Ambia? decoralis Snellen
- Family: Crambidae
- Subfamily: Spilomelinae
- Tribe: Incertae sedis
- Genus: Ambia
- Distribution: W. Malaysia, Singapore, Sabah, Sarawak, Indonesia (Java).
- Habitat: Lowland <630m.
- Wing Length: 5.5mm
Taxonomy
The male holotype of Musotima decoralis Snellen, 1900: (299-300, pl. 17, figs 4 & 5), from Indonesia, W-Java, Bogor (Buitenzorg), is in the RMNH (Leiden). Although treated for many years in the Acentropinae this sp. is a member of the Spilomelinae and needs to be allocated to a new genus. Until it is closely examined and compared with similar morphospecies from Africa it cannot be safely allocated to another genus. Pers. Com. (Agassiz 2009). This is a similar to many of the spp. now transfered to the genus Malickyella Mey & Speidel 2010.
Description
A very small brightly coloured sp. in pink and orange. It is marked with dark brown and silvery white marginal and submarginal bands. The FW has several dark neural lines on the costal and apical areas. The HW is distinctivly marginal incised near the tornus and it has large termenal eyespots. Ocellae are absent but it has large chaetosemata. The males have a normal male-type retinaculum (RTS: 166-7). The patterning broady resembles Cataclysta angulata Moore, 1884-7 [1885]: 300 but that is much less brightly coloured.
References
- Moore, F. (1884-1887) Lepid. Ceylon., Vol 1, (I-IV), i + 190pp., pls. [71] 1-71 L. Reeve & Co., London.
- Snellen, P. C. T., ([1901] 1900) Aanteekeningen over Pyraliden., Tijdschr. v. Ent., 43: 265-310, pl. 15-17.
- [RTS] Robinson, G.S., Tuck, K.R. & Shaffer, M. (1994) A Field Guide to the Smaller Moths of South-East Asia, Malaysian Nature Society Kuala Lumpur & Natural History Museum, London, 311 pp. 51 text figs, 32 pls.
- RTS (1994): 166-167, pl.27, fig.13.
- Mey, W. & Speidel, W.(2010) Malickyella gen. nov.- a new moth genus in the family Crambidae (Lepidoptera, Pyraloidea) from South-East Asia, Denisia, 29: 215-222.