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Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Crambidae
80a1071 – 5167   Desmia ploralis (Guenée, 1854)
             Mournful Desmia

© Aaron Cavosie
Distribution: USA: Florida.
Type locality (ploralis): French Guiana, Cayenne.
Type locality (propinqualis): Suriname, Paramaribo.
Type locality (repandalis): Guatemala, Chejel.
Description/
Field Marks:
Hampson (1912) described deploralis as sexually dimorphic with HW white median band of females divided by a black line vs. a solid line in males. It would seem that ploralis is sexually dimorphic too though this seems contradicted by the description in Möschler, [1882] of propinqualis, a current synonym of ploralis, based on what he lists, possibly an error, as a male specimen. Möschler's description and illustration seem to match that of female deploralis. - Steve Nanz (1/9/2021)
Similar Species:
  • Desmia deploralis Hampson, 1912
  • Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.)
Synonymy: Aediodes ploralis Guenée, 1854
Desmia propinqualis Möschler, [1882]
Desmia repandalis Schaus, 1920
Desmia tages of authors not Cramer, 1777
Taxonomic Notes: Desmia ploralis (Guenée, 1854) includes as synonyms, propinqualis Möschler, [1882] and repandalis Schaus, 1920 in Munroe, (1995:66).
References
  • Barcode of Life (BOLD) - Caution: Some specimens shown may not be sequenced. DNA barcode provides evidence of relatedness not proof of identification.
  • Guenée, M.A., 1854. Deltoïdes et Pyralites. Histoire Naturelle des Insectes. Species Général des Lépidoptères, 8(8): 192.
  • Munroe, E.G., V.O. Becker, J.C. Shaffer, M. Shaffer, M.A. Solis, 1995. Pyraloidea [60. Pyralidae]. Atlas of Neotropical Lepidoptera. Volume 3. Checklist: Part 2. Hyblaeoidea - Pyraloidea - Tortricoidea. Association for Tropical Lepidoptera and Scientific Publishers, Gainesville, FL, 34-79.
  • Möschler, 1881. Beiträge zur Schmetterlings-Fauna von Surinam. IV. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien, 31: 430; pl. 18, fig. 37.
  • Schaus, W., 1920. New species of Neotropical Pyraustinae (Lepid.). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 22(7–8): 183.
  • Species Page at BugGuide.Net
Desmia ploralis
© Machele White
Desmia ploralis
© Carol Wolf
Desmia ploralis
– © James Hayden
Desmia ploralis
LG – © Jim Troubridge
Desmia ploralis
© Jim Vargo
Desmia ploralis
© Jim Vargo

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