New and rare noctuid species (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) in the fauna of the Republic of Moldova

Data on 17 rare species of noctuids (Noctuidae) in the fauna of the Republic of Moldova are given in the present paper. The investigations were carried out during 2012-2020 in 26 sites throughout the Republic of Moldova. The genus Actebia Stephens, 1829 and the species Actebia praecox (Linnaeus, 1758) and Xylena solidaginis (Hübner, 1803) are reported as new for the fauna of the Republic of Moldova. Thus, the number of noctuid species in the fauna of the Republic of Moldova reached 427. The species: Acontia titania (Esper, 1798), Aedophron rhodites (Eversmann, 1851), Periphanes delphinii (Linnaeus, 1758), Eucarta amethystina (Hübner, 1803), Dasypolia temples (Thunberg, 1792), Oxytripia orbiculosa (Esper, 1799), Euxoa cos (Hübner, 1824), Gortyna cervago (Eversmann, 1844), Meganephria bimaculosa (Linnaeus, 1758) and Cucullia argentea (Hufnagel, 1766) needs protection and conservation, so it is recommended according to IUCN criteria to be included in the next edition of the Red Book of the Republic of Moldova and the elaboration of concrete management measures.

A Guide for Using Flight Simulators to Study the Sensory Basis of Long-Distance Migration in Insects

Studying the routes flown by long-distance migratory insects comes with the obvious challenge that the animal’s body size and weight is comparably low. This makes it difficult to attach relatively heavy transmitters to these insects in order to monitor their migratory routes (as has been done for instance in several species of migratory birds. However, the rather delicate anatomy of insects can be advantageous for testing their capacity to orient with respect to putative compass cues during indoor experiments under controlled conditions. Almost 20 years ago, Barrie Frost and Henrik Mouritsen developed a flight simulator which enabled them to monitor the heading directions of tethered migratory Monarch butterflies, both indoors and outdoors. The design described in the original paper has been used in many follow-up studies to describe the orientation capacities of mainly diurnal lepidopteran species. Here we present a modification of this flight simulator design that enables studies of nocturnal long-distance migration in moths while allowing controlled magnetic, visual and mechanosensory stimulation. This modified flight simulator has so far been successfully used to study the sensory basis of migration in two European and one Australian migratory noctuid species.

First record of noctuid moth Callopistria aethiops Butler, 1878 (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) from Southern Primorye as an example of the East Asian species penetrating in Russian fauna

An East Asian-Oriental noctuid species Callopistria aethiops Butler, 1878 is recorded from Russia for the first time. The trend of invasions of the southern Macroheterocera species into the Russian Far East has existed at least during last century but is noticeably increased during last 20 years.

New for the Russian fauna species of the families Erebidae and Noctuidae (Lepidoptera)

Three noctuid species are found in Russia for the first time, of them two species, Bertula spacoalis (Walker, 1859) (Erebidae) and Euplexidia angusta Yoshimoto, 1987 (Noctuidae), are new for Primorskii krai, and Orthosia aoyamensis (Matsumura, 1926) (Noctuidae) – for Sakhalin Island.

Burmanaglaea a new genus and Burmanaglaea felix, a new species from Myanmar (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Xylenini)

The tribe Xylenini Guenée, is especially rich in the Himalayan region with the highest diversity occurring during the late fall and winter. Exploration of this fauna has a rich history but became especially intensive during recent decades resulting in many new descriptions. Milestones in this vast territorial study by country include Pakistan (Ronkay & Ronkay 1999), India (Hacker 1992), Nepal (Hreblay & Ronkay 1998, Benedek et al. 2013), Taiwan (Hreblay & Ronkay 1997; 2000, Ronkay & Ronkay 2000) Thailand, Vietnam (Hreblay et al. 1999) and China (Ronkay et al. 2010, Benedek et al. 2012; 2013). To this list we now add the mountainous areas of Myanmar which have only recently become accessible. During a late fall collecting trip to Western Myanmar, three specimens of a strange looking noctuid species externally somewhat similar to the Western Himalayan Mniotype leucocyma (Hampson, 1907) were collected. After examination of its male and female genitalia, this species was proven to be new to science. Moreover, the male genitalia of the new species show a surprisingly unusual complex of features, some of which, together with the female genitalia, are characteristic and decisively significant to the subtribe Xylenina. The male and female genitalia of this species are most similar to those of the genera Eupsilia Hübner and Owadaglaea Hacker & Ronkay, however, these genitalia have certain autapomorphic characters which clearly justify separation on generic level. The description of the new genus and species is given below with a comparison to the related Eupsilia and Owadaglaea, several other related genera (Lithophane Hübner, Conistra Hübner and Xylena Ochsenheimer) and the externally similar M. leucocyma as well.

A Novel Alphabaculovirus from the Soybean Looper, Chrysodeixis includens, that Produces Tetrahedral Occlusion Bodies and Encodes Two Copies of he65

Isolates of the alphabaculovirus species, Chrysodeixis includens nucleopolyhedrovirus, have been identified that produce polyhedral occlusion bodies and infect larvae of the soybean looper, Chrysodeixis includens. In this study, we report the discovery and characterization of a novel C. includens-infecting alphabaculovirus, Chrysodeixis includens nucleopolyhedrovirus #1 (ChinNPV#1), that produces tetrahedral occlusion bodies. In bioassays against C. includens larvae, ChinNPV #1 exhibited a degree of pathogenicity that was similar to that of other ChinNPV isolates, but killed larvae more slowly. The host range of ChinNPV#1 was found to be very narrow, with no indication of infection occurring in larvae of Trichoplusia ni and six other noctuid species. The ChinNPV#1 genome sequence was determined to be 130,540 bp, with 126 open reading frames (ORFs) annotated but containing no homologous repeat (hr) regions. Phylogenetic analysis placed ChinNPV#1 in a clade with other Group II alphabaculoviruses from hosts of lepidopteran subfamily Plusiinae, including Chrysodeixis chalcites nucleopolyhedrovirus and Trichoplusia ni single nucleopolyhedrovirus. A unique feature of the ChinNPV#1 genome was the presence of two full-length copies of the he65 ORF. The results indicate that ChinNPV#1 is related to, but distinct from, other ChinNPV isolates.

Two new species of Ecpatia Turner, 1902, and the first records of Ecpatia sciachroa Hampson, 1926 and Ecpatia obscura Holloway, 2009 from Thailand (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae, Noctuinae)

Two new noctuid species, Ecpatia grisescens sp. n., E. spiculivalva sp. n. are described from Thailand based on a combination of morphological characters and DNA barcodes. Morphological structures and genetic distances are compared to those of related species. Ecpatia sciachroa Hampson, 1926 and Ecpatia obscura Holloway, 2009 are reporded from Thailand for the first time, and a checklist of 17 valid species of Ecpatia is provided.

Comparison of Different Trap Designs for Capture of Noctuid Moths (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) With Pheromone and Floral Odor Attractants

Six trap designs were assessed for capturing noctuid moths in field trials in the United Kingdom and Argentina. The traps were baited with either a sex pheromone for Autographa gamma in the UK trials and Helicoverpa gelotopoeon (Dyar) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Argentina, or a floral odor blend. In the UK trials the Universal Trap and a funnel sleeve trap were compared; in Argentina the funnel sleeve trap, a homemade bucket trap, and (L.) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) three sticky traps: LepTrap, wing trap, and delta trap were compared. Comparisons were made between the traps and attractants and captures of noctuid moths and nontarget insects. Traps baited with the floral attractant caught a lower number but a wider range of noctuid species including Helicoverpa, Spodoptera, Rachiplusia, Dargida, Mythimna, Chrysodeixis, Agrotis, and Autographa spp., and nontarget insects. In the UK trials, the funnel sleeve trap caught significantly more A. gamma than the Universal Trap. The addition of an insecticide to the Universal Trap marginally increased trap catches. In the Argentinian trials, the homemade bucket and the sleeve traps outperformed all sticky traps in most situations regardless of crop environment and attractant type. The homemade bucket and the funnel sleeve traps are also considerably cheaper than the other trap designs. Of the sticky traps the LepTrap caught more noctuids than the wing and delta traps. The results suggest that the bucket trap and the sleeve trap have a much greater maximum capacity and possibly a greater retention efficiency for noctuid moths compared to the sticky traps.

Description of a new species of Deltote Reichenbach, Leipzig, 1817 (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Eustrotiinae) from Turkey and Turkmenistan

A new noctuid species, Deltote turcica sp. n. is described from central Turkey and Turkmenistan. It is compared with its sister species Deltote delicatula (Christoph, 1882). The characterisation of the delicatula species-group is given. And, the genitalia of both sexes and adults are illustrated.