Chelis pardalina ( Püngeler, 1898 )

Chelis pardalina ( Püngeler, 1898)

( Figs 1, 2 View Figures 1–2 )

Tancrea pardalina Püngeler, 1898 View in CoL , Societas entomologica, 13 (8): 57 (Type locality: [Ili River Valley in SE Kazakhstan or Xinjiang, China] “ Ili flumen”).

Material examined. 1 male, 21. V .2024, East Kazakhstan, 2 km SE of Zhidely (former Ordynka) Vill., right bank of Kara-Irtysh River, W edge of Ashutas Mt. , 48°1'41.6''N 85°19'17.6''E, 430m, A.U. Gabdullina, S. V. Titov & G.A. Bolbotov leg. GoogleMaps

Note. The species was originally placed in the monotypic genus Tancrea Püngeler, 1898 but Rönkä et al. (2016) synonymised Tancrea along with six other genera with Chelis Rambur, [1866] as a result of the phylogenetic analysis based on seven nuclear and one mitochondrial gene markers.

Bionomics. Males are on wing from May to early July ( Gorbunov 2011; Korb et al. 2017), and are active in daytime and evening twilight ( Toropov et al. 2023). The female is brachypterous ( Püngeler 1898). In East Kazakhstan, the single male individual was found in day time (at approximately 12:00) sitting on the ground in windy conditions ( Fig. 2 View Figures 1–2 ). The habitat in the Zaisan Depression is a clay semidesert, which is sparsely overgrown with species of the genera Anabasis L., Artemisia L., Atriplex L., Krascheninnikovia Güldenst. , Agropyron Gaertn. , Cistanche Hoffmg. & Link , Iris Tourn. ex L., Turgenia Hoffm. , Stipa L., Taraxacum Wigg. , Zygophyllum L., Allium L., Astragalus L., Tulipa L., Cousinia Cass. , Tragopogon L., Scorzonera L., etc. ( Fig. 3 View Figures 3–4 ). In Southeast and West Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, the species is found in sandy deserts and semi-deserts ( Dubatolov 1991; Gorbunov 2011) ( Fig. 4 View Figures 3–4 ). The preimaginal stages and food plants are unknown.

Distribution. The species is currently known from West, Southeast and East Kazakhstan and northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China (found in the Aral Depression, valleys of Ili River and its tributaries, and Zaisan Depression) ( Püngeler 1898; Dubatolov 1991, 2010; Gorbunov 2011, and present study), Kyrgyzstan (Fergana Range) ( Korb et al. 2017), and Turkmenistan (Karakum Desert) ( Dubatolov 2010). The new finding in the Kara- Irtysh River Valley is the northernmost known locality of the species ( Fig. 14 View Figure 14 ).