Sesamia simplaria Rungs, P. E. L. Viette 1954
Creators: name: Hévin, Noémie M. C.
name: Kergoat, Gael J.
name: Zilli, Alberto
name: Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire
name: Musyoka, Boaz K.
name: Sezonlin, Michel
name: Conlong, Desmond
name: Van Den Berg, Johnnie
name: Ndemah, Rose
name: Le Gall, Philippe
name: Cugala, Domingos
name: Nyamukondiwa, Casper
name: Pallangyo, Beatrice
name: Njaku, Mohamedi
name: Goftishu, Muluken
name: Assefa, Yoseph
name: Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga
name: Bani, Grégoire
name: Molo, Richard
name: Chipabika, Gilson
name: Ong'amo, George
name: Clamens, Anne-Laure
name: Barbut, Jérôme
name: Le Ru, Bruno
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Noctuidae
Sesamia
Sesamia simplaria

description: Sesamia simplaria Rungs 1954
Figures 8 K, V; 9 I; 11; 12 U – X
Sesamia simplaria – Rungs (1954: 164, fig. 2; Planche VIII, figs 2, 5), Viette (1967: 707, figs 548, 549), Poole (1989: 908 [catalogue]).
Type material.
Type ♂, [MADAGASCAR], Sn. 18, P. Viette gen ♂ n ° 2549, L 556, TYPE, TYPUS Sesamia simplaria (Saalm) Rungs, P. E. L. Viette det. 1961, TYPE ♂ Sesamia simplaria (Saalm) Rgs Cg. Rungs det 1953, Fotografiert 2014 H. Thöny, Senckenberg Museum, (Francfort-sur-le-Main).
Other material.
MADAGASCAR: one ♂, Nossi-Bé, [A.] Stumpff, [18] 89, Lep. 556 x simplaria, this specimen is not the typus of Leucania simplaria Saalm, it’s a specimen of Sesamia simplaria Rungs, 1954. P. E. L Viette det 1961, [Senckenberg Museum, Francfort-sur-le-Main]; one ♂, [Madagascar], Agrotidae genitalia slide No. 1432, (NHM); one ♀, Nossi-Bé, 1924, Coll. C. Dumont, (MNHN); one ♂, Madagascar Centr., Plateaux de l’Imerina, Tananarive, Parc de Tsimbazaza, Alt. 1200 m a. s. l., P. Viette, Chasse n ° 18 du 7. X. [19] 51, Mission P. Viette sept. 1951 – Mars 1952, Ch. Rungs gen. MP. 26, (MNHN); one ♂, Madagascar Centr., Plateaux de l’Imerina, Tananarive, Parc de Tsimbazaza, Alt. 1200 m a. s. l., P. Viette, Chasse n ° 97 du 13. I. 1952, Mission P. Viette sept. 1951 – Mars 1952, Ch. Rungs gen. MP. 1, (MNHN); seven ♂, three ♀, env. de Tananarive, 1921, R. Decary, Ch. Rungs male gen. MP. 42, Genitalia P. Viette female prep. n ° 4380, (MNHN); three ♂, two ♀, [Madagascar Centr., Plateaux de l’Imerina, Tananarive, Parc de] Tsimbazaza, [Alt. 1200 m a. s. l.], 8 / 9. XI. 1954 / 4. XII. 1954 / 13. II. 1955, P. Viette, (MNHN); one ♂, Madagascar Est, env. de Périnet, forêt d’Analamazoatra, Alt. 910 m a. s. l.], P. Viette le 14. I. 1955, (MNHN); one ♂, Madagascar Sud, District de Sakaraha, Lambomakandro, route de Tuléar km 808, 6–9. IV. 1956, P. Grivaud, Institut Scientifique de Madagascar, 3071 R, (MNHN).
Diagnosis.
(See also the identification key of incerta subgroup, section 3.4. 2.). This species can be distinguished from the other known members of the incerta subgroup by the combination of the following characters of the male and female genitalia: vinculum v-shaped at the outer margin, u-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a medium sized saccus; sacculus with a broad and short apical extension, curved inwards, strongly club-shaped; juxta large, the inferior plate triangular produced into a blunt point, the sides rounded, the superior plate long and wide, bifid terminally; phallus short and thick, curved; vesica with a large semi-circular cornutus; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 very large, as wide as long, the anterior side slightly convex, the posterior side triangular, separated by a deep longitudinal ditch backward the ostium; ostium bursae funnel-shaped; ductus bursae without posterior elongated sclerotized areas; ovipositor lobes at least twice as long than wide.
Taxonomic notes.
Rungs (1954), without providing rationale regarding his interpretation of the notoriously difficult descriptions by Saalmüller (1891), considered that the text part of that author’s description of Leucania simplaria (cf. Saalmüller 1891: 252–253) did indeed relate to a species corresponding to the current concept of Leucania Ochsenheimer, 1816, although the illustration associated with the description was that of a Sesamia (cf. Saalmüller 1891: Tafel X, fig. 160). Rungs further stated that the depicted specimen must have been a female by its filiform antennae, so that of the two syntypes listed by Saalmüller, one in the Lübeck museum (whose collection is destroyed) and the other in SMLF, the latter, actually a male Sesamia, was the only surviving (syn) type, and he proceeded with a redescription of the species based on this and other supplementary specimens. Viette (1962) brought forward Rungs’ argumentation and challenged also his interpretation of Saalmüller’s illustration and the labelling of the SMLF specimen of Sesamia examined by Rungs as one (syn) type of Leucania simplaria, considering that the whole description by Saalmüller (1891) was not mixed and fully related to the species nowadays known as Leucania (Boursinania) simplaria Saalmüller, 1891. The Sesamia species with which the latter has been confused may therefore be attributed and dated as from Rungs (1954).
Description.
(Fig. 12 U – X). Both males and females have been described in great detail by Rungs in 1954 and completed by Viette in 1967. — Forewing length: male 29–33 mm (x ̅ = 30.9 mm, N = 9); female 30–36 mm (x ̅ = 33.0 mm, N = 5). — Male genitalia (Fig. 8 K, V). Although already partly described by Rungs (1954) and Viette (1967) we provide here a complete description. Tegumen with large peniculi, slightly erected; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin, u-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a medium sized saccus. Valve with sacculus and cucullus separate; costa short and narrow, heavily sclerotized, ending with a thick and long straight spine, with two apical teeth; sacculus heavily sclerotized rounded at base, a broad and short apical extension, slightly curved inwards, strongly club-shaped, bearing numerous short and stout spines; cucullus long, weakly sclerotized, clavate at apex, with scattered and papillated hairs. Juxta large, the inferior plate triangular produced into a blunt point, the sides rounded, the superior plate long and neck, bifid terminally; uncus small and stout, angled at base, tapered near apex to a fine curved point; phallus short and thick, slightly curved; lamina ventralis with an elongate carinal crest; vesica with a large semi-circular cornutus. — Female genitalia (Fig. 9 I). Apophyses anteriores with spatulate tips; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 very large, as wide as long, the anterior side slightly convex, the posterior side triangular, separated by a deep longitudinal ditch backward the ostium; ostium bursae funnel-shaped, weakly sclerotized; ductus bursae very short, without elongated sclerotized areas; ductus seminalis from the basal part of the corpus bursae; corpus bursae long, without signa; ovipositor lobes at least twice as long than wide with dorsal surface bearing numerous short and stout setae, the ventral side of each lobe slightly curved and tooth-shaped; apophyses posteriores more slender than apophyses anteriores.
Distribution.
Madagascar. Known from several localities in different vegetation mosaics (‘ lowland rain forest wetter types’ (Mosaic # 1 b), ‘ cultivation and secondary grassland, replacing upland and montane forest’ (Mosaic # 18), ‘ dry deciduous forest and secondary grassland’ (Mosaic # 22 b)) (White 1983) (Fig. 11).
Ecology.
Unknown.
Remarks.
This species was named in Saalmüller and von Heyden (1891) but the description provided by Saalmüller corresponds to that of a Leucania Ochsenheimer (Noctuinae: Leucaniini), and not at all to the figure illustrating the species (fig. 160), which is a Sesamia. Saalmüller therefore did not describe S. simplaria, and Rungs (1954) decided to describe the species on the basis of the ♂ type from the Senckenberg Museum, [Francfort-sur-le-Main] which was the specimen in the fig. 160 of Saalmüller and von Heyden (1891). According to Rungs (1954) and Viette (1967), S. simplaria would belong to the calamistis subgroup. However, the short pectination of the male antennae, the apical extension of the sacculus strongly club-shaped and the lateral plates of the ostial segment very large, as wide as long, suggest that S. simplaria rather belongs to the incerta subgroup.
description: Published as part of Hévin, Noémie M. C., Kergoat, Gael J., Zilli, Alberto, Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire, Musyoka, Boaz K., Sezonlin, Michel, Conlong, Desmond, Van Den Berg, Johnnie, Ndemah, Rose, Le Gall, Philippe, Cugala, Domingos, Nyamukondiwa, Casper, Pallangyo, Beatrice, Njaku, Mohamedi, Goftishu, Muluken, Assefa, Yoseph, Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga, Bani, Grégoire, Molo, Richard, Chipabika, Gilson, Ong'amo, George, Clamens, Anne-Laure, Barbut, Jérôme & Le Ru, Bruno, 2024, Revisiting the taxonomy and molecular systematics of Sesamia stemborers (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Apameini: Sesamiina): updated classification and comparative evaluation of species delimitation methods, pp. 447-501 in Arthropod Systematics & amp; Phylogeny 82 on pages 447-501, DOI: 10.3897/asp.82.e113140