Eoophyla cocos Mey
- Family: Crambidae
- Subfamily: Acentropinae
- Genus: Eoophyla
- Distribution: Sabah, Brunei.
- Habitat: Aquatic larvae; Lowland to upper montane; <1700m.
- Wing Length: male 11, female 18mm
Taxonomy
The holotype of Eoophyla cocos Mey (2009: 104, 106) is from Sabah (Mt. Kinabalu N.P., PHS). It is in the MfNH, Berlin. Paratypes are held in Sepilok (FRC), MfNH and BMNH.
Description
A large chocolate brown sp. with orange-brown and paler brown banding. The FW has a line of termenal spots and the slightly falcate HW has three tornal eyespots. The forewing venation in males of this sp. is modified to acommodate a tuft of long scales in the FW cell. Females are paler and usually much larger with unmodified venation. There is a great size range and some specimens may be very dark. Eoophyla cocos Mey, 2009 is related to E. gibbosalis (Guenée, 1854), and these two represent a species pair sharing the striking brown wings with a similar pattern of bands and patches.
The male genitalia are illustrated by Mey (2009, figs 18-20). The male genitalia, with a robust gnathos with thick apical teeth are diagnostic for this species. It can be easily separated from E. gibbosalis (Guenée, 1854) by the FW subapical triangular patch being brown and not white, and in the HW by the unique arrangement of black spots around the white eye spots.
References
- Mey, W. (2009) New aquatic moths from high elevations of Mt. Kinabalu in northern Borneo (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea, Acentropinae). Ent. Zeitschr. 119(3): 99-107.
