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UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 207 



Genus 1: Cryptoblabes 



[Venational division A. Hind wing with vein 3 distinctly before 

 lower outer angle of cell; 7 and 8 approximate, or weakly and 

 shortly anastomosed beyond cell. Forewing with vein 6 bent 

 towards base; 10 from the cell. Male genitalia with transtilla 

 complete; uncus bilobed.] 



1. GenuB Cryptoblabes Zeller 



Cryptoblabes ZeUer, Isis von Oken, 1848, p. 644. — Ragonot, 

 Monograph, pt. 1, pp. xliv, 12, 1893. — Staudinger and Rebel, 

 Catalog der Lepidopteren des palaearctischen Faunenge- 

 bietes, vol. 2, p. 42, 1901. — Mayrick, Revised handbook 

 of British Lepidoptera, p. 397, 1928. — Bisset, in Pierce and 

 Metcalfe, Genitalia of the British Pyrales, p. 57, 1938. — 

 Janse, Journ. Ent. Soc. South Africa, vol. 14, p. 143, 1941. 

 (Type of genus: Cryptoblabes rutilella Zeller, a synonym of 

 Ustriga (Haworth); figs. 2, 131, 638.) 



Tongue well developed. Antenna pubescent; shaft 

 of male notched at base and with curved, homy hook 

 protruding from the notch. Labial palpus upturned, 

 slender, reaching a little above vertex; third segment 

 about two-thirds the length of second, acuminate. 

 Maxillary palpus squamous. Forewing smooth; 11 

 veins; vein 2 from well before the lower outer angle of 

 cell (from lower median vein of cell at about three- 

 fourths); vein 3 also before the angle (from lower 

 median at about five-sixths) ; 4 and 5 closely approxi- 

 mate at base, rarely (in individual specimens) connate; 

 6 bent towards base, from upper angle or from very 

 close to upper angle of cell; 10 from the cell, separated 

 from stalk of 8-9 at base; male without costal fold. 

 Hind wing with vein 2 from middle or just beyond mid- 

 dle of lower median vein of cell; 3 from before and 

 more or less removed from the outer angle of cell; 4 

 and 5 from the angle, closely approximate at base, 

 thence diverging, 7 and 8 closely approximate, con- 

 tiguous or weakly anastomosing for a short distance 

 beyond cell; cell less than one-half the length of wing, 

 but not "very short" as stated by Kagonot in his 

 generic key (Monograph, p. xUv); discoceUular vein 

 curved. Eighth abdominal segment of male simple. 



Male genitalia with apical process of gnathos a small, 

 simple hook. Transtilla complete; developed as a 

 narrowly banded bridge with more or less elongate 

 central projection. Uncus broad, with apical margin 

 broadly rounded and invaginate, giving the uncus a 

 bilobed appearance. Harpe (in European species) with 

 strong hair tufts arising from articulated plates in 

 intersegmental area between base of sacculus and ter- 

 minal margin of eighth abdominal segment, or with 

 long hair tuft from sacculus near its base (rutilella). 

 AneUus with elongate, narrow, lateral lobes. Aedeagus 

 simple; penis with or without cornutus, latter, when 

 present, a single, long, spine. Vinculum broad and 

 with broad terminal margin more or less concave. 



Female genitalia with ductus bursae membranous, 

 finely scobinate towards junction with bursa; genital 

 opening simple except for a narrow, sclerotized band 

 behind and above the opening; bursa membranous 

 more or less finely scobinate; signum present, developed 

 as a stout, blunt, flattened thorn (rutilella) or a patch 



of dense granulations (gnidielia) ; ductus seminahs 

 from bursa. 



The foregoing description was drawn from European 

 species which are obviously congeneric. Numerous 

 other species have been described in the genus from 

 India, Formosa, Japan, Australia and the islands of 

 the Pacific. Whether these are aU congeneric 1 do not 

 know. Two unidentified species before me from the 

 Philippines have genitaha similar in habitus to those 

 of the genotype (rutilella) except that the dorsal, inter- 

 segmental tufts at base of harpe are lacking. Their 

 unci have the same characteristic bilobed appearance. 

 The venational character which has been generally 

 accepted as defining the genus (i. e., the position of vein 

 3 of hind wing in relation to the lower outer angle of 

 cell) is variable and illusive, being closer to the angle 

 in gnidielia (fig. 1) than in rutilella (fig. 2) and still 

 closer in the Philippine species. Indeed, in American 

 examples of Acrobasis (=Mineola) vein 3 is often as far 

 from the angle as it is in gnidielia. The shorter cell of 

 Cryptoblabes, coupled with the position of vein 3, wiU, 

 however, suffice to maintain the group separation made 

 between the two genera in our key. 



Cryptoblabes is a distinctly Old World genus with no 

 indigenous New World species. It is represented in the 

 Western Hemisphere by only one introduced European 

 species (gnidielia). 



1. Cryptoblabes gnidielia (Millifere) 



FiGUEES 1, 132, 639 



Ephestia gnidielia Millihre, Iconographie et description de 



chenilles et L^pidoptferes inedits, vol. 2, p. 308, 1864. 

 Cryptoblabes gniediella (Millifere) Ragonot, Monograph, pt. 1, 

 p. 16, 1893. — Dyar, Ins. Insc. Menstr., vol. 3, p. 88, 1915. 



Forewing pale brownish fuscous with a faint rosy 

 overcast due to more or less diffused longitudinal streaks 

 of reddish scales (in fresh and weU marked specimens 

 especially along the fold, on the veins in outer area, and 

 below costa from base); some whitish dusting along 

 costa and in the cell, most pronounced as a pale shade 

 between the dark discal spots at end of cell; transverse 

 lines obscure and not sharply outlined, but distinguish- 

 able, whitish ocherous; the antemedial Une obhque and 

 curved, set weU out towards middle of wing; subter- 

 minal nearly straight, parallel with termen; discal dots 

 separate, blackish fuscous. Hind wing whitish, trans- 

 lucent, the veins darkened, a narrow dark shade along 

 costa and a narrower dark line along terminal margin. 

 Alar expanse, 11-16 mm. 



Male genitalia with heavy hair tufts from plates 

 articulating with base of sacculus of harpe; penis armed 

 with spinelike cornutus about two-thirds as long as 

 aedeagus. Female genitalia with signum developed as 

 a dense scobinate-granulate patch; ductus seminalis 

 from bursa near attachment of ductus bursae. 



Type localitt: France (type in Paris Mus.) . 



Food plants: Fruits of Chaenomeles japonica, pome- 

 granates, oranges, citron, grapes, raisins, etc. (often 

 fallen and desiccated fruit), onion seeds, leaves and 

 flowers of Daphne gnidium, flowers of Ricinus communis, 

 green corn stalks (reared moth, in USNM, from Hawaii), 



