Ptilophora variabilis Hartig 1968
Creators: name: Infusino, Marco
name: Hausmann, Axel
name: Scalercio, Stefano
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Notodontidae
Ptilophora
Ptilophora variabilis

description: Ptilophora variabilis Hartig, 1968, bona species
Ptilophora plumigera variabilis Hartig, 1968
The paratype series of P. plumigera variabilis is partially deposited in the Natural History Museum, London (UK) (three males), while the holotype and the remaining paratypes are probably deposited in the Regional Museum of Natural Sciences, Turin (Italy), but the material is not accessible (A. Zilli, pers. comm.). We identified the following material as belonging to P. variabilis because the specimens collected along the Apennines, northward and southward of the typical locality, is homogeneous from genetic and morphologic point of views.
Material examined. 2 males: ITALIA CALABRIA / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350 m— 1/12/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / S. Scalercio leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350 m— 1/12/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / S. Scalercio leg.; prep. number CREA—0137, Marco Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00438]. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350 m— 1/12/ 2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / S. Scalercio leg.; prep. number CREA—0105, Stefano Scalercio [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00539]. 2 males: ITALIA CALABRIA / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350 m— 24/11/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / S. Scalercio leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350 m— 24/11/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / S. Scalercio leg.; prep. number CREA—0139, Marco Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00538]. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / Scalercio & Infusino leg.; prep. number CREA—0135, Marco Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00413]. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 18.XI.2016 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 18.XI.2016 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / Scalercio & Infusino leg.; prep. number CREA—0134, Marco Infusino. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00535]. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 18.XI.2016 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_B1 / Bocca di Novacco, Saracena (CS) / 1315 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.8135°, 16.0424° / Scalercio & Infusino leg.; prep. number CREA—0136, Marco Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00536]. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_C1 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1465 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.7939°, 16.0520° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00537]. 4 males: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_C1 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1465 m— 18.XI.2016 / 39.7939°, 16.0520° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. 1 male: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 18.XI.15 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. 3 males: ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_C3 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 4.XI.2016 / 39.7859°, 16.0523° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. ITALIA CALABRIA—PO_ Ac 8 / Sciortaglie-Alessandria d.C. (CS) / 1253 m— 23.III.2017 / 39.9291°, 16.3532° / Scalercio & Infusino leg. All these specimens housed in the CREA-FL collection.
1 male: LUCANIA / F. Camastra / Cant. Inferno / m 550 — 3.I.1976 (Coll. Parenzan); prep. number CREA— 0 143, Marco Infusino (Coll. Parenzan). 1 male: LUCANIA / F. Camastra / Cant. Inferno / m 550— 3.I.1976; prep. number CREA—0144, Marco Infusino (Coll. Parenzan). 1 female: LUCANIA / F. Camastra / Cant. Inferno / m 550— 3.I.1976 (Coll. Parenzan); prep. number CREA—0154, Marco Infusino. 1 male: Molise – I / Castelmauro (CB) / Monte Mauro— 1000 m / 6/ 8.XII.1995 / Leg. A. Sciarretta; prep. number CREA—0145, Marco Infusino (Coll. University of Molise—UNIMOL). 1 male: Molise – I / Castelmauro (CB) / Monte Mauro— 1000 m / 6/ 8.XII.1995 / Leg. A. Sciarretta (Coll. UNIMOL). 1 female: Molise – I / Castelmauro (CB) / Monte Mauro— 1000 m / 6/ 8.XII.1995 / Leg. A. Sciarretta; prep. number CREA – 0 152, Marco Infusino (Coll. UNIMOL). 1 female: Molise – I / Castelmauro (CB) / Monte Mauro— 1000 m / 6/ 8.XII.1995 / Leg. A. Sciarretta (Coll. UNIMOL). 2 males: Molise-Italy / Pescopennataro (IS) — 1200m / Abeti Soprani / 26.I–2. II.2006 / Leg. Palladino-Marino (Coll. UNIMOL). 1 female; Molise-Italy / Pescopennataro (IS) — 1200m / Abeti Soprani / 3–7.XI.2006 / Leg. Palladino- Marino (Coll. UNIMOL). 1 male: MARCHE—M.ti Sibillini / Montioli—1100 / 20.XI.1970 / Coll. A. Teobaldelli; prep. number CREA—0146, Marco Infusino (Coll. Parenzan). 1 male: Emilia Romagna / M. te Fumaiolo (FC) / 1300 m— 8.XI.2008 / leg. E. Bertaccini; prep. number: 979, Edgardo Bertaccini (Coll. Bertaccini). 1 male: Liguria / sop. Andagna (IM) / 900 m— 18.XI.2006 / leg. E. Bertaccini; prep. number: 980, Edgardo Bertaccini (Coll. Bertaccini).
Redescription. The description provided by Hartig (1968) was only based on external characters and the specimens were not illustrated. For these reasons, a redescription of the species is provided here.
External characters (Figs. 1, 3a–e). Male: Forewings narrow, reddish-brown with considerable variations ranging from yellow-ochre to dark-brown. Median and post-median lines usually delimiting a dark median fascia, but this pattern is not always clearly visible. In brighter forms, the wing apex shows a light marginal spot. Fringe checkered dark grey and white, except in the proximity of the veins, where it is dark-brown. The veins are often markedly darker. Hindwings are semi-transparent, reddish-grey or reddish showing a pale line in the median area, not always visible. The antenna is dark-grey, strongly plumose. The thorax is very hairy, coloration similar to that of the median fascia of the forewings. The abdomen is reddish brown and ends with a paler hair tuft. Female: wing pattern similar to that of the males, but less marked. The basic colour is dark-brown with slight variations. Antenna filiform, reddish-brown.
Male genitalia (Figs. 4a, 5a–d, 6a–d). Uncus short, hooked, with small and narrow socii. Gnathos absent. Valva oval. Clasper (harpe) large and conspicuous, placed near the distal margin of valva. It is strongly sclerotized, sub-rectangular with serrated distal margin. A small lobed process is present at the base of the valva, in some cases barely visible. Phallus bifurcate with symmetrical and strongly sclerotized, long arms, 2/3 length of the whole phallus.
Female genitalia (Fig. 7a). Antrum sclerotized, with a pair of prominent processes at the base. The anterior margin of the most sclerotized part of the ostium region (lamella antevaginalis, sterigma) is “M” shaped. Papillae anales short. Bursa copulatrix very small and poorly sclerotized, without diagnostic significance.
Variation. The species shows a great variability of pattern, coloration and wingspan, ranging from 30 to 38 mm (mean: 34 mm; N=35). Genitalia, however, showed only limited intraspecific variation.
Genetic data (Fig. 8). Available COI sequences of P. variabilis obtained from specimens collected in Basilicata and Calabria, showed a genetic variability higher than that observed for european specimens of P. plumigera present in BOLD. In fact, P. variabilis shows an intraspecific mean (pairwise) distance of 0.38% and a maximum distance of 0.76% (N=8), whereas P. plumigera shows an intraspecific mean distance of 0.19% and a maximum distance of 0.48% (N=23). Minimum genetic distance between P. variabilis and P. plumigera is 4.1%.
Similar species. The species is very similar to P. plumigera and P. nebrodensis sp. n., but it is clearly distinguishable by diagnostic features of genitalia (see below in Diagnosis).
Distribution. P. variabilis is an allopatric vicariant of P. plumigera in Apennine Italy, with confirmed occurrence from Liguria to Calabria regions.
All records of P. plumigera from Apennines most likely refer to P. variabilis, while in the Alps Maritimes it is not possible to exclude the presence of both species (Fig. 9).
Ecology. The species inhabits broadleaved forests at different altitudes, from sea-level up to about 1,500 m, but it is more common in mountainous forests. It probably feeds on various hardwood trees with preference for Acer spp. (Fam. Aceraceae) as observed for P. plumigera. It is on wings from October to January with overwintering individuals, one specimen was collected in late March on the Pollino Massif.
description: Published as part of Infusino, Marco, Hausmann, Axel & Scalercio, Stefano, 2018, Ptilophora variabilis Hartig, 1968, bona species, and description of Ptilophora nebrodensis sp. n. from Sicily (Lepidoptera, Notodontidae), pp. 237-252 in Zootaxa 4369 (2) on pages 240-241, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4369.2.5, http://zenodo.org/record/1135702