62 



XHSriTED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 207 



Female superficially similar to argentina except a 

 trifle paler, on the average. 



Alar expanse, 13-22 mm. 



Male genitalia with gnathos terminating in a short, 

 stout hook. Harpe with apex truncate; clasper mod- 

 erately long, curved, and weakly haired at apex. Ae- 

 deagus with a single, long, strong, curved spine from 

 below apex; cornutus a short, stout, curved thorn. 



Female genitalia without spines adjacent to genital 

 opening. Bursa copulatrix with signa consisting of a 

 pair of partially fused bands, each armed with a row 

 of short, stout, thornlike spines; ductus bursae short 

 and broad, with median area unsclerotized; eighth seg- 

 ment collar completely sclerotized except for a small, 

 round, transparent spot on midventer, sclerotLzation 

 extending to and over area behind genital opening. 



Type locality: Oaxaca, Mexico (type in USNM) . 



Food plant: Unknown. 



Distribution: M:fixico: Cdrdoba (May), Guadala- 

 jara, Jalapa, Oaxaca, Orizaba, Tehuacdn (May, June, 

 July). Guatemala: Cayuga. Costa Rica. Cuba: 

 Santiago (June), Sierra Miestra (May). Puerto Rico: 

 Aguirre Central (Aug.). Haiti: P^tionville (June). 



123. Fundella ahemora Djar 

 Figures 233, 714 



Fundella ahemora Dyar, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 47, p. 403, 

 1914.— Heinrich, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 96, p. 113, 1945. 



Antenna of male with small black scale tuft at base 

 of shaft. Forewing with no or a very faint dark basal 

 patch (when present covering basal area to antemedian 

 line); antemedian line whitish, very faint; sub terminal 

 line white, faint but less obscure than antemedian, 

 without dark borders except for an inner and an outer 

 dark spot at inner margin of wing; veins from cell rather 

 strongly outlined by dark scaling (the most conspicuous 

 superficial character of the species). A thick, dark 

 (brownish) hair tuft covering outer surface of male 

 foretibia, a character not found in other species of the 

 genus. Alar expanse, 18-23 mm. 



Male genitalia with gnathos terminating in a broad 

 tongue-like plate. Harpe somewhat tapering but with 

 apex truncate; a strong tuft of long scales from costa; 

 clasper long, curved, slender, with a few hairs at apex. 

 Aedeagus with a pair of long, curved, flattened spines 

 from apex; cornutus a long, straight, slender spine. 



Female genitalia with a pair of long, widely spaced, 

 basally curved spines from sclerotized area immediately 

 behind genital opening. Bursa copulatrix with signa 

 consisting of two rather short bands, each armed with 

 a row of long spines. Ductus bursae bulged in the 

 middle and with a strongly sclerotized median collar. 

 CoUar of eighth segment partially sclerotized and fused 

 ventrally. 



Type locality. — Orizaba, Mexico (type in USNM). 



Food plant. — Unknown. 



Distribution: M:6xico: Orizaba, Jalapa, Teapa 

 (Dec), C6rdoba (Apr., Dec), Cuernavaca (July). 



Guatemala: Quirigud (Mar.), Cayuga (Jan., May), 

 Parulhd (July). Costa Rica: Juan Vinas (Nov.). 



Superficially the most easily distinguished species in 

 the genus. The large foretibial tuft at once identifies 

 the male, and both sexes can be separated by the rather 

 conspicuous dark outlining of the veins. The veins are 

 similarly dark scaled in the other species, but the con- 

 trast of the dark veins against the pale intervenular area 

 is more marked in ahemora. 



Genus 29: Difundella 



[Venational division B. Forewing with veins 4-5 connate or 

 closely approximate at base. Hind wing with vein 3 from stalk 

 of 4-5 or closely approximate to it for a short distance; on male, 

 anal area folded into a pocket. Male genitalia without transtiUa; 

 sacculus of harpe strongly sclerotized and produced (free or 

 partially free); penis without cornutus or other armature. 

 Abdomen of male with lateral pockets and hair tufts between 

 segments 2 and 3; eighth abdominal sternite developed as a 

 narrow pocket; no hair tufts.] 



This genus shows affinities to Fundella but in many 

 characters resembles more closely Bampylla and Cop- 

 tarthria. In general habitus (wing pattern, color, and 

 maculation) the moths of Difundella, Coptarthria, and 

 Bampylla are strikingly similar, but the three genera 

 are different on structural characters. Bampylla differs 

 from the other two in the free length of vein 3 of 

 male hind wing; Coptarthria in its notched male antenna; 

 and Difundella in its anellus (a simple plate without the 

 long free spine of Bampylla and Coptarthria) and in the 

 possession of scaled pockets between the second and 

 third segments of the male abdomen. 



The species of Difundella differ considerably from 

 each other on structural details, falling into two distinct 

 groups which divide as follows: 



— Labial palpus reaching above vertex in both sexes. Hind 

 wing with cell less than one-third the length of wing; 

 vein lb of male bent before middle and with a tuft of 

 yellow hairlike scales on its under side (within the bend) . 

 Gnathos greatly reduced, its apical projection fine, 

 needlelike. Costa of harpe without projections. 



— Labial palpus not reaching vertex on males, barely reaching 

 vertex on females. Hind wing with cell more than 

 one-third (but less than half) the length of wing; vein 

 lb of male not bent; rough sex-scaling bordering Ic on 

 under side of wing beyond base. Gnathos with apical 

 process enlarged and strongly sclerotized. Costa of 

 harpe with strongly sclerotized projection or projections. 



The second group probably deserves a separate generic 

 designation; but the material before me representing its 

 two species is too scanty and not in good enough con- 

 dition, and the association of the females with their 

 proper males too uncertain, to permit proper evalua- 

 tion of generic characters for separation at this time. 



29. Genus Difundella Dyar 



Difundella Dyar, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 47, p. 327, 1914. 

 (Type of genus: Difundella corynophora Dyar.) 



Tongue well developed. Antenna of male weakly 

 pubescent. Labial palpus ascending, recurved, slender, 

 smooth scaled; third segment acuminate. Maxillary 



