Synemon collecta Swinhoe, 1892

Synemon collecta Swinhoe, 1892 View in CoL (Striated Sun Moth)

( Figs 7 – 32 View FIGURES 7–10 View FIGURES 11, 12 View FIGURES 13–20 View FIGURES 21–28 View FIGURES 29–32 , 45, 46 View FIGURES 45–48 , 81 View FIGURES 81-83 )

Synemon collecta Swinhoe, 1892 View in CoL , Catalogue of the Eastern and Australian Lepidoptera Heterocera View in CoL in the collection of the Oxford University Museum. Part 1. p. 151, pl. vii, fig. 16.

Synemon collecta Swinhoe View in CoL ; Strand 1911a: 2 pl. 1, Strand 1911b: 146, Dalla Torre 1913: 21, Douglas 1993: 17, Venn 1993: 16, Dunn & Kitching 1994: A3 – 11, Edwards 1994: 37, Dunn 1996: 36, Edwards 1996: 138, Venn 1996: [1], Dunn 2000: 68.

Synemon collecta View in CoL obscuripennis Strand (infrasubspecific name); Strand 1911a: 2, Strand 1911b: 147, Dalla Torre 1913: 21, Edwards 1996: 138.

Synemon collecta View in CoL simpla Strand (infrasubspecific name); Strand 1911a: 2, Strand 1911b: 147, Dalla Torre 1913: 21, Edwards 1996: 138.

Synemon collecta View in CoL josepha Strand (infrasubspecific name); Strand 1911a: 2 (misidentification of S. phaeoptila Turner View in CoL ).

Synemon collecta View in CoL affinita Strand (infrasubspecific name); Strand 1911a: 2, Strand 1911b: 147, Dalla Torre 1913: 21 (misidentification of S. phaeoptila Turner View in CoL ).

Swinhoe in the original description listed a single specimen from “Northern Australia ” which he called the “type” and two specimens from New South Wales . Swinhoe’s use of the term “type” for a single specimen ( Fig. 11 View FIGURES 11, 12 ) is interpreted as the designation of a holotype. The precise origin of the holotype is unknown; however, Synemon collecta View in CoL does not occur in northern Australia. Based on its similarity to specimens from Armidale , the type locality may be in northern New South Wales .

Material examined

Holotype: ♀, “ North Australia Damell [sic] 1863 / In BM unnamed / A [on reverse of deep blue card] / Synemon collecta Swinhoe type zf / 706 [catalogue number in Swinhoe (1892)] / Type Lep: no. 273 Synemon collecta Swinhoe 1/3 Hope Dept. Oxford” ( Fig. 11 View FIGURES 11, 12 , OUM) . Paratypes: 1 ♀, “ Synemon theresa var / Coll. Saunders [on reverse of red card] / B [on reverse of deep blue card] / 706 / Type Lep: no. 273 Synemon collecta Swinhoe 2/3 Hope Dept. Oxford” ( OUM) ; 1 ♀, “NSW [pin holed and almost illegible] / Coll. Saunders [on reverse of red card] / B [on reverse of deep blue card] / 706 / Type Lep: no. 273 Synemon collecta Swinhoe Hope Dept. Oxford ” ( OUM) .

Additional material. Victoria: 31♂, 10♀, Shelly , 760m, 36°11’S 147°33’E, 27.xii.1987, 28.xii.1990, E.D. Edwards (slides 1959 ♂, 11820 ♂, 11879 ♀) ( Figs 13 – 16 View FIGURES 13–20 , ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 3♂, 2♀, Murray Valley Highway, 4km E of Shelley, 36°10.43’S 147°35.542’E, 1.i.2018, F. Douglas ( CAK) GoogleMaps ; 12♂, 2♀, same locality, 26.xii.2018, A. Kallies ( CAK) GoogleMaps ; 1M, Shelley , 31.xii.1999, G.E. Wurtz ( CAK) ; 7 specimens, Shelly area , -36.180248 147.551171; -36.180272 147.551106, 2.i.2022 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 2 specimens, Shelly area , -36.177306 147.587638, 5.i.2021 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Shelly area, Towong Shire, Burrowye , -36.070225 147.489627, 28.xii.2023 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 1 specimen, Lal Lal Falls , -37.65459 144.035746, 29.xii.2020 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 1♀, same location, 2.i.2021, A. Kallies ( CAK) GoogleMaps ; 3♂, 1♀, Hamilton , 15.xii.1904 ( MVM) ; 1 specimen, Terrick Terrick NP, -36.08603, 144.26531,. xii.2024 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 1♂, 6♀, Terrick Terrick NP (eastern section), 13 km NNE of Mitiamo, E of Mitiamo-Kow Swamp Road , 36°06'09.56"S 144°17'30.36"E ( 1♂), 36°05'54.95"S 144°17'17.22"E, 36°05'54.78"S 144°17'18.35"E, 36°06'00.46"S 144°17'41.30"E, 36°06'09.90"S 144°17'36.78"E 36°06'08.76"S 144°17'23.91"E, 36°06'08.19"S 144°17'17.33"E ( 6♀), 12.xi.2012, F. Douglas (photographic records) GoogleMaps ; 14♂, Terrick Terrick NP (western section), 12.5 km NNE by N of Mitiamo, W of Mitiamo-Kow Swamp Road , 36°05'50.47"S 144°16'20.17"E (1), 36°05'51.58"S 144°16'20.25"E (8), 36°05'52.00"S 144°16'20.40"E (1), 36°06'00.99"S 144°16'20.20"E (4), 12.xi.2012, F. Douglas (photographic records) GoogleMaps ; 2♂, Stawell ( MVM) ; 6♂, 3♀, Beremboke , 22.xii.1907, P. Frichot ( MVM) ; 1♂, Murrundini , 6.ii.1918 ( MVM) ; 1♂, “ Slaty Creek 16/9/1945 ” [ NE of Ballarat?, date probably incorrect] ( MVM) ; 2♂, Stanhope [WSW Shepparton], H.H. Griffith ( MVM) . Australia Capital Territory: 3♂, 3♀, 35°27’S 149°05’E, 0.5km E Point Hut Crossing , 600m, 16.xii.2008 ( Figs 17 – 20 View FIGURES 13–20 , ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 1 specimen, ACT [location obscured], xii.2023 (iNaturalist 2025). New South Wales: 1♀, 1♂, Glenn Ines , 28.xii.1910 ( ♀), 25.iii.1913 ( ♂) ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Armidale , 14.i.1960, C.W. Frazier ( ANIC) ; 1♂, 4♀, Armidale , 20.xii.1992 ( ♂, slide 11819), 22.i.1993, 5.ii.1993, 8.ii.1993, 20.iii.1993, M. & A. Coombs ( ANIC) ; 4♂, Armidale, Lookout , 16.xii.1992, A.I. Knight ( Fig. 12 View FIGURES 11, 12 , ANIC) ; 1♂, Armidale , 5.iv.1948 ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Armidale ( MVM) ; 7 specimens, Armidale arboretum, 30°31'18"S 151°38'58"E, 30.i.1999, D. R. Britton ( AM) GoogleMaps ; 2 specimens, same location, 4.i.2001, D. R. Britton ( AM) GoogleMaps ; 1 specimen, Armidale , 30°30'30”S 151°40'16”E, 6.iii.1999, D. R. Britton ( AM) GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Belltrees ( MVM) ; 1♀, Tenterfield , 3.ii.1918 ( MVM) ; 1♀, Bolivia Hill [ NNE of Glenn Ines], 13.iii.1994, R. Eastwood ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Barrington Tops, on road to Tubrabucca , 12.i.1956, K.D. Fairly ( ANIC) ; 2♂, 1♀, Tubrabucca , 18.i.1948, A.N. Burns & R. T.M.P. ( MVM) ; 1♂, Stonehenge [ S of Glenn Ines], 6.i.1971, M.S. Upton ( ANIC) ; 2♂, 15km SW of Singleton [NW of Newcastle ], 3.xi.2000, A. Atkins ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Danthonia Bruderhof Community , near Elsmore , -29.780556 151.348603, 14.x.2023 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps , 1♂, same locality, -29.779868, 151.350046, 15.xi.2020 iNaturalist 2025 GoogleMaps ); 1♂, same locality, -29.779764 151.350354, 10.xii.2023 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 3 specimens, same locality, -29.778619, 151.350217, 22.i.2024, 24.i.2024, 2.ii.2024 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps ; 1 specimen, same locality, 25.x.2024 GoogleMaps , 1 specimen, Greater Blue Mts, Piribil St, Jerrys Plains, -32.501103 150.902806, 21.i.2024 (iNaturalist 2025); 1♂, Settlers Rd, Royalla , -35.50298 149.169846, 6.xii.2018 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps . Queensland: 1♂, Mudlo N.P., 10km N of Kilkivan, 23.x.2007, A. Atkins ( ANIC) ; 9♂, 3♀, The Beacon , 14km, W of Imbil, 27.ix.1987, R. Eastwood ( ANIC) ; 4♂, 1♀, Leslie Dam nr Warwick , 28.i.1991, L. Ring ( ANIC, slide 11774) ; 1♂, Leslie Dam , 19.x.1993, K.L. Dunn ( Figs 25 – 28 View FIGURES 21–28 , ANIC) ; 1♂, 7km SE of Warwick , 5.iii.1994, K.L. Dunn ( ANIC) ; 4♂, 2♀, 28°11’S 151°10’E, 28k NNE of Inglewood , 20.x.1995, E.D. Edwards ( Figs 21 – 24 View FIGURES 21–28 , ANIC, slide 11775) GoogleMaps ; 3♂, 26km N of Canning Ck, Inglewood State Forest, grassland, 19.iii.1994, K.L. Dunn (slide 11773) ( ANIC) ; 6♂, 3♀, Hazelwood Gorge , 15km SW Eungella, 18.ix.1993, M.F. Braby & K.L. Dunn ( ANIC) ; 7♂, 3♀, 10km E of Mitchell , 26°30’S 148°04’E, E.D. Edwards & R.D. Edwards ( ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 3♂, 1♀, War Memorial, Stanthorpe , 20.xii.1985, A.I. Knight ( ANIC) ; 10♀, Millmeran , 12.ii.1930, 14.ii.1930, 3.x.1928, 3.xi.1928, 18.iii.1928, 13.x.1928, 22.i.1928, 4.ii.1928, 16.x.1927, J. Macqueen (slide 1960) ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Leyburn , 22.ii.1986, D.P. Sands ( ANIC) ; 1♂, SE of Leyton, Mt Gammie, 21.iii.1994, K.L. Dunn ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Carnarvon R., 8.xii.1941, N. Geanu ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Beaudesert , 6.i.1921 ( ANIC) ; 3♂, Esk , i.1906, G.A. Waterhouse ( MVM) ( ANIC) ; 3♂, 1♀, Millmeran , 25.ii.1928, 4.iii.1928, 24.x.1930 ( MVM) ( ANIC) ; 2♂, Westwood , 10.i.1924, 24.i.1925 ( MVM) ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Silver Spur , -28.733043 151.32485, 19.ii.2022 (iNaturalist 2025) GoogleMaps .

Unclear or questionable locations: 1♂, Brisbane, J.A. Kershaw ( ANIC) ; 2♀, Brisbane, 5.x.1909, 25.x.1909 ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Midi, 9.ii.1940 ( ANIC) , 1♂, Brighton ( MVM) ; 1♂, Cairns, 23.xi.1969, R. B. Lachlan ( ANIC) .

Redescription

Male ( Figs 13, 14, 17, 18 View FIGURES 13–20 , 21, 22, 25, 26 View FIGURES 21–28 ). Alar expanse 36 – 38.5 mm. Head: vertex grey, thick piliform grey scales obscuring black lamellar scales, frons with dense white piliform scales margined by grey piliform scales and dense white lamellar scales beside eyes, labial palpi short, appressed to head, not reaching frons, white, haustellum vestigial, antenna grey above broadly annulated with white, white beneath, club white with some grey scales dorsally, expanding fairly abruptly, nudum 5 orange brown on anterior third of club, apiculus minute of a single annulus.

Thorax: above dark grey of mixed dark grey piliform and black lamellar scales, two subdorsal rows of pale, almost white scales, beneath white, legs pale yellow or straw above, white beneath, epiphysis clothed in minute spinules, inserted at about half length of foretibia, long, spine-like, not reaching end of foretibia. Abdomen: dark grey above with distal half brown, T2 – T4 with numerous long grey scales, beneath white.

Forewing: dark grey with markings of off-white or ash grey, whole wing dusted with off-white scales, a broad off-white patch at end of cell, a broad band of markings from near apex to 1A+2A before tornus, markings made up of ellipses of dark grey between the veins and outlined both proximally and distally in off-white appearing as two series of lunate markings between the veins, costa dark grey with off-white streaks between veins towards apex, two basal streaks between veins below cell ash grey, a narrow dark grey terminal line. Cilia dark grey. Underside with costa pale yellow, basal third of wing brown irrorated with yellow, becoming more yellow distally and in cell, outer two thirds yellow, a trace of a paler spot at end of cell and paler terminal band from apex to CuA1, narrow terminal line dark brown proximally and pale yellow distally. Cilia dark brown.

Hindwing: basal half of wing dark grey, small brownish yellow dot at end of cell, outer half of wing from tip of Rs to tornus yellow to brownish yellow, the inner margin of this brownish yellow band lunate, sometimes traces of brown spots between the veins from M1 to M3, two conspicuous brown spots between CuA2 and 1A+2A, narrow terminal dark grey line, anal area dark brown at base becoming brownish yellow towards tornus. Cilia dark grey. Underside with costa pale brown, basal half of wing dark brown with a small spot at end of cell brownish yellow, outer half of wing yellow to brownish yellow, with inner margin of yellow band lunate, band with embedded subterminal bark brown spots between veins from Rs to M3 and from CuA2 to 1A+2A, a narrow terminal line dark brown proximally and brownish yellow distally. Cilia dark brown.

Genitalia ( Figs 29 – 32 View FIGURES 29–32 ): Valva wide at the base, narrower towards the apex, which is pointed upwards, dorsal edge with a low convex arch, with long simple setae, uncus wide and simple, with long setae; phallus relatively short, arched, with a long apical projection, phallobase wide; vinculum with two short projections.

Female ( Figs 11, 12 View FIGURES 11, 12 , 15, 16, 19, 20 View FIGURES 13–20 , 23, 24, 27 View FIGURES 21–28 , 29 View FIGURES 29–32 ). Alar expanse 35 – 42 mm. Similar to male, larger, forewing with off-white markings usually more extensive, hindwing with the dark brown spots in the brownish yellow band much larger and extending between the veins from Rs to 1A+2A, brownish yellow spot at end of cell larger. Underside forewing costa pale yellow, remainder of forewing pale orange yellow, a pale-yellow spot at end of cell, a post median row of pale-yellow spots from R4 to CuA1, a subterminal row of black spots from R4 to CuA1 edged distally with pale yellow, a narrow terminal line brown. Cilia grey-white. Hindwing orange yellow, a pale-yellow spot at end of cell, a median line of pale-yellow lunate spots between the veins from Rs to 1A+2A, a row of large black spots between veins from Rs to 1A+2A, a narrow black terminal line. Cilia grey-white.

Genitalia ( Figs 45, 46 View FIGURES 45–48 ): Ovipositor long, extendable and pointed, papillae anales covered in long setae, ductus bursae short and straight, corpus bursae ovoid and simple; apophyses posteriores long, reaching beyond corpus bursae.

Diagnosis. Synemon collecta is similar to S. theresa ( Figs 2 – 4 View FIGURES 1–6 ) but is larger; the forewings are much more streaked in appearance, the mark at the end of the cell is a bar rather than a spot and the colour on the hindwings is generally more extensive. Synemon kunama spec. nov. has a very similar forewing pattern to S. collecta but the white bar at the end of the cell is more angled and the white subapical streaks, which are of similar prominence in S. collecta , are smaller except for one very prominent streak in S. kunama spec. nov. In the female, the forewing of S. kunama is darker and less extensively streaked than in S. collecta . In the hindwing, the coloured spot at the end of the cell is much larger in S. kunama spec. nov., the colour is a much richer red orange and the black spots more prominent. Synemon collecta in Queensland occurs in similar areas to S. yimanorum spec. nov. and S. gunggariensis spec. nov. In S. yimanorum spec. nov. the wings are slightly narrower and the spots in the hindwing colour have been fused into a dark cloud. In the forewing, the spot at the end of the cell is more angled than in S. collecta and usually joined distally to a broad white streak extending nearly to the termen. Synemon gunggariensis spec. nov. differs from S. collecta in the forewings being much darker with much reduced streaks of pale scales. The cell bar is slightly more angled than in S. collecta . The hindwing in the male in S. gunggariensis spec. nov. is of a more earthyyellow colour than in S. collecta and the black spots are fused. Synemon collecta is also similar to S. septentrionalis spec. nov., which is about the same size but occurs further north in Queensland. In S. septentrionalis spec. nov. the forewings are slightly greyer, the bluish white median streak from the base is more prominent and the other white markings are much reduced. The spot at the end of the forewing cell is also more angled in S. septentrionalis spec. nov. In the hindwing of S. septentrionalis spec. nov., the orange areas are much restricted and crossed by black scales along the veins while in S. collecta the coloured areas are more extensive, and the black spots usually surrounded by colour and the coloured spot at the end of the cell is absent.

Variability. This species is quite variable in size and the extent of the white forewing and dark hindwing marks. Specimens collected in Queensland differ somewhat from those coming from further south by their appearance. The discal spot in the hindwing is very small in females or lacking in males (well developed in southern populations), the dark spots in the terminal half of hindwing are poorly developed in males (well developed in southern populations), the row of dark subterminal spots between in hindwing of the female usually complete (usually lacking the central spot southern populations). However, at this point we do not consider these differences sufficient to treat these populations as belonging to a different species.

Biology and distribution. Synemon collecta occurs in open grasslands and open areas in grassy woodlands in a range that extends from central Victoria to south-eastern Queensland ( Fig. 81 View FIGURES 81-83 ). In the southern part of its range, adults are on the wing from mid-December to early January, in the northern parts of its range it flies from October to March. Its hostplant is not known but it is suspected to develop in Rytidosperma Steud. 1854 (Wallaby grass, Poaceae ) and/or Themeda Forssk. 1775 (Kangaroo grass, Poaceae ).

Conservation status. Although S. collecta occurs in a large range, it is clear that it would have lost most of its habitat. In Victoria, this species is currently known only from three populations, only two of which can be considered secure (Terrick Terrick and Shelly). Similar to Victoria, there are only few extant populations known from the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales and Queensland ( Fig. 81 View FIGURES 81-83 ). While more work is required to map its current distribution, S. collecta should be considered a flag ship species for grassland conservation.