Noctuidae - Condicinae - Condicini

 

Male

Female

 

 

Condica concisa (Walker) 1856

Laphygma concisa Walker, 1856, List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, 9:191.

Caradrina consocia Walker, [1857] 1856, List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, 10:299.

Perigea centralis Walker, 1857, List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, 11:374.

Perigea imbella Walker, 1858, List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, 15:1692.

Caradrina laphygmoides Walker, 1858, List of the Specimens of Lepidopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum, 15:1694.

Perigea plumbago Herrich-Schäffer, 1868, Corresp.-Blatt Zool.- Min. Ver. Regensburg, 22:118.

Segetia proxima Morrison, 1876, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., 18:240.  NEW SYNONYMY

Diagnosis: Condica concisa is a very difficult species to characterize superficially even though internally the morphology of both the male and female genitalia are highly distinctive. Superficially the forewing of concisa is light gray-brown. In males the hindwing is pure white except for some dark brown scaling on the outer margin on the veins. The hindwing of the female is also basically white, although more suffused with brown than the male. The maculation of is forewing is all present, but certainly not distinctive. There is a lack of any pure white patches or marks. The combination of the white hindwing, the primarily gray forewing without white areas, particularly in the reniform spot, and the busy but indistinctive maculation of the forewing will generally separate this species from all others in North America. In short the species is ugly and non-descript, but should be recognizable by eliminating the other species in the genus. So far the species is known only from Florida and Texas which should also help to eliminate it from consideration in most parts of the country.

Both the male and female genitalia of this species are very distinctive. In the male genitalia the clasper of the valve is squared to trapezoidal at its apex. In almost all other species of Condica the clasper is pointed at the apex. In the vesica of aedoeagus there is multitude of sclerotized, dentate patches. Although dentate patches occur elsewhere in the genus, they never occur in such profusion as in concisa. The ostium of the female genitalia is very distinctive. The ostium is heavily sclerotized with two lateral caudally projecting plates that are serrate at their apices. The ductus bursae is also heavily sclerotized and very narrow, joining the corpus bursae broadly.

Distribution: This is one more of those primarily tropical species of Condica that make their way into the United States at the northern most limits of their ranges. Condica concisa has a wide and abundant distribution throughout the tropical parts of the New World from northern Argentina in the south northward as far as southern Texas and Florida. In the United States it has been collected in southeastern Texas and throughout most of Florida. There does not appear to be much variability in the species. The hindwing of females is slightly more heavily infuscated with brown than is the male hindwing.

The species is abundant throughout most of its range and is one of the species commonly found in disturbed and agricultural areas. In southern Texas the species was collected in August and September. In Florida concisa was collected from November to April and in August and September. In the majority of its range south of the United States adults have been collected throughout most of the year.

Identification Quality: Excellent

Larva: Unknown

Foodplants: The larva and its foodplants are almost unknown although Kimball (1965) records Bidens sp. (Asteraceae) as a foodplant.

 

Condica concisa

 

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