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Tripteridia
Warren Gen.
rev.
Type species: novella Warren, New Guinea.
Synonym: Prosthetopteryx Warren (type species caesiata
Warren, New Guinea).
This genus is brought out of 'synonymy' with Micromia
Warren (type species fulvipuncta Warren, New Guinea) as it is both
the older name (despite being used at subgeneric level within Micromia by
Prout (1932c) and morphologically distinct. The species of the whole complex
have forewing facies much as in Pasiphila species, but the males have
secondary sexual features of the hindwing, particularly a strong subdorsal cleft
or fold with enlarged or dense scaling associated with it. Micromia lacks
such a feature, as does another subordinated genus-group name, Otucha Warren
(type species adminiculata Warren, New Guinea) Gen. rev.
Further definitive features occur in the male and
female genitalia. These also exclude Dissolophodes Warren (type species curvimacula
Warren, New Guinea) Gen. rev., despite it having a modified male
hindwing. Stenista Warren (type species commixtilinea Warren, New
Guinea) has not been dissected but may prove to be a further synonym of Tripteridia.
The male abdomen has characteristic octavals joined
basally by a strong transverse bar, and with subapical interior spurs distally
that anchor the octaval to the lamina. The valves have massive coremata
suspended from their exterior surfaces basally, the scales differentially
developed, modified and fused. The sacculus is not modified to support them. The
uncus is lost (present in Micromia).
The female (those of the two generic type species are
unknown) have the bursa with a distinct neck distal to the colliculum of the
ductus, and this sometimes bears a basal digitate appendix and contains a
variety of spining distal to it. The main bulb of the bursa is spherical,
extensively spined. The female of Micromia lacks a neck to the bursa, the
bulb of which is similarly spined, a round tubular appendix, leading to the
ductus seminalis, arising basally to it.
The genus is very diverse in New Guinea (it should
contain most species currently in Micromia) but has some extension
eastwards. The four montane species in Borneo are the only Sundanian
representatives so far discovered. No information on the biology has been
located.
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