AMERICAN MOTHS OF THE SUBFAMILY PHTCITmAE 



131 



Salebria afflictella Hulst, Canadian Ent., vol. 32, p. 170, 1900. — 

 Forbes, Cornell Mem. 68, p. 625, 1923.— McDunnough, 

 Check list. No. 6200, 1939. (New synonymy.) 



Meroptera liquidambarella Dyar, Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, 

 vol. 6, p. 108, 1904. 



Meroptera afflictella (Hulst) Dyar, Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, 

 vol. 7, p. 34, 1905. 



Forewing fuscous (gray-brown), the median area 

 heavily dusted with white giving it a pale ash gray 

 color; basal area of the ground color, rarely with some 

 red scaling in the median fold; dark base followed by 

 an obHque, straight, whitish band ; this latter bordered 

 outwardly by a broad, somewhat diffused, dark brown 

 or blackish band through which may be distinguished 

 faint white traces of the true antemedian line; sub ter- 

 minal line with a very slight central bulge, rarely some- 

 what crenulate, whitish gray, bordered inwardly by a 

 diffused brown shade and outwardly by a narrow brown 

 line; discal dots more or less fused; blackish terminal 

 dots confluent. Hind wings pale to dark smoky fus- 

 cous. Alar expanse, 14-18 mm. 



Male genitalia distinguished chiefly by the armature 

 of the penis. On the paratype of afflictella from Mont- 

 clair, N. J., there appears to be two cornuti, one closely 

 appressed to the other; but in other preparations before 

 me (including the types of uvinella and liquidambarella) 

 the two cornuti are completely fused into a single rather 

 short and stout, longitudinally ribbed cornutus. The 

 clasper is a slender, curved, sharply pointed, smooth, 

 sclerotized hook. Vestiges of a divided transtiUa 

 distinguishable on most preparations. 



Female genitalia small (approximately the size and 

 form of those of carneella) ; bursa with two moderately 

 sized granulate patches, the bursal lobe giving off the 

 ductus seminalis also granulate and partially (smoothly) 

 sclerotized ; this lobe as usual arises from the dorsum of 

 bursa but is deflected to the left. 



Type localities: United States {uvinella, in USNM) 

 Elizabeth, N. J. {afflictella, in AMNH, ex Rutgers); 

 Washington, D. C, {liquidambarella, in USNM). 



Food plant: Liquidambar styraciUua (sweetgum). 

 Larva a leaf-tier. 



Distribution: Connecticut, East River (May), Stam- 

 ford (Aug.); New Jersey, Elizabeth (Aug.), Lakeland 

 (May), Montclair (June, Aug.), New Lisbon (June); 

 District oj Columbia, Washington (May, Aug.) ; Virginia, 

 Skyland (July) ; North Carolina, Greensboro (Aug.) ; 

 Georgia, Savannah (Sept.); Florida, Lakeland (May, 

 June) . 



Ragonot's uvinella has been an unknown entity ever 

 since its description and was suspected of being only a 

 variety of Meroptera pravella. Fortunately the type 

 was secured by Dr. Barnes when the Oberthiir Collec- 

 tion was sold. It lacks one forewing but is otherwise 

 intact and its habitus and genitalia leave no doubt that 

 it is the same as the sweet-gum feeder described by 

 Hulst and Dyar. The type of afflictella is a female. 

 The types of uvinella and liquidambarella are both males. 

 The genitalia of all of them are before me. 



267. Nephopteryx celtidella (Hulst), new combination 

 FiGUBEs 345, 830 



Salebria celtidella Hulst, Phycitidae of N. Amer., p. 155, 1890. — 

 Beutenmiiller, Canadian Ent., vol. 22, p. 17, 1890 (larva). — 

 Ragonot, Monograph, pt. 1, p. 354, 1893. — Forbes, Cornell 

 Mem. 68, p. 626, 1923.— McDunnough, Check list, No. 

 6206, 1939. 



Ground color ocherous (clay color) more or less shaded 

 with fuscous gray over submedian and (on especially 

 dark females) outer basal areas; the ground color espe- 

 cially well contrasted at base and in the central area 

 about the discal spots, also on thorax, at extreme base 

 of wing and on thorax sometimes of a tawny shade ; ante- 

 medial line far out towards middle of wing, oblique, sinu- 

 ate, faint, indicated chiefly by its narrow black borders 

 which are more or less broken into dots on the veins; 

 subterminal line sinuate-serrate, bordered inwardly by 

 a row of black (somewhat confluent) dots and outwardly 

 by a row of small black wedges on the veins ; discal dots 

 distinct, well separated, black; a row of distinct black 

 dots along termen. Hind wing pale to rather dark 

 smoky fuscous. Alar expanse, 18-22 mm. 



Male genitalia with apical process of gnathos smaller 

 than that of preceding species (not triangulate). Clasper 

 rather short, bent across surface of harpe, blunt. Sclero- 

 tized lateral elements of transtiUa distinguishable, 

 rather long, slender. 



Female genitalia with a round, moderately large 

 granulate patch on ventral surface of bursa and a smaller 

 patch near junction of bursa and ductus bursae and the 

 base of the lobe giving off the ductus seminahs. 



Type locality: New York (in AMNH, ex Rutgers). 



Food plant: Celtis. Larva a leaf-tier. 



Distribution: United States: New York, Long 

 Island; Maryland, Plummers Isl. (May, July); Flor- 

 ida, Palm Beach (Feb.); Texas, Brownsville (July), Vic- 

 toria (May), ZavaUa County {kpv.); Mississippi, "Agr. 

 CoUege" (Apr.), Starkville (Jifly); Missouri, St. Louis 

 (Aug.); Illinois, Oconee (Aug.). 



A distinct species distinguished from any of the spe- 

 cies with aigrettelike maxillar palpi on the male by its 

 clay-colored, black-mottled forewings. Its habitus is 

 nearest to that of rubrisparsella in the group with 

 squamous, male maxiUary palpi. 



Genus Nephopteryx, Species 268-271: A'', rubri- 

 sparsella to N. bisra 



[Males with squamousmaxillary palpi.] 



268. Nephopteryx rubrisparsella (Ragonot) 

 Figures 346, 832 



Pristrophora rubrisparsella Ragonot, N. Amer. Phycitidae, p. 6, 

 1887. 



Pristophora rufibasella Ragonot, N. Amer. Phycitidae, p. 7, 1887. 



Sciota croceella Hulst, Ent. Amer., vol. 4, p. 115, 1888. 



Nephopteryx rubrisparsella (Ragonot), Ent. Amer., vol. 5, p. 115, 

 1889; Monograph, pt. 1, p. 284, 1893.— Hulst, Phycitidae 

 of N. Amer., p. 145, 1890.— Forbes, Cornell Mem. 68, p. 623, 

 1923.— McDunnough, Check list. No. 6169, 1939. 



