Melese paranensis Dognin 1911
Creators: name: Beccacece, Hernán Mario
name: Zapata, Adriana Inés
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Arctiidae
Melese
Melese paranensis

description: Melese paranensis Dognin, 1911
(Fig. 7)
Melese flavescens Joicey & Talbot, 1918 syn. n. (Fig. 8)
Melese paranensis Dognin, 1911: 15 was described based on a male holotype from Misiones, Argentina, deposited in USNM (Fig. 7). Melese flavescens Joicey & Talbot, 1918: 268; pl. 1, f. 11 was described based on a male holotype from Misiones, Argentina according to Hampson (1920) is deposited in NHUK (Fig. 8). The holotype of the latter species is faded, but both the discal spot in the distal end of the discal cell and the three irregular spots at the base of the forewing are evident, similarly to the holotype of M. paranensis. Several males of M. paranensis from the type locality were examined. The three irregular spots on the forewing were found to present variations. Females are larger than males and the discal spot on forewings is reduced to a dot or even absent (Figs. 18, 21). The male genitalia dissected match with M. paranensis (Watson 1971) (Figs. 19, 20). Furthermore, there is no information of the close vicinity and similarity with M. paranensis in the description provided by Joicey & Talbot (1918). The only M. flavescens specimen present in a collection is the holotype. Therefore, this holotype is either an aberration or a faded specimen of M. paranensis.
Material examined. Argentina, Misiones: 1 ♀: Iguazú X-1928, A. Breyer leg. (MLP) (Figs. 18, 21). 1 ♀: 14- XI-1928 (MLP). 1 ♂: [Puerto] Bemberg, XII-1938, K. Hayward leg. (MLP). 1 ♂: Candelaria department - L. N. Alem, XI-1953, Gaitopulo (MACN) (Figs. 19, 20). 2 ♂: Esmeralda Provincial Park, 505 m, 18-I-2012, S 26°53'39'' W 53°52'44'', H.M. Beccacece, A.I. Zapata, G. San Blas, M.E. Drewniak & N. Villafañe leg. (MZUC). 1 ♀: Moconá Provincial Park, 433 m, 18-I-2012, S 27°09' 17 W 53°53'31'', H.M. Beccacece, A.I. Zapata, G. San Blas, M.E. Drewniak & N. Villafañe leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 16-III-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 3 ♂: idem locality, 01-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 2 ♂: idem locality, 05-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂ and 2 ♀: idem locality, 07-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 2 ♂ and 2 ♀: idem locality, 12-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 2 ♂ and 1 ♀: idem locality, 13-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 5 ♂ and 2 ♀: idem locality, 14-IV-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 25-VI-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 3 ♂: idem locality, 26-VI-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 27-VI-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂ and 2 ♀: idem locality, 27-VI-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 4 ♂ and 1 ♀: idem locality, 30-VI-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 2 ♀: idem locality, 01-VII-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 5 ♂: idem locality, 01-VII- 2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♀: idem locality, 03-VII-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 05-VII-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 01-VIII-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 3 ♀: idem locality, 01-VIII-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC). 1 ♂: idem locality, 21-X-2016, E. Krauczuk leg. (MZUC).
description: Published as part of Beccacece, Hernán Mario & Zapata, Adriana Inés, 2017, Taxonomic changes of some neotropical species of Arctiini Leach (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae), pp. 421-429 in Zootaxa 4272 (3) on page 426, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4272.3.7, http://zenodo.org/record/892434