Coniopsyche squamosa ( Bethune-Baker, 1911 )

Coniopsyche squamosa ( Bethune-Baker, 1911) View in CoL

Ilema squamosa Bethune-Baker, 1911 View in CoL , Annals and Magazine of Natural History, (8) 7 (42): 536.

Type locality: [ Angola] “Malange, W. Africa ” .

Conclusions

The discovery of 19 new species in the Archithosia generic complex has increased the number of recognised species considerably, with the complex now containing 31 species in five genera. As a result of the present study two of the three subgenera of Archithosia ( Acanthosia and Architesma ) were upgraded to genus level while the third, Eurythosia , was found to be a junior synonym of Architesma . The largest number of new species was discovered in Architesma ; of the seven species previously listed as belonging to this genus ( Krüger 2015; Durante et al. 2024), two were transferred to other genera and 13 new species were described. Due to the external similarity of both genera and species in this complex, examination of the genitalia structures are necessary for accurate identifications, while the eversion of the vesica is also critical (in the case of Acanthosia tryphosa pringlei ssp. n., the vesica of the only male specimen was not everted and thus it is cautiously treated as a subspecies). Moreover, in the course of preparing this manuscript, it has become apparent that our knowledge of the Archithosia generic complex is far from complete and that numerous groups, beyond the scope of this present work but outlined above, are in need of further revisional work (Volynkin, in prep.). This work has once again shown that the true diversity of Afrotropical Lithosiini is far greater than once thought and it is believed that numerous new taxa await description in other genera. Aside from the important historic material housed in museum collections, further sampling using specialised lights and techniques in the eastern Congo Basin and mountainous regions of East Africa will doubtless lead to the discovery of a wealth of new species.

Acknowledgements

The Author expresses his sincere thanks to the following colleagues for their kind assistance during ANHRT visits to collections under their care: Alberto Zilli and Geoff Martin ( NHMUK); Axel Hausmann and Ulf Buchsbaum ( ZSM); Théo Léger and Viola Richter ( MfN); Stéphane Hanot ( RMCA); and James Hogan ( OUMNH). The Author is also indebted to Hitoshi Takano for his critical comments to the manuscript.

The Author also extends his grateful thanks to the following collaborative partners and their personnel for the diverse administrative and technical assistance provided during ANHRT’s fieldwork. Cameroon: the Community of Bokwaongo, and the rangers in Campo Ma’an National Park. Gabon: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CENAREST), Rougier Gabon, and Université des Sciences et Techniques de Masuku ( USTM). Guinea: Centre de Gestion de l’Environnement du Nimba et du Simandou, Centre Forestiére de N’zérékoré, and Guinée Ecologie. Ivory Coast: Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche Scientifique, Office Ivoirien des Parcs et Réserves ( OIPR),and Société de Développement des Forêts (SODEFOR). Liberia: Forestry Department Authority, Society for the Conservation of Nature, and Wild Chimpanzee Foundation. Mozambique: Administração Nacional das Areas de Conservação, and Museu de História Natural de Maputo. Republic of Congo: Directionde la Faune et des aires protégées ( DFAP), Institut National de Recherche en Sciences Exactes et Naturelles ( IRSEN), Ministère de la Recherche scientifique et de la l’Innovation Technologique, Université Marien Ngouabi, Wildlife Conservation Society ( WCS), and African Parks ( AP). Sierra Leone: Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Security, and Njala University. Togo: Ministre de l’Environnement et des ressources forestières du Togo, and Université de Lomé. Zambia: Department of National Parks and Wildlife – Zambia Wildlife Authority ( ZAWA), and Livingstone Museum.

Images of specimens deposited in NHMUK are used with permission and are copyright of the Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London and made available under Creative Commons License 4.0, CC-BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

The Author declares that to the best of his knowledge he conforms to the national regulations and meets with the conditions and requirements of international conventions concerning collecting/export and handling of the specimens presented in this Article.

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