Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Lichenaula melanoleuca



Lichenaula melanoleuca Turner, 1898.


QM

ANIC

Lichenaula melanoleuca Turner, 1898, The Xyloryctidae of Queensland. Annals of the Queensland Museum 4: 1–32 [19]. Holotype ANIC ♀, Ballandean, Qld.
Lichenaula melanoleuca Turn. Tillyard, 1926, Insects of Australia and New Zealand. Sydney, Angus & Robertson, 1-560. (425, pl. 28, fig. 38).
Lichenaula melanoleuca Turner, 1898. Common, in Nielsen, Edwards, & Rangsi, 1996, Checklist of the Lepidoptera of Australia. Monographs on Australian Lepidoptera, 4: i-xiv, 1-529 & CD-ROM [87].
Xylorycta melanoleuca Turner, 1898. Beccaloni, G. W., Scoble, M. J., Robinson, G. S. & Pitkin, B. (Editors). 2003. The Global Lepidoptera Names Index (LepIndex). World Wide Web electronic publication. http://www.nhm.ac.uk/entomology/lepindex [accessed 23 April 2010].
Lichenaula melanoleuca Turner, 1898. Edwards, E. D. (2003), Xyloryctinae. Australian Faunal Directory. Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra. http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/abrs/online-resources/fauna/afd/taxa/XYLORYCTINAE [accessed 18 June 2010].

Original description, Turner, 1898
Lichenaula melanoleuca, n. sp. Female, 15 mm. Forewings with vein 7 to apex. Head and face white. Palpi white, base of second, base and apex of terminal joint blackish. Antennae blackish; basal joint white. Thorax white, with a transverse black band anteriorly. Abdomen grey. Legs whitish, anterior pair infuscated. Forewings elongate, costa gently arched, apex round-pointed, hindmargin obliquely  rounded; blackish-fuscous with white markings; base narrowly white; an outwardly oblique, irregularly outlined fascia from costa at 1/6 to inner-margin at ¼; a large white spot on costa at 2/5 not reaching fold; another on costa at 2/3; a similar spot in disc at 2/3 confluent with the preceding; a smaller spot below centre of disc; a fifth spot at anal angle; and two minute dots at and before apex of costa; cilia whitish, bases blackish-fuscous except opposite costal dots and anal angle. Hindwings and cilia grey.
Ballandean (2,500 feet), near Wallangarra: one specimen in February.

Other references

Lichenaula melanoleuca, pl. 28, fig. 38, Tillyard, 1926

Of smaller species we may mention ... Lichenaula melanoleuca Turn. (pl. 28, fig. 38), with forewings a patchwork of black and white. (Tillyard, 1926).

Diagnosis:
Description:
Head:
Thorax:
Abdomen:
Food plants:
Flight period: February.
Distribution: New South Wales, Queensland. Endemic. (Edwards, 2003).

Remarks: