Aethaloessa calidalis Guenée

Taxonomy

The holotype of Glyphodes calidalis Guenée, 1854: 294, from India (Coromandel Coast [Tamilnadu]), has been lost. Whalley (1961: 106) selected a specimen from the Ragonot collection, which had been compared with the Guenée type by Ragonot, as the neotype.

• syn. Syngamia octavialis Walker, 1859c: 334-335. TL North India [North Hindostan]. Indonesia, Sumatra.
• syn. Hyalea fulvidalis Wallengren, 1860: 174, TL Tahiti;
• syn. Syngamia secutalis Walker, 1865 [1866 Jan 13]): 1291, TL given in Globiz as; Thailand [Siam]. Indonesia, Maluku, Seram [Ceram]; Aru Islands. West Papua, Misool [Mysol]. New Guinea;
• syn. Syngamia secutalis Lederer 1863: 435, (TS of Chnaura Lederer 1863:435) Nec Walker [1866] 1865: 1291;
• syn. Syngamia aurantiaca Hampson, 1912: 254;
• syn. Botys witalis Felder, Felder & Rogenhofer, 1875: pl. 135, fig. 8, syn. n., subs. misspel. (Whalley, 1961:106);
• syn. Stenia floridalis Zeller 1852: 33 (Hampson, 1898) Nec Zeller Proc Ent Soc: 644, 1898. S. floridalis auctt. (Whalley, 1961: 106);
• syn. Syngamia tiphalis Walker, 1859: 355. Stat n. as ssp. (Whalley 1961) TL 'Celebes' [Sulawesi]. The type is in the BMNH (genitalia slide #4987).
• Comb. n. to Aethaloessa Lederer 1863. (Whalley 1961: 106)

Description

A widespread and distinctive bright orange and dark brown sp. The FW has three large orange areas, defined by a broad brown submarginal area, a brown median fascia and a narrow brown subbasal line. The subcosta is brown towards the wing base. The HW is orange with broad brown submarginal area from the termen to the post median fascia. The head is orange, the thorax brown and the abdomen is orange with a brown basal band and tip.

As this sp. is mainly a day flyer the colours are probably aposematic but it is also caught at light.

Two ssp. are recognised (Whalley, 1961: 106) and can be determined from their genitalia.

• ssp. calidalis; India, Sri Lanka, Seychelles
• ssp. tiphalis;, Burma, W. Malaysia. Singapore, Borneo, Indonesia, PNG Australia, Pacific Is., Philippines, Taiwan,

References

• Zeller, P.C. (1852) Lepidoptera microptera quae J. A. Wahlberg in caffrorum terra legit, Stockholm: Norstedt. 120 pp.
• Guenée, A. (1854) Deltoïdes et pyralites. In Boisduval, J.A. & Guenée, A., Hist. nat. des Insectes (Spec. gén. Lépid.) Vol. 8, 448pp. + 10 pls., Librarie Encyclopédique de Roret: Paris.
• Wallengrén, H.D.J. (1860) Lepidopterologische Mittheilungen. Wien Ent Mon.: 4 (6) 161-176.
• Lederer, J., (1863) Beitrag zur Kenntniss der Pyralidinen. Wien. entomol. Monat. 7: 243-280, 331-502, pl. 2-18.
• Walker (1865 [1866 Jan 13]) List Spec Lepid. Ins. Coll. B. M., Cat. Lepid. Heterocera. 34, (Suppl. 4): 1121-1533.
• Felder, C., Felder, R. & Rogenhofer A. F. (1875) Reise öste Fregatte Novara um die Erde in den Jarhen 1857, 1858, 1859 (Zool.), 2; 2 Abtheilung. Lepidoptera 2; 9 + 10+ 20 pp , 140 pls. Wien.
• Whalley, P.E.S. (1961) A revision of two species complexes in the Pyraustinae (Lepidoptera Pyralidae): Cotachena histricalis Warren, Syngamia floridalis Bull BM (NH) Entomology 10, (3) :8-111. Pl. 4.
• Walker, F. (1859c) Pyralides. In; List Spec. Lepid. Ins. Coll. B. M., Cat. Lepid. Heterocera. Ser. 4, 17: 255-508.
• Hampson, G.F. (1912c) XX Descriptions of new species of Pyralidae of the subfamily Pyraustinae, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Vol 9, Ser. 8, (50): 242-268.