and B; 3A, B, and D; 4A, B, and D; rently in the Musotiminae, including several newun- 5A and B; 6AÐC; and 7AÐC) published genera by Solis et al. (2004), Yen et al. 2004 and S.-H.Y., unpublished data, were dissected, studied, Diagnosis. Area between postmedial and subtermi- and compared. nal line distinctively patterned with bright white tri- Pinned specimens were examined and dissected angle between R5 and M1 that spans the two lines; after abdomens were soaked in 10% potassium hy- valva simple, sacculus slightly indented; juxta not in- droxide and wings soaked in bleach. Dissections were vaginated dorsally to sacculus. stained in chlorozal black for genitalia, and Eosin-Y for Description. Adult. Head. (Fig. 3A and B). Frons wings. Genitalia were placed in vials with glycerin and vertex white, brown between antennae; antennae and/or slide mounted in Canada balsam or Euparol white, brown dorsally; labial palpi three-segmented, (Clarke 1941; Holloway et al. 1987). Measurements Þrst segment white ventrally, brown dorsally,