''Lachana'' is a genus of

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

s in the subfamily

Lymantriinae The Lymantriinae (formerly called the Lymantriidae) are a subfamily of moths of the family Erebidae. The taxon was erected by George Hampson in 1893. Many of its component species are referred to as "tussock moths" of one sort or another. The ca ...

. The genus was described by

Frederic Moore Frederic Moore FZS (13 May 1830 – 10 May 1907) was a British entomologist and illustrator. He produced six volumes of ''Lepidoptera Indica'' and a catalogue of the birds in the collection of the East India Company. It has been said that Mo ...

in 1888. It contains species native to alpine areas on high mountains in the south of the

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

. The females do not have wings and lay their eggs within their own old cocoons.

Taxonomy

This genus, described by

in 1888, was

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

for over a century, with ''L. ladakensis'' as the only species, and thought to be

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...

in the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. In 1984 Karel Spitzer considered that all of the species except ''L. ladakensis'' belonged within the genus '' Gynaephora'' in the

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

''Dasyorgyia'', a move he had made provisionally in 1981 already. The subgenus ''Dasyorgyia'' had as

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

''Gynaephora pumila'', when this taxon was moved by Tatyana A. Trofimova to '' Dicallomera pumila'' in 2008, she was also obliged to move ''

Lachana alpherakii ''Lachana alpherakii'' is a species of moth of the subfamily Lymantriinae first described by Grigory Grum-Grshimailo in 1891. It is found in the high mountains of Tibet and China. Description The wingspan is 22–27 mm. Taxonomy Grigory G ...

'', ''L. selenophora'' and ''L. sincera'' to ''Lachana'' from the subgenus ''Dasyorgyia''. She furthermore described a new species from India, '' Lachana kulu''. ''L. ladakensis'' is the

Species

*''

'' ( Grum-Grshimailo, 1891) - Tibet-Qinghai Plateau,

Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...

*'' Lachana kulu'' Trofimova, 2008 -

Kullu Valley Kullu Valley is a broad open valley in Himachal Pradesh, India, formed by the Beas River between Manali and Larji. This valley is famous for its temples, beauty and its majestic hills covered with pine and deodar forest and sprawling apple or ...

*'' Lachana ladakensis''

Moore Moore may refer to: Language * Mooré language, spoken in West Africa People * Moore (surname) ** List of people with surname Moore * Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador * Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior ...

, 1888 -

, India *'' Lachana selenophora'' ( Staudinger, 1887) - from the

Tian-shan The Tian Shan, also known as the Tengri Tagh or Tengir-Too, meaning the "Mountains of God/Heaven", is a large system of mountain ranges in Central Asia. The highest peak is Jengish Chokusu at high and located in Kyrgyzstan. Its lowest point is ...

and Pamiro-Alai mountains of

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

, also central

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

. *'' Lachana sincera'' ( Kozhanchikov, 1950) - Wakhan Mountains in southern

Gorno-Badakhshan Gorno-Badakhshan, officially the Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region in eastern Tajikistan, in the Pamir Mountains. It makes up nearly forty-five percent of the country's land area but only two percent of its popul ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

The following species, all from the Tibetan Plateau, have been placed in '' Gynaephora''. A study of DNA markers of the species of that genus published in 2015 found them allied closer to the outgroup ''

'', and likely should be moved to ''Lachana''. *'' Gynaephora aureata'' Chou & Ying, 1979 *'' Gynaephora jiuzhiensis'' *'' Gynaephora menyuanensis'' Yan & Chou, 1997 - from the Tibet-Qinghai Plateau, China. *'' Gynaephora minora'' Chou & Ying, 1979 *'' Gynaephora qinghaiensis'' Chou & Ying, 1979 - A possible synonym or subspecies of ''L. alpherakii'' according to Spitzer (1984) and Trofimova (2008). *'' Gynaephora qumalaiensis'' *'' Gynaephora ruoergensis'' Chou & Ying, 1979 - A synonym of ''L. selenophora'' according to Spitzer (1984).

Description

The males of this genus have a thick

aedeagus An aedeagus ( or aedeagi) is a reproductive organ of male arthropods through which they secrete sperm from the testes during copulation (zoology), copulation with a female. It can be thought of as the insect equivalent of a mammal's penis, th ...

. They have an

arcuate ''Arcuate'' (Latin for "curved") can refer to: Anatomy * Arcuate fasciculus * Arcuate line (disambiguation) * Arcuate artery (disambiguation), several arteries * Arcuate nucleus (hypothalamus) * Arcuate nucleus (medulla) * Arcuate ligaments of ...

and slender

juxta In insect anatomy, the juxta is an organ in the males of most Lepidoptera (i.e. moths and butterflies) that supports the aedeagus, the organ used for reproduction in insects. The juxta is located between the two valvae. Juxta has also been use ...

, and squarish-shaped and relatively short valva. The females of this genus, of the only two species in which they have been seen, lack wings and are flightless. ''Lachana'' differs from '' Gynaephora'' by the species being smaller, in details of the male

genitalia A sex organ, also known as a reproductive organ, is a part of an organism that is involved in sexual reproduction. Sex organs constitute the primary sex characteristics of an organism. Sex organs are responsible for producing and transporting ...

described above, and with slight differences in positioning of the veins M1, M2 and M3 in the forewings, and M3 in the hindwings. The hindwings are extremely similar to those of ''

Dicallomera ''Dicallomera'' is a genus of tussock moths in the family Erebidae. Taxonomy Linnaeus first described ''Phalaena bombyx fascelina'' in 1758. Arthur Gardiner Butler first created the genus ''Dicallomera'' in 1881, for which he made '' Dicallomera ...

''.

Distribution and habitat

All of the species are native to alpine regions on high mountain ranges in

Ecology

According to Spitzer the larvae are oligophagous, feeding only on

Poaceae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...

(grasses), in those of which the

host plant In biology and medicine, a host is a larger organism that harbours a smaller organism; whether a parasitic, a mutualistic, or a commensalist ''guest'' (symbiont). The guest is typically provided with nourishment and shelter. Examples include a ...

s are known. However, caterpillars of ''L. alpherakii'' were found to feed on the shrub ''

Elaeagnus angustifolia ''Elaeagnus angustifolia'', commonly called Russian olive, silver berry, oleaster, or wild olive, is a species of ''Elaeagnus'', native to Asia and limited areas of eastern Europe. It is widely established in North America as an introduced specie ...

''. With all of the species of which the egg-laying behaviour is known, the females lay their eggs within their own old cocoons. The larvae are mimics of ''

Micrarctia ''Micrarctia'' is a tiger moth genus in the family Erebidae described by Seitz in 1910. The genus currently contains two species. Both species are found in central to western China, including the Chinese provinces of Qinghai and Sichuan Sich ...

'' caterpillars. ''L. alpherakii'' is the host species of the

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

eulophid wasp '' Sympiesis qinghaiensis''.

References

Lymantriinae {{Lymantriidae-stub