AMERICAN MOTHS OF THE SUBFAMILY PHTCITINAE 



255 



they may go. It also varies its diet somewhat by 

 occasional feedings on buds and flowers. According to 

 Dodd it sometimes feeds in Opuntia flowers ; but this is 

 a secondary habit and the association with Opuntia 

 accidental. Laetilia is close to but not a part of the 

 cactus-feeding group of Phycitinae. Salambona, on the 

 other hand, is, in all adult characters, definitely a 

 member of the group. 



The species is a striking one, easily recognized by the 

 strongly contrasted, white costal stripe on forewing. 



147. Genus Parolyca Dyar 



Parolyca Dyar, Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, vol. 30, p. 17, 

 1928.— Heinrich, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 86, p. 381, 

 1939. — (Type of genua: Olyca asihenosoma Dyar.) 



Tongue well developed. Antenna of male unipecti- 

 nate. Labial palpus of male upcurved. Maxillary 

 palpus squamous. Hind wing with veins 7 and 8 

 shortly anastomosed beyond cell; 3 and 5 shortly 

 stalked. Eighth abdominal segment with a strong 

 pair of ventrolateral tufts. 



Male genitalia with apical portion of gnathos bifid; 

 uncus narrowed well before apex; harpe with apex 

 obhque; vinculum long, its terminal margin rounded, 

 its lateral margins excavate (probably a specific charac- 

 ter only) ; anellus with base of plate broadly sclerotized, 

 arms long, rather broad and slightly twisted; aedeagus 

 long, stout; penis weakly scobinate. 



The genus is known only from the male of its type 

 species. Its biology is unknown, but from the genitalic 

 and other structural characters of the adult its larvae 

 are presumed to be cactus feeders. It is easily recog- 

 nized, for it is the only genus in the cactus-feeding 

 group with unipectinate antenna. The habitat is 

 French Guiana. 



526. Parolyca astbenosoma (Dyar) 

 Figures 69, 551 



Olyca asihenosoma Dyar, Ina. Insc. Menstr., vol. 7, p. 55, 1919. 

 Parolyca asihenosoma (Dyar), Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, vol. 



30, p. 137, 1929.— Heinrich, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 86, 



p. 381, 1939. 



Palpi, head, and thorax sordid white. Forewing 

 white, with a yellowish tint on area between fold and 

 inner margin; antemedial band angulate, consisting of 

 parallel black lines and a central white line; a black 

 oblique dash in median area from inner margin to dashes 

 at apex, black dots on the veins, and a black spot on 

 inner margin ; a black discal dot at end of cell and some 

 black scaling on bases of veins 2 to 4; a row of small 

 black dots along termen, between the vein ends. Hind 

 wing white, semihyaline, with a pale fuscous shade 

 along costa, a narrow fuscous line along termen, and 

 some pale fuscous scaling on veins 2 to 8. Alar expanse, 

 30 mm. 



Male genitalia with lateral margins of vinculum 

 excavate. 



Type locality: Maroni River, French Guiana (type 

 in USNM). 



Food plant: Unknown. 



Known only from the unique male type. 



148. Genus Sigelgaita Heinrich 



Sigelgaila Heinrich, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 86, p. 382, 1939. 

 (Type of genus: Sigelgaila chilensis Heinrich.) 



Tongue well developed. Antenna of male bipectinate 

 (in transilis with a few flattened setae on the inner row 

 of pectinations of the first five or six segments of the 

 shaft); antenna of female shortly pubescent. Labial 

 palpus of male upcurved, of female porrect (the second 

 segment obliquely upturned, the third bent forward). 

 Maxillary palpus large, extending above front, flam- 

 boyant. Hind wing with veins 7 and 8 anastomosing 

 beyond cell; 3 and 5 stalked. Eighth abdominal seg- 

 ment with two pairs of thin hair tufts (very slight in 

 chilensis) . 



Male genitalia with apical process of gnathos small, 

 bifid; harpe with apex oblique; vinculum long; anellua 

 with base of plate somewhat broadly sclerotized, arms 

 moderately long, slightly twisted (in transilis) ; aedeagus 

 moderately stout, long; penis weakly scobinate. 



Female genitalia with signum weak or absent; bursa 

 small and finely scobinate; ductus bmsae moderately 

 long, finely scobinate toward bursa and genital opening; 

 ductus seminahs from middle of bursa. 



Larva blue or blue-green according to Dodd; not 

 banded or conspicuously spotted; two setae in group 

 VII on abdominal segments 7 and 8. 



The larvae are solitary feeders in the fruits of Euly- 

 chnia, Trichocereus, and Platypuntia. 



Egg and egg-laying habits unknown. 



This genus is closest to Amalafrida but in many 

 characters more nearly resembles Nanaia. The max- 

 illary palpi are long in both Sigelgaita and Nanaia but 

 are not so closely appressed to the face in the former as 

 in the latter. The labial palpi of the males (upcurved 

 in Sigelgaita, porrect in Nanaia) readily separate the 

 two genera. 



527. Sigelgaita chilensis Heinrich 

 Figures 554, 1046 



Sigelgaita chilensis Heinrich, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 86, p. 

 383, 1939. 



Palpus, head, and thorax fuscous, strongly irrorated 

 with white; head and collar more whitish than fuscous; 

 posterior margin of thorax shaded with black. Fore- 

 wing fuscous, dusted with white, giving the wing an 

 ashy gray (in some specimens a bluish gray) color; a 

 white suffusion filling the cell; antemedial line near 

 middle of wing, black, outwardly angulate; from upper 

 angle of cell to middle of inner margin a more or less 

 prominent blackish shade; subterminal band dentate, 

 consisting of a thin, black, inner line, a parallel outer 

 black line, and a central pale line, the dentations of the 

 outer line acute and extended in short dashes onto the 

 veins; a row of black dots along termen between the 

 vein ends. Hind wing whitish, smoky fuscous toward 

 termen, apex, and costa, and on the veins; cUia white 



