Polycaena lua subsp. lua Grum-Grshimailo 1891
Creators: name: Huang, Hao
name: Li, Yu-Fei
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Lycaenidae
Polycaena
Polycaena lua
Polycaena lua lua grum-Grshimailo, 1891

description: Polycaena lua lua Grum-Grshimailo, 1891
(Figs. 21–22, 45–46, 55–56, 64, 70, 77, 88)
Polycaena lua Grum-Grshimailo, 1891: 454, TL: “Sinin-Schan”, now Gui-da-sha Valley, on current road from Xining to Agong, Qinghai (Grieshuber & Churkin, 2003); South, 1902: 109, list of specimens from Amdo; Stichel, 1928: 21, key to species, 22, fig. 13 for ♂; Forster, 1951: 63, pl. 4, fig. 4 for ♂ from Kukunor.
Polycaena lua lua: D’Abrera, 1993: 393, figs. for ♂ & ♀♀.
Polycaena lama var. lua: Oberthür, 1903: 268.
Polycaena princeps Zeitform lua: Röber, 1903: 358.
Hyporion lama form lua: Seitz, 1909: 253, pl. 89b.
Material. CHINA: Qinghai province: 1♂, Xining City, Huangyuan County, Xianghe, 3600 m, 27.VI.2012, K. Song leg.; 1♂, Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Dawu, 4000 m, 16.VII.2004, K. Song leg..
Identification. Though the type specimens of this taxon have never been published in the literature, the following characters revealed in the original description (Grum-Grshimailo, 1891) clearly defines this taxon and distinguishes it from the other known species of the genus, except only P. minor: 1) forewing upper side of male has outer half fulvous in ground color and marked by black markings (different from that of P. lama, P. kansuensis, P. wangjiaqii, P. sejila and P. princeps); 2) hindwing upper side of male is black-brown, with fulvous markings restricted near outer margin and interrupted (different from that of P. matuta); 3) hindwing underside of male has black spots at basal and discal areas (different from that of P. carmelita and P. chauchowensis).
This taxon was repeatedly illustrated by later authors (Seitz, 1909; Stichel, 1928; Forster, 1951; D’Abrera, 1993) and all of these illustrations are identical in wing-pattern, especially in the unique pattern of the discocellular cell (a small spot in costal half but no spot or marking in anal half) on hindwing underside which is not shared by any other species. There is no confusion about this species in the references. The area around the type locality of this taxon has been thoroughly explored by a friend of the authors, and only two Polycaena species have ever been collected: one with fulvous postdiscal markings on forewing upper side, belonging to P. l ua; another with white postdiscal spots on forewing upper side, belonging to P. kansuensis; no specimen of P. minor has ever been collected there.
Wing-pattern. Forewing upper side of both sexes has a continuous fulvous postdiscal band; hindwing upper side of both sexes has no clear marking or pale patch inside of the submarginal markings; discocellular cell of hindwing underside in both sexes has a black spot in costal half and is unmarked in anal half.
Male genitalia. Uncus in dorsal view is trifurcate. Fenestrula between tegumen and scaphium is transverse and well present at middle. Valva is elongate and has no ventral branch found in P. l a m a. Ampulla of valva is slightly overlapped by harpe. Harpe of valva has no inner process rising from sacculus. Posterior branches of central plate are rather short in dorsal view and depressed in lateral view. Juxta has dorsal part extending only anteriorly in lateral view. Phallus in lateral view has a dorsal corner. Coecum penis in dorsal view is expanded laterally.
Remarks. The male genitalia morphology strongly supports this taxon to be independent from both P. lama and P. princeps.
Distribution. Restricted to NE Qinghai (Xining area and Guoluo).
description: Published as part of Huang, Hao & Li, Yu-Fei, 2016, Notes on the genus Polycaena Staudinger (Lepidoptera: Riodinidae) with descriptions of two new species from China, pp. 575-590 in Zootaxa 4105 (6) on pages 584-585, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4105.6.4, http://zenodo.org/record/258394