Revision of the Afrotropical species of Asura Walker, 1854 (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae, Lithosiinae), with the description of a new genus

Abstract

The Afrotropical species of Asura Walker, 1854 are revised, and Afrasura, gen. n., is proposed to accommodate the group. The new genus is differentiated from Asura Walker, 1854 by external features and the morphology of the genitalia. Twenty-one new combinations and/or new species are proposed: Afrasura indecisa (Walker, 1869) comb. n., status rev. (type species); Afrasura amaniensis (Cieslak & Häuser, 2006) comb. n.; Afrasura crenulata (Bethune-Baker, 1911) comb. n., stat. rev; Afrasura discocellularis (Strand, 1912) comb. n., stat. rev.; Afrasura discreta sp. n.; Afrasura dubitabilis sp. n.; Afrasura emma sp. n.; Afrasura hieroglyphica (Bethune-Baker, 1911) comb. n., stat. rev.; Afrasura hyporhoda (Hampson, 1900) comb. n.; Afrasura ichorina (Butler, 1877) comb. n.; Afrasura neavi (Hampson, 1914) comb. n., stat. rev.; Afrasura numida (Holland, 1893) comb. n.; Afrasura obliterata (Walker, 1864) comb. n.; Afrasura pallescens sp. n.; Afrasura peripherica hilara (Kiriakoff, 1958) comb. n.; Afrasura rivulosa (Walker, 1854) comb. n.; Afrasura submarmorata (Kiriakoff, 1958) comb. n.; Afrasura terlineata sp. n.; Afrasura violacea (Cieslak & Häuser, 2006) comb. n.; and two unplaced species. The following subspecies are proposed: Afrasura indecisa orientalis ssp. n.; Afrasura rivulosa ethiopica ssp. n. The following names are synonymized: Asura fulvia Hampson, 1900 syn. n. and Asura obsolescens Hampson, 1914 syn. n., both synonyms of Afrasura rivulosa (Walker, 1854) comb. n.; Asura xantha Bethune-Baker, 1911 syn n., synonym of Afrasura indecisa (Walker, 1869) comb. n., stat. rev. A checklist and key to the species of Afrasura gen. n. are provided; habitus and genitalia of all taxa are figured.

An overview of genera and subgenera of the Asura / Miltochrista generic complex (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae). Part 1. Barsine Walker, 1854 sensu lato, Asura Walker, 1854 and related genera, with descriptions of twenty new genera, ten new subgenera and a check list of taxa of the Asura / Miltochrista generic complex

“…ocellata (Wileman & South, 1919) paraimpilia N. Singh, Kirti & Kaleka, 2016parafrigida Černý, 2009parang Holloway, 2001pisina Černý, 2009pseudofrigida Holloway, 2001 pseudohilaris N. Singh & Kirti pseudolyclene Holloway, 2001 retusa Černý, 2009sandakan Holloway, 2001temburong Holloway, 2001thanhi Dubatolov & Bucsek, 2016trusmadi Holloway, 2001unilinea (Wileman & South, 1919) vagilinea (Walker, 1862 Pseudoadites N. Singh & Kirti, 2016 frigida (Walker, 1854) = diffusa Walker, 1862 = griseotincta Rothschild, 1913 Afrasura Durante, 2009aetheria Durante, 2012amaniensis (Cieslak & Häuser, 2006 camilla Durante, 2012craigii (Holland, 1893 crenulata (Bethune-Baker, 1911) discocellularis discocellularis (Strand, 1912) discocellularis saotomensis Volynkin & László, 2018discreta Durante, 2009dubitabilis Durante, 2009duplex Durante, 2012emma Durante, 2009 fracta Durante, 2012 friederikeae (Kühne, 2007) hieroglyphica (Bethune-Baker, 1911 = thomensis (Rothschild, 1913) hyporhoda (Hampson, 1900) ichorina (Butler, 1877) indecisa indecisa (Walker, 1869) = rufostria Plötz, 1880 = gabunica Holland, 1893 = xantha Bethune-Baker, 1911 = guentheri Strand, 1912 indecisa orientalis Durante, 2009neavi (Hampson, 1914 numida (Holland, 1893) obliterata (Walker, 1864) pallescens Durante, 2009pectinatissima Volynkin & László, 2018peripherica peripherica Strand, 1912peripherica hilara (Kiriakoff, 1958 pinkurata (Kühne, 2007), comb. nov.…”

“…rivulosa (Walker, 1854) = fulvia (Hampson, 1900) = obsolescens (Hampson, 1914) rivulosa ethiopica Durante, 2009subfulvia (Kiriakoff, 1954, comb. nov.…”

“…submarmorata (Kiriakoff, 1958) tanzaniae Volynkin, 2019 terlineata Durante, 2009trunca Durante, 2012violacea (Cieslak & Häuser, 2006…”

“…The taxonomy of this group still remains poorly studied and many new taxa are still awaiting their discovery and description. Numerous new species and genera of the Asura / Miltochrista generic complex have been described during last two decades (Fang 2000;Holloway 2001;Kaleka 2003; de Vos & Mastrigt 2007;Kühne 2007;Durant 2008;2009;Kirti & Gill 2008;2009;Černý & Pinratana 2009;Bucsek 2012;2014;Dubatolov et al 2012;Dubatolov & Bucsek 2013;2014;Kirti et al 2013;2014;Kirti & Singh 2015, 2016Černý 2016;Volynkin & Bucsek 2016;Volynkin & Černý 2016a;2016b;2016c;2017a;2017b;2017c;2017d;2018a;2018b;2018c;2019a;2019b); Joshi et al 2017;Kishida & Wang 2017;Volynkin 2017a;2018b;2017c;2017d;2018a;2018b;2019a;2019b;2019c;Volynkin & László 2018a;…”

On the Taxonomy of the Genera Sesapa and Nipponasura (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae)

“…Th e Asura / Miltochrista generic complex is one of the largest and taxonomically most diffi cult Lithosiini groups including several hundreds of species distributed in Afrotropical, Oriental, Palaearctic and Australian Regions. Systematics of the Oriental and partly Palaearctic members of the generic complex was reviewed by Holloway (2001), and those of the Afrotropical members by Durante (2008;2009;2012).…”