Agrotis Ochsenheimer (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae): a systematic analysis of South American species

Abstract

The genus Agrotis Ochsenheimer, 1816 (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) contains about 300 described species distributed worldwide, excepting the Poles. For South America 93 species have been described. Different diagnostic characters have been proposed for species from the northern Hemisphere, mostly from male genitalia. Recently, numerous South American species of the genus have been transferred to other genera. In this work, a systematic revision was undertaken of the South American species of Agrotis, restricting to 20 the number of species of this genus for the region and transferring the other species to different genera and/or synonymizing with other species. Based on a detailed study of the external morphology and genitalia of both sexes, several nomenclatural changes are proposed. New generic synonymy: Mesembreuxoa Hampson = Feltia Walker. New Agrotis synonymies include: Scotia forsteri Köhler = A. propriens (Dyar); Agrotis peruviana hampsoni Draudt, Rhizagrotis triclava Draudt, and Euxoa andina Köhler = A. peruviana (Hampson); Lycophotia achromatica Hampson, Feltia malefida patagiata Aurivillius, Prout and Meyrick, Agrotis psammophila Köhler, and Scotia (Feltia) canietensis Köhler = A. malefida Guenée; Chorizagrotis benefida Draudt = A. experta (Walker); Agrotis livens Köhler and Agrotis capayana Köhler = A. araucaria (Hampson). Species transferred to Feltia Walker tent. include: Scotia aspersula Köhler, n. comb.; Porosagrotis brachystria Hampson, n. comb.; Agrotis carrascoi Köhler, n. comb.; Mesembreuxoa chilensis Hampson, n. comb.; Euxoa clavisigna Dognin, n. comb.; Euxoa conifrons Draudt, n. comb.; Agrotis consternans Hayes, n. comb.; Euxoa coquimbensis Hampson, n. comb.; Mesembreuxoa fasicola Dyar, n. comb.; Chorizagrotis forasmicans Köhler, n. comb.; Agrotis giselae León, n. comb.; Agrotis gypaetina Guenée, n. comb.; Agrotis hispidula Guenée, n. comb.; Euxoa incarum Cockerell, n. comb.; Agrotis india Köhler, n. comb.; Scotia mansa Köhler, n. comb.; Scotia picata Köhler, n. comb.; Agrotis rondanelli León, n. comb.; Euxoa senta Draudt, n. comb.; and Agrotis submontana Köhler, n. comb. New Feltia tent. synonymies include: Agrotis daguerrei Köhler, Porosagrotis atricentrica Hampson, and Agrotis llanoi Köhler = F. brachystria; Lycophotia baeckstroemi Aurivillius = F. deprivata (Walker); Agrotis raveni Köhler = F. fasicola; Agrotis gentilii Köhler = F. forasmicans; Scotia nyei Köhler, Euxoa australis Köhler, and Scotia liniclinans Köhler = F. hispidula; Euxoa bosqui Köhler and Euxoa griseosparsa Köhler = F. lutescens (Blanchard); Euxoa praeocupata Köhler, Agrotis andinicola Köhler, and Scotia songoensis Köhler = F. subandina (Köhler); Agrotis maldonadoi Köhler = F. submontana. New combinations of Agrotis species: Anicla albiorbis (Dyar), n. comb.; Noctubourgognea chimaera (Köhler), n. comb.; Noctubourgognea dissociata (Staudinger), n. comb.; Pseudoleucania nigrocollaris (Köhler), n. comb.; and P. wittmeri (Köhler), n. comb. One lectotype and one paralectotype are designated for A. edmondsi Butler. The 20 species of South American Agrotis are redescribed using characters of color pattern, external morphology of head and thorax, and internal morphology of male (including vesica) and female genitalia. This is the first time complete eversions and description of male genitalia (aedeagus and vesica) and female genitalia are done for almost all the South American species. Images of all described characters and dichotomous keys to identify South American species of Agrotis are included.