AMERICAN MOTHS OF THE SUBFAMILY PHYCITINAE 



285 



The species has apparently invaded the United States 

 from Mexico and has become estabhshed in a few Texas 

 locahties. A larva indistinguishable from bisinuella 

 has also been intercepted in green corn from British 

 Honduras but no adults from that locality have been 

 reared to verify the identification. 



Hampson's description of the male antenna is mis- 

 leading. He states that it has "deux sinus profonds k 

 la base de la tige." The shaft is slightly swollen from 

 the second to the seventh segments and beyond the 

 seventh segment has a single short shallow sinus. His 

 male type and several reared males are before me and 

 each of them shows an antennal sinus like that of 

 ostrinella. 



173. Genus Vitula Ragonot 



Vilula Ragonot, N. Amer. Phycitidae, p. 14, 1887; Monograph, 

 pt. 2, p. 81, 1901.— Hulst, Phycitidae of N. Amer., p. 178, 

 1890.— Forbes, Cornell Mem. 68, p. 631, 1923. (Type of 

 genus: Vilula dentosella Ragonot). 



Eccopsia Hulst, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 62, p. 430, 1903.— Dyar, 

 Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, vol. 6, p. 158, 1904. (Type of 

 genus; Vitula serratilineella Ragonot.) 



Tongue well developed. Antenna simple. Labial 

 palpus upturned in male, more oblique in female, 

 reaching a little above vertex; subcylindrical, somewhat 

 rough scaled; third segment slightly shorter than 

 second. Maxillary palpus filiform, short. Forewing 

 smooth; 10 veins; vein 2 from before, but rather near 

 lower outer angle of cell; 3 from the angle; 4 and 5 

 stalked for half their lengths, the stalk separated from 

 3 at base; 6 from below upper angle of cell, straight; 

 8 and 9 united (a vestige of 9 present occasionally on 

 one side or another of individual specimens); 10 from 

 the cell, approximate at base to 8; male with a strong 

 costal fold enclosing hair tuft. Hind wing with vein 2 

 from well before lower outer angle of cell : 3 and 5 from 

 the angle, approximate at base; 7 and 8 anastomosed 

 for all or most of their lengths beyond cell (if present, 

 8 a mere vestige at costa) ; cell about one-third the 

 length of the wing (with veins 2, 3, and 5 appreciably 

 long) ; discocellular vein curved. Eighth abdominal 

 segment of male with compound dorsal tufts. 



Male genitalia with apical process of gnathos a short, 

 bluntly pointed hook. Uncus broad; terminal margin 

 broadly rounded. TranstiEa complete, an angulate 

 bridge. Harpe with apex rounded; costa shghtly 

 humped near middle but without projections. Anellus 

 a narrow, semicircular, sclerotized band with very short 

 lateral lobes. Aedeagus long, straight, not tapering; 

 penis bearing a single elongate, thin, weakly sclerotized 

 plate, otherwise unarmed. Vinculum stout, sUghtly 

 longer than broad, not appreciably tapering; terminal 

 margin broad. 



Female genitalia with signimi a small cuplike disc or 

 a cluster of two or more such discs; bursa copulatrix 

 small, more or less scobinate, the scobinations (except 

 in laura) prominent as a partial girdle near signum; ductus 

 bursae appreciably longer than bursa, strongly sclero- 

 tized for a short distance from genital opening and with 



a projecting, angulate, sclerotized plate behind genital 

 opening; ductus seminahs from bursa close to signum; 

 ventral membrane between eighth-segment collar and 

 ovipositor not extruded. 



As here defined Vitula is distinguished from Moodna 

 by its simple male antenna, complete transtilla, simple 

 harpe (without costal projection) and the approximate, 

 rather than connate, condition of veins 3 and 5 of hind 

 wing. On the strength of the synonymy of dentosella 

 and edmandsii Hulst cites edmandsii as type of the 

 genus and is followed in this by Ragonot in his Mono- 

 graph. This is not admissible nomenclatorially, as only 

 dentosella was included under the original description 

 of the genus and was definitely named at that time as 

 type by Ragonot. 



588. Vitula edmandsae (Packard) 

 Figures 115, 605 



Nephopieryx edmandsii Packard, Proc. Essex Inst., vol. 4, p. 120, 

 1864; Guide to the study of insects, p. 331, 1869. 



Vilula dentosella Ragonot, N. Amer. Phycitidae, p. 14, 1887. 



Vitula edmandsii (Packard) Hulst, Ent. Amer., vol. 5, p. 156, 

 1889; Phycitidae of N. Amer., p. 178, 1800.— Ragonot, 

 Monograph, p. 2, p. 82, 1901.— Forbes, Cornell Mem. 68, 

 p. 631, 1923.— Prison, Ann. Ent. Soc. Amer. vol. 19, p. 226, 

 1926.— McDunnough, Check list, No. 6323, 1939.— Corbet 

 and Tarns, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, vol. 113 (B), p. 64, 1943. 



Forewing gray more or less dusted with blackish 

 fuscous, especially in the median area (between the 

 transverse lines) ; on some specimens a reddish ocherous 

 shade along lower fold and inner margin; pale ante- 

 medial line obscure, defined chiefly by its contrasted, 

 blackish outer border, the latter from costa near middle, 

 outwardly angled at cell and usually with a slight notch 

 at lower fold; subterminal line parallel to and well in 

 from terminal margin, rather deeply notched at vein 6, 

 and slightly so at lower fold, bordered inwardly by a 

 thin black line; discal dots black, rarely separated, 

 usually fused into a line along discocellular vein. Hind 

 wing pale smoky fuscous, veins darker, a narrow dark 

 line along terminal margin. Alar expanse, 15-22 mm. 



Genitalia as given for the genus. The female bursa 

 shows more or less minute scaling near to and at junc- 

 tion of bursa and ductus bursae. 



Type localities: Bridport, Vt. {edmandsae, iii 

 MCZ) ; North Carolina (dentosella, in Paris Mus.) . 



Food: Honeycomb of bees (larvae feeding on wax, 

 pollen, and comb). 



Distribution: United States: Vermont, Bridport; 

 Massachusetts, Boston (May), Framingham (Sept.); 

 Connecticut, East River (JuljO ; A^ew Jersey, New Lisbon 

 (Sept.); Pennsylvania, Oak Station (Sept.), New 

 Brighton (Jime, Aug., Sept., Oct.) ; District ojf Columbia, 

 Washington (June, July, Aug.) ; Maryland, Plummers 

 Isl. (June, July, Aug.) ; North Carolina, Black Mountain 

 (June), Tryon (June, Aug., Sept.) ; Kentucky, Lexington 

 (Mar.) ; Missouri, St. Louis (June) ; Illinois, Lacon 

 (Aug.), Oconee (July); Arkansas, Washington County 

 (July); Florida, Archer (Mar.). Canada: Ontario, 

 Trenton (Aug., Sept.); Quebec, St. Hilaire (June, Sept.). 



