Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Samea castellalis Guenée, 1854
Samea ecclesialis of authors not Guenée, 1854
Explanation of Names
Samea castellalis Guenée, 1854 includes as a synonym Samea ecclesialis of authors not Guenée, 1854 in Landry (2016; pp. 372–373). True ecclesialis is not found north of Mexico.
Numbers
Four Samea species are found in America north of Mexico.
Size
Wingspan of female about 20 mm with the males noticeably smaller.
Identification
Adult: forewing grayish-brown with three groups of several white spots in AM, median, and PM areas; male has larger spots than female, and/or less extensive brown areas between spots, due to smaller wing; middle of fringe has dark gray shading and larger dark marks than along remainder of fringe; hindwing in male has large white patches covering most of basal two-thirds, with thin dark median line and row of three white spots near outer margin; hindwing in female is similar except for thick dark median line and two rows of white spots near outer margin
male/female compared note the costal margin
specimen identified by DNA analysis (BOLD) from
Mark Dreiling
Range
North Carolina to Florida, west to Texas, and south in the neotropics to Brazil.
Season
Adults fly most of the year in the far south.
Food
Has been reared from Richardia brasiliensis.
Remarks
Type locality: Brazil. Colombia. French Guiana, Cayenne
See Also
*
Samea multiplicalis is very similar but the forewing fringe lacks the wide dark shading near middle, and has dark marks along fringe that are approximately equal in size.
Moth Photographers Group has illustration for distinguishing the two species.
. . . . . .
Jason D. Roberts - how to separate Samea ecclesialis and Samea multiplicalis
Print References
Guenée, M. A. 1854: Deltoïdes et Pyralites. Pp.
194–195, pl. 6 fig. 7. – In: Boisduval, J. B. A. D. de & M. A. Guenée, Histoire Naturelle des Insectes. Species Général des Lépidoptères 8 8. – Roret, Paris.
Walker, F. 1859 d: Pyralides. – List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, London 19:
937.
Landry, B., 2016. Taxonomic revision of the Spilomelinae (Lepidoptera, Pyralidae s. l.) of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. Revue suisse de Zoologie, 123(2):
315-399.
Walker, F. 1866 ["1865"] a: Supplement 4. – List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, London 34:
1302.
Internet References
Moth Photographers Group - range map, photos of living and pinned adults.
BOLD - Barcode of Life Data Systems - collection map and photos of pinned adults.
pinned adult image, split to show half female and half male plus distribution and synonyms (Matthew Barnes, Moths of Jamaica)
lepbarcoding.org - collection map and photos of pinned adults.
presence in Florida; list (John Heppner, Florida State Collection of Arthropods)