Review of the Acontia areli group with descriptions of three new species ( Lepidoptera , Noctuidae , Acontiinae )

Th e six-species of the Acontia areli group are examined. In addition to the existing species A. areletta, A. areli, and A. areloides, three new species are described from southwestern North America: A. toddi sp. n., A. geminocula sp. n., and A. albifusa sp. n.. A key to species, descriptions, illustrations of adults and genitalia, and distribution maps are included.

Review of the Acontia areli group with descriptions of three new species (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Acontiinae) Introduction Th e Acontia areli group consists of six species from southwestern North America and Mexico that are very similar in adult appearance, but diff er in their genitalia.Th e basal half of the dorsal surface of the forewing is white or buff colored with scattered dark markings, the outer half is a maculate dark brown with a prominent white preapical costal spot.Acontia areli was described by F. H. H. Strecker in 1898, A. areletta by H. G. Dyar in 1907, and Tarache [= Acontia] areloides by W. Barnes and J. McDunnough in 1912. Subsequently, in the 1950's and 1960's, E. L. Todd identifi ed three additional species and applied manuscript names to specimens in the collection of the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington.Todd died before a manuscript was prepared.In the ensuing years, these names appeared on specimen labels in various collections, and in many cases misidentifi cations were made.For this reason, we decided not to perpetuate the Todd manuscript names and are providing new names to accompany the formal descriptions of the three new species.

Repository abbreviations
Specimens were examined from the following collections: CNC Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids, and Nematodes, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

CDF
Personal Collection of Cliff ord D. Ferris, Laramie, Wyoming, USA.

CUIC
Cornell University Insect Collection, Ithaca, New York, USA.FMNH Th e Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois, USA.

JBW
Personal collection of J. Bruce Walsh, Tucson, Arizona, USA.USNM National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Dissecting methods and genital terminology.Dissection of genitalia and terms for genital structures and wing markings follow Lafontaine (2004).

Acontia areli group
Diagnosis.Th e Acontia areli group is superfi cially characterized by the division of the forewing into a dark brownish-gray outer half and a pale white or buff inner half; a prominent, single, subapical white patch on the costa; a large, rounded, partially blue-fi lled reniform spot, and an orbicular spot usually reduced to black upper and lower arcs.Th e remaining two syntypes have similar labels to the fi rst three labels of the lectotype, but diff er in the type numbers (Strecker Colln 35728 for the other male from New Mexico, and Strecker Colln 35727 for the female from Arizona).Th ey are the species described below as Acontia geminocula.

Key to species of
Other material examined and distribution (Fig. 28).Approximately 1,200 specimens of both sexes were examined from western North America (17 dissections Diagnosis.Acontia areli is separated from its congeners by the DFW incompletely dark ringed pale orbicular spot, and from other species in the A. areli group by the black central pupil in reniform spot, irregular inner margin of brown area and associated irregular dark patch on the medial line with some bluish scales, and the buff color of the basal area of the forewing that contrasts with the white preapical spot. Description.Adult male: Head -dark brown; antenna fi liform; palpus porrect slightly longer than eye width, white basally, outer half brown with broad vertical white band in middle.Th orax -prothoracic collar, thorax, and abdomen creamy white, a few brown scales toward tip of tegula and on metathorax.Foreleg: coxa white with a few brown scales; femur and tibia outwardly brown, inwardly white, with white ring at middle and apex of tibia; tarsus brown with white rings at joints.Middle leg: femur white turning brown at femoral-tibial joint; tibia brown with white ring at base and near apex; tarsus brown with white rings at joints.Hindleg: femur and tibia white with light brown shading at tibial-tarsal joint; fi rst tarsal joint white shading to brown at second segment joint; remaining tarsi brown, white-ringed at joints.Wings: male (forewing length (FWL): 10-12.5 mm).Dorsal forewing (DFW): ground color creamy-white over basal half with four irregular pale gray-brown vertical striations, remainder of wing brown with scattered paler areas producing a very sight mottled aspect; prominent white trapezoidal costal patch before apex; orbicular spot an incomplete narrow brown ring with creamy white center; reniform a circular dark ring with internal iridescent blue scales and black pupil; a brown irregular patch below reniform spot with some blue scales extending to inner margin of wing; terminal line and irregular series of dark dashes; fringe scales basally brown, paler at tips, with brown patch below apex and at tornus.Dorsal hindwing (DHW): luminous white, nearly hyaline, with pale brown marginal band; fringe white.Female (FWL: 10-12 mm) -similar to male, but color generally darker, especially fringes, DHW light brown basally, shading to brown on outer margin.Male genitalia (Fig. 17  apex pointed dorsally, without apical corona; clasper on ventral margin wraps around valve end; right valve with smooth saccular extension tapering evenly to apex; left valve without saccular extension.Aedeagus: smoothly sclerotized except for a narrow fi nely spiculate posterior band that extends on to base of vesica; everted vesica with three diverticula, an unequally bilobed, unarmed, subbasal diverticulum, a shorter, rounded diverticulum on left with a large, tapered, curved, heavily sclerotized cornutus at apex, and a very small ventral diverticulum with a similar cornutus; apical part of vesica with two large swollen lobes, both densely covered with fi eld of short, stout spines forming rasp-like patches; lower (right) lobe with central keel of larger spines.Female genitalia (Fig. 23) -ostium bursae broad, funnel like; ductus bursae broad, expanding toward junction with corpus bursae, length ca.0.7 × length of corpus bursae; corpus bursae ovoid with spine-fi lled pouch posteriorly on left.
Diagnosis.Acontia areloides is separated from its congeners by its larger size, even vertical margin between the buff basal half of the forewing and the brown outer half, the latter obscuring the orbicular and reniform spots, and large white trapezoidal preapical costal spot, and the fuscous infusion on the hindwing.
Description.Adult male: Head -dark brown; antenna fi liform; palpus porrect, slightly longer than eye width, white basally, outer half brown with vertical paler band in middle.Th orax -prothoracic collar and thorax creamy white with a few widely scattered brown scales.Foreleg: coxa white with a brown patch; femur and tibia outwardly brown, inwardly white, tan brush at tibial-tarsal joint; tarsi brown with white rings at joints.Middle leg: femur white, turning brown at femoral-tibial joint; tibia brown, white ringed at tibial-tarsal joint; tarsi brown with white rings at joints.Hindleg: femur, tibia white with brown "knee" at femoral-tibial joint and light brown shading at tibial-tarsal joint; fi rst tarsal joint white shading to brown at second segment joint; remaining tarsi brown, white-ringed at joints.Wings: male (FWL 12-14 mm).DFW: ground color dark creamy-white over basal half with several irregular light brown vertical striations, then sharp nearly straight vertical transition to brown for remainder of wing, with some scattered paler areas producing only a very slightly mottled aspect; prominent large white trapezoidal costal patch basad of apex; orbicular spot straddles pale-to-brown boundary, a brown ring with blue interior and brown pupil; reniform spot a circular dark ring with internal iridescent blue scales and black pupil; below orbicular spot a dark brown crescent and distally smeared patch with some bluish scales; terminal line a series of dark dashes; fringe brown interrupted by small white patch below apex and another at middle of outer margin of wing.DHW: luminous white, nearly hyaline, with pale brown marginal band; fringes white.Female (FWL 12-14 mm) -similar to male, but color generally darker, especially fringes, DHW light brown basally shading to brown on outer margin.Male genitalia (Fig. 18) -uncus: decurved, very long and narrow with slightly expanded rounded apex.Valves: asymmetrical; right valve narrower at base than apex with triangular process on dorsal margin beyond middle, apex rounded, with corona; clasper on lower margin of valve with triangular dorsal process near base, apex spine-like, curving around lower end of valve; sacculus broad with apex rounded, without saccular extension; left valve similar to right valve except sacculus smaller and clasper shorter with with less prominent dorsal bulge.Aedeagus: similar to that of A. areli, but more slender and spiculate band at apex ending well before base of vesica; everted vesica with trilobed subbasal diverticulum, a medial, rounded diverticulum with a heavily sclerotized, fi n-like cornutus dorsally, and a distal lobe covered with rasp-like oval patch of small heavily chitinized projections.Female genitalia (Fig. 24) -ostium bursae funnel-like; ductus bursae a long unsclerotized tube joining kidney-shaped corpus bursae at midpoint; corpus bursae mostly membrane, lightly sclerotized posteriorly.
Note.A single male specimen was examined from San Juan del Rio, Queretaro, south-central Mexico that is nearly identical to A. areloides, but diff ers in some aspects of the male genitalia.We do not feel it appropriate to describe a new species based upon a single specimen.Other material examined.1 ♂, Mexico, Federal District, San Jacinto.

Acontia areletta Dyar
Diagnosis.Acontia areletta resembles A. areloides, from which it can be separated by its white hindwing, lacking the fuscous band around the margin as found in A. areloides.
Description.As for male of A. areloides excepting the dorsal hindwing, which in A. areletta is pure white, without a fuscous marginal band.Th e female is unknown.Male genitalia (Fig. 22; 2 dissections) -uncus: decurved, very long and narrow with very slightly expanded rounded apex.Manica (memranous tube posterior to juxta) with

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stout spine-like fi eld of sclerites (attached to outer edge of aedeagus in Fig. 22).Valves: asymmetrical; right valve broad, approximately rectangular, with blunt process near middle of dorsal margin, apex pointed dorsally, without apical corona; sacculus without posterior extension; clasper swollen basally on dorsal margin, then tapering evenly to spine-like apex extending slightly beyond ventral margin of valve; left valve similar to right, but sacculus smaller and clasper much shorter.Aedeagus: similar to that of A. areloides; everted vesica similar to that of A. areloides, but with two small additional subbasal diverticula.Female genitalia -unknown.

Acontia toddi
Note.Material of this species was distributed by E. L. Todd under the unpublished manuscript name "Acontia deserticola." Etymology.We take pleasure in naming this species in honor of the late E. L. Todd.
Diagnosis.DFW basal area nearly white in both sexes; dark brown distal area nearly uniformly brown with only a few scales of diff erent color; orbicular spot nearly obsolete; reniform spot less prominent than in A. areli and A. geminocula, and without dark "pupil." Description.Adult male: Head -dark brown with a few whitish scales at antennal base; antenna fi liform; palpus porrect, slightly longer than eye width, white basally, brown at tip.Th orax -prothoracic collar and thorax.Foreleg: brown, white-ringed in middle of tibia and at joints.Middle leg: femur and tibia white with brown rings at joints; tarsi brown, white ringed at joints.Hindleg: femur white; tibia white with light brown shading at tibial-tarsal joint; fi rst tarsal segment white shading to brown at joint with second segment; remaining tarsi brown, white-ringed at joints.Wings: male (FWL 10-13 mm).DFW: ground color white over basal half with two small very pale brown patches on costa and a few scattered pale brownish scales basad; outer half of wing brown with a few scattered small white and dark scale patches; prominent, ap-proximately square, white preapical patch on costa; orbicular spot virtually obsolete, defi ned only by a few dark scales; reniform spot circular, fi lled with darker scales than background; terminal line a series of dark dashes; fringe basally brown, white at tips.DHW: luminous white, nearly hyaline, with pale brown marginal band; fringe white.Female (FWL 10-12 mm) -similar to male but DFW basal area with increased darker overscaling; DHW pale tan with pale brown marginal band.Male genitalia (Fig. 19) -uncus: long, slender, slightly swollen at mid-length, tapers to pointed tip.Valves: asymmetrical; right valve broad, tapering slightly toward apex with slight preapical concavity on dorsal margin; apex rounded with slight dorsal point; corona present but with fewer setae than in other species; clasper on ventral margin with triangular process near middle of dorsal margin, apex spine-like, extending around posteroventral angle of valve; right sacculus with apically spatulate extension; left valve similar but sacculus smaller and without posteror extension; clasper with broad, triangular, dorsal process near base.Aedeagus: similar to that of A. areli; everted vesica membrane plum-shaped with large unarmed thumb-like dorsal diverticulum subbasally; two large, heavily sclerotized horn-like cornuti, one at base of diverticulum and one near middle of outer margin of vesica; apical part of vesica with two large fi elds of chitinized projections forming rasp-like patches with band of stouter spines along middle of each patch.Female genitalia (Fig. 25) -ostium bursae funnel-like, tapering only slightly to junction with ductus bursae; ductus bursae tubular, lightly sclerotized, length about 0.6 × length of ovoid corpus bursae; spine-fi lled posterior pouch of corpus bursae to left of ductus.

Acontia albifusa
Note.Material of this species was distributed by E. L. Todd under the unpublished manuscript name "Acontia agricola." Etymology.Th e name of this species refers to the pale basal coloring that diff uses into the dark outer shading.
Diagnosis.DFW basal area creamy yellow in both sexes; brown area mottled, not uniformly dark; prominent dark patch distal to reniform spot.
Description.Adult male: Head -dark brown with circular pale patch on frons; antenna fi liform; palpi porrect slightly longer than eye width, white basally, shading to brown distally head dark brown.Th orax -prothoracic collar and thorax white.Foreleg: coxa white with middle brown spot; femur, tibia and tarsus brown with white-ring in middle of tibia and at joints.Middle leg: femur and tibia white with brown rings at femoral-tibia joint and near apex of tibia; tarsus brown, white-ringed at joints.Hindleg: femur and tibia white; fi rst tarsal segment white shading to brown at joint with second segment; remaining tarsi brown, white-ringed at joints.Wings: male (FWL 9.5-11 mm).DFW: ground color dark creamy-white over basal half of wing with pale brown transverse lines; splotchy brown and pale on remainder of wing producing a very mottled aspect; prominent white preapical patch on costa; orbicular spot virtually obsolete, defi ned only by a few dark scales; reniform spot circular, outlined in back and fi lled mainly with iridescent blue scales; a prominent dark bar distal to reniform spot; a second reniform-like spot below and proximal to reniform spot irregularly outlined in black and with some blue scales in middle; a brown bar below this spot on inner margin; terminal line an irregular series of dark dashes; fringe a mixture of white, gray, and pale brown scales with pale-colored scales concentrated to form a patch near middle of wing and a smaller patch distal to reniform spot.DHW: luminous white, nearly hyaline, with pale brown marginal band; fringe white.Female (FWL 10.5 mm, 1 specimen) -similar to male.Male genitalia (Fig. 21) -uncus: decurved, long, narrow, tapering to pointed tip.Valve: asymmetrical; right valve roughly rectangular, pointed at apex of dorsal margin; corona well-developed; clasper on ventral margin of right valve, narrower near base than at ventral apex of cucullus where clasper abruptly tapers into a long, curved spine follows outer margin of cucullus almost to apex; dorsal margin of clasper with elongated, triangular process on dorsal margin near base; saccular process smooth, broad, somewhat spatulate apically, lying along dorsal margin of clasper; left valve similar to right valve but saccular extension absent and apical part of clasper with spine-like apical part reduced to short inward hook at ventral apex of valve.Aedeagus: very similar to that of A. toddi except cornutus at base of subbasal diverticulum larger Figures 2-16.Acontia areli group adults.2-4. A. areli, 2 ♂, Catron Co., NM; 3 ♂, Grant Co., NM; 4 ♀, Grant Co., NM; 5-7. A. areloides, 5 ♂, Grant Co., NM; 6 ♂, Catron Co., NM; 7 ♀, Catron Co., NM.8-10. A. toddi, 8 ♂, holotype, Emery Co., UT, 9 ♂, Yavapai Co., AZ, 10 ♀, Emery Co., UT.11-13.A. geminocula, 11 ♂, holotype, Yavapai Co., AZ; 12 ♂, Cochise Co., AZ; 13 ♀, Pima Co., AZ.14-15.A. albifusa, 14 ♂, holotype, Pima Co., AZ, 15 ♀, Pima Co., AZ.16. A. areletta ♂, San Jacinto, Mexico.
Biology.Unknown.Habitats are open pinyon-juniper-oak areas and open ponderosa pine forest.Adults during July and August in canyons and forested plateaus from 4800-7500' (1460-2285 m).

A. toddi Ferris & Lafontaine, sp. n. Descriptions Acontia areli Strecker
Figure 1.Diagnostic characters for separating the fi ve Acontia areli group species found in the United States.Th e Mexican A. areletta is similar to A. areloides, but with an all white hindwing.
Durango, 10 mi.(16 km) W of Durango.Th is species seems to have the widest geographic range of the six species in the group.