NOCTUIDAE that have been misplaced in the ARCTIIDAE
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Camptoloma Felder

Type species: erythropygum Felder (= interiorata Walker), Japan, China.

Synonym: Leucopardus Hampson (type species tigrinus Hampson) syn. n. Taxa in this genus were originally placed in the Arctiidae, and Roepke, in his description of Leucopardus mirabilis (see below), concurred with this though indicating the genus was aberrant. Mell (1943) erected the subfamily Camptolominae for the genus and placed this in the Noctuidae in association with his concept of the Sarrothripinae (Sarrothripinae and Chloephorinae) because of similarities of the genitalia and early stages (such as a boat-shaped cocoon). It was promoted to full family status by Inoue & Sugi (1958-1961) but relegated to the Arctiinae by Inoue et al. (1982). The history has been reviewed by Kitching (1984: 208). Holloway (1976) also drew attention to the chloephorine-like structure of the genitalia of Leucopardus, whilst listing the genus under Hypsidae: Nyctemerinae.

The genus lacks a tymbal organ, the most useful definitive feature of the Arctiidae, and, whilst lacking a counter-tympanal hood, has a homologous sclerite posterior to the first abdominal spiracle, a noctuid feature. This latter character can be seen best in the female, but in the male the basal abdominal sternite is considerably modified into a pair of pouches set in a ventral cleft (Fig. 70), possibly sound-producing organs. A. Watson (pers. comm.) has examined numerous features of the genus, yet has found only one potentially arctiid character: two subventral setae (cf. one) the larval meso- and metathoracic segments, (see also Kitching (1984: 223)), though a full survey of this feature across the Arctiidae and Noctuidae is needed. It occurs in larvae of Earias species, placed in the Noctuidae: Chloephorinae.

The basal pouches in the male may also indicate the genus is chloephorine as similar modification is seen in Pseudoips Hübner, a typical chloephorine (I .J. Kitching, pers. comm.), and in typical members of the tribes Hylophilini (=Chloephorini), Careini and Ariolicini of Mell (1943). Extreme development of this feature is seen in the chloephorine genus Tympanistes Moore, known to produce a clicking sound or a bat-like squeak. The structure is also referred to by Kobes (1988). Such modification is not seen in Westermannia Hübner, so this genus must be excluded from any concept of the Chloephorinae defined on its presence.

The male genitalia show features reminiscent of the chloephorine noctuid genus Calymera Moore (see Holloway, 1976): long transtillae that extend anteriorly into the body cavity when the valves are not spread (fused in Camptoloma but free in Chloephorinae); the tegumen is expanded on each side at the junction with the vinculum; there is a subbasal lobe interiorly on the valve costa; the valve is distally rounded, with a corona of numerous fine setae directed basad.

These genitalic features and the basal pouches in the male are common to both Leucopardus and Camptoloma. They also share the following features that are probably apomorphic and support their synonymy: a strongly bowed basal section of the forewing costa; wing pattern elements such as a sequence of oblique black or grey stripes and an orange or yellow patch at the forewing tornus; an extended, rather membranous seventh abdominal segment in the female, invested with a dense covering of fine scales (Fig. 73), presumably used to protect the egg-mass.

Other features include filiform male antennae, a rather elongate male retinaculum, and a rounded, simple bursa copulatrix, lacking signa, with the ductus seminalis arising from it.

The larva of the type species was described and illustrated by Mutuura et al. (1965) as follows (from a translation by H. Inoue sent to A. Watson):

Length of body about 35mm. Body cylindrical, little tapering towards cephalic and caudal ends. Head and caudal tip small. Setae long, their apices pointed. Body densely covered with minute straight setae, apices of which are pointed, but they are invisible to the naked eye. Base of each seta flat, SD1 on each thoracic segment and L2 on prothorax minute, SV on each segment double. SV on 1st abdominal segment double, those on 2nd segment triple, each of them being independent, not on accompanying protruberance. SV on 7th and 8th abdominal segment single. SD1 on 8th segment placed just above spiracle. Setae at side of each proleg are three, secondary setae not developed. SD1, 2 on prothorax are placed below shield. Among crochets of prolegs those at the central one-third are long, becoming shorter towards both sides. Head roundish, densely covered with minute wrinkles. Forehead small, longitudinally long, vertex roundish. Coronal suture about twice length of forehead. Ad-forehead is broad throughout its total length. 1st and 2nd ocellus approximated, distances of 2nd, 3rd and 4th are nearly the diameter of eye. Mandible with three thick teeth; there is an internal tooth in a diamond-shaped protruberance at the bottom of the inner side. Spinneret thick and short, about three times length of width at the middle. Two setae from below the anus are curved, forming anal fork.

Head black, two thick whitish stripes at side. Frontoclypeal area and base of antennae greyish white. Body blackish brown, with narrow yellowish red stripes. The dorsal line, three subdorsal lines, two supraspiracular lines and a subspiracular line slender, minutely wavy. Prothoracic shield black, with greyish white dorsal line. Anal plate black, margined with greyish white. Spiracles yellowish brown, ringed with brown. Thoracic legs black.

Larvae gregarious, making a common pouch-like nest. Hibernates in a young larval stage, again active around April and full grown during May and June. The silken nest is greyish white, attached to a tree-trunk or twigs. A large one measures 9cm in diameter. Larvae stay in the nest during daytime and come out to eat leaves at night. The last instar larvae crowd on a tree trunk even during daytime. When fully-grown, they walk down to the ground and spin thick yellowish white cocoons between fallen leaves. Adults fly in June.

Recorded host-plants are all from the Fagaceae (Mell, 1943; Mutuura et al., 1965): Quercus, Castanopsis, Castanea, Lithocarpus.

The genus will be examined further in conjunction with the Sarrothripinae and Chloephorinae when that part of the series is undertaken.

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