A review of the Neotropical moth genus Bardaxima (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae: Nystaleinae), with special reference to the species occurring in Brazil

Bardaxima Walker, 1858 includes 12 species, eight of them occurring in Brazil. The Brazilian species are treated here, including diagnoses and illustrations of both adults and genitalia to allow their identification: B. donatian (Schaus), B. fulgurifera (Walker, 1869), stat. rev. (= demea (Druce, 1895)); B. ionia (Druce, 1900) (= albolimbata (Dognin, 1909), syn. nov., B. ambigua (Dyar, 1908), syn. nov., B. metcalfi (Schaus, 1928), syn. nov.); B. lucilinea Walker, 1858; B. marcida (C. Felder, 1874); B. procne (Schaus, 1892) (= meyeri (Schaus, 1928), syn. nov.); B. sambana (Druce, 1895), stat. rev. (= belizensis Thiaucourt, 2010, syn. nov., bolivari Thiaucourt, 2010, syn. nov., coloradorum Thiaucourt, 2010, syn. nov., panamensis (Draudt, 1932), syn. nov.); B. subrutila (Dognin, 1908); and B. terminalba Jones, 1908 (= oakley (Schaus, 1939)). Bardaxima perses Druce, 1900 is transferred to Elasmia Möschler, 1883 as a new combination, Elasmia perses (Druce, 1900). Stragulodonta gen. nov. is proposed to accommodate Heterocampa stragula Möschler, 1883, comb. nov. (= belua (Draudt, 1932), syn. nov.).


INTRODUCTION
is a Neotropical genus that included 17 species, three of them described from Brazil (Becker 2014: 3). It ranges from Guatemala to Southern Brazil. Draudt (1932: 915) included eight species, of which six recorded from Brazil. Schintlmeister (2013: 50) included seven species. However, both Draudt (1932: 987) and Schintlmeister (2013: 181-182) treated Gisara Schaus, 1901, currently a synonym, as a valid genus, including nine and 11 species, respectively. This synonymy was first proposed by Weller (1995), a treatment recognized by Thiaucourt (2010) and by Becker (2014: 3). The present study treats the eight species of the genus recognized from Brazil, brings new information on the classification and provides illustrations, both of adults and their male genitalia, to allow the identification of the Brazilian species. In order to clarify the identity of the Brazilian species, other taxa, not occurring in the country, had to be examined and some useful information about them, including synonymies, are also given here. Bardaxima Walker, 1858 Bardaxima Walker, 1858: 1349. Type-species: B. lucilinea Walker, 1858: 1349, by monotypy. Gisara Schaus, 1901: 261. Type-species: Symmerista procne Schaus, 1892, by original designation. Synonymized by Weller (1995: 235). Gozarta Walker, 1869: 18. Type-species: G. fulgurifera Walker, 1869a: 18, by monotypy. Preocc. (Walker 1869b [Hemiptera]). Synonymized by Gaede 1934: 210. Diagnosis. Medium (FW length 18 mm; 42 mm wingspan) to large (FW length 30 mm; 64 mm wingspan) size. Brown, fuscous or gray. Antenna short ciliated in males, filiform in females, ¾ as long as FW. Labial palpi upcurved, reaching vertex; 2 nd segment length the size of eye diameter; 3 rd half the size, thin. Abdomen tip with pair of coremata, looking bifurcate. Male genitalia: Uncus tip bifurcate, forming with socii a fourbranched structure.  considered synonyms by most authors (Schaus 1901, Draudt 1932, Becker 2014. The pattern of the FW in B. lucilinea is more "smooth" and shows a faint, white mark next to tornus; whereas the FW has multiple, minute dark dots, contrasting with the ground color, in B. fulgurifera. Genitalia are also similar but the differences, though small, are consistent, very noticeable in the shape of uncus and sacculus. In B. lucilinea the uncus branches and the distal tooth at the distal third of sacullus is thicker than that of B. fulgurifera. Bardaxima fulgurifera (Walker, 1869) Remarks. Described from an unspecified number of males and females, presumably the pair currently in the NHMUK. The male, mentioned above, is here selected and designated as lectotype; the female becomes a paralectotype. Treated as a synonym of B. lucilinea by Schaus (1901: 271), who was followed by Draudt (1932: 915) and Becker (2014: 3), it was considered a good species by Schintlmeister (2013: 50). They are very similar indeed, and sympatric along most of their range, except for Central America, from where B. lucilinea is not represented in the collections. The genitalia of both B. lucilinea and B. furcifera are similar; however, the branches of uncus are longer and thinner and the tooth on sacculus smaller and sharper in B. furcifera. Despite the differences being small, they are consistent even between sympatric specimens. Specimens from Central America show wing pattern less contrasting, looking similar to B. lucilinea, but their genitalia are clearly B. fulgurifera.
According to I. Chacón, Museo Nacional de Costa Rica (pers. comm.), "Montes de la Candelaria", a name not in use since the 60's of the last century, refers to a series of mountains southwest of San Ignacio de Acosta, bordering the La Candelaria river. The two highest elevations are "Cerro el Cedral" (1634 m) and "Cerro Caraigres (2740 m).

ionia-group
The species included in this group have the area along termen of FW dorsally slightly paler than the ground color, or with a small white dot next to tornus. The group includes three species, all occurring in Brazil (B. ionia, B. marcida and B. subrutila (Fig. 50) slightly round. Male genitalia (Fig. 48): uncus long, broad, branched at distal half. Socii large, distal third bent ventrad, apex of branches with small teeth. Valva with costa straight, slightly incurved near apex; sacculus thin, longer than valva, with two long, thin branches at end, ventral one slightly curved before sharp pointed tip. Aedoeagus (Fig. 49)  Remarks. Heterocampa ionia was described from a pair of specimens, the lectotype and a female, that belongs to Disphragis occulta (Schaus, 1905) (Becker 2014: 6). The patch on dorsum, before termen, varies from white, as in the type of G. metcalfi, to almost the same as the ground color, as in G. ambigua, looking similar to B. subrutila, but easily distinguished by the black mark at end of FW cell: a small round dot in B. ionia, whereas a short, vertical dash in B. subrutila. The female from Costa Rica (Fig. 21) is an exact match to the female lectotype of G. metcalfi, from Peru, illustrated in Schintlmeister (2016: 322). Gisara ambigua is not more than a rubbed specimen of B. ionia. As Callao, a city close to Lima, Peru, is located in the desert coast along the Pacific side of South America, almost devoid of vegetation, it is very likely that the type specimen of G. ambigua is mislabeled.
Distribution. French Guiana and Brazil, in the Amazon region, south to Bahia.
Remarks. Presumably related to B. ionia but easily distinguished by the thin black line at base of FW, and the short, vertical, black line at end of cell, and by the unique shape of genitalia, as easily seen in the illustrations.

procne-group
This group includes the species with a large, white patch next to tornus of FW. It is represented in Brazil by three species (B. procne, B. sambana and B. terminalba), by B. brauni in Colombia, and by B. brewsteri in Costa Rica.
Bardaxima procne (Schaus, 1892)   Remarks. Easily distinguished from other similar species by the conspicuous white dot on the center of thorax, dorsally. Specimens tend to be darker (= G. meyeri) towards the northern portion of the distributional range. Genitalia of both phenotypes, as well of intermediate phenotypes, are identical. It is very likely that B. brauni, the next species, from Colombia, is just a local, darker phenotype of B. procne.
Distribution. From Belize and Guatemala, through Costa Rica and Ecuador, Bolivia, and east to Brazil (Bahia and Distrito Federal).
Remarks. This widespread species was synonymized under B. procne by Schaus (1901: 310), a similar species, from South America, that does not reach Central America. They are very similar indeed but B. sambana does not have the conspicuous white dot on thorax that is observed in B. procne. There is a male, from Belize, collected by the present author, together with the holotype of B. belizensis, that matches exactly the type of B. sambana. The illustration of the type of G. panamensis (Draudt 1932: pl. 152a) also matches the types of both B. sambana and B. belizensis. It is very likely that B. brewsteri is merely a local color form of B. sambana, with whitish HW. The long series of specimens examined show slight differences in genitalia, as shown in Thiaucourt's work (2010), but not more than what would be expected in specimens from different localities of a widely distributed species. "Candelaria Mts" (see above under B. fulgurifera).
Distribution. Brazil, in the cool, high elevations of the Atlantic Forest, from São Paulo to Santa Catarina.
Remarks. This is the smallest species in the genus; very similar to Navarcostes species, the reason it was originally included in that genus; however, it is easily distinguished by the antenna: short and long pectinated in the Navarcostes species. The printed locality label "St. Catherines, Brazil", of N. oakley, is typical of all the material collected by Fritz Hoffmann, a German naturalist, who collected in Santa Catarina and in Espírito Santo, Brazil, in the beginning of the 20 th century.  (Fig. 27) FW length 30-32 mm (68-72 mm wingspan). Head, patagia and proximal half of thorax dorsally dark fuscous, caudal half and tegulae pale yellow. FW dorsally olivaceous; black lunule at end of cell, followed by a round, pale blotch; postmedial band double, followed by dark area with distal edge sinuous. HW dark fuscous, cilia pale. Abdomen dorsally dark fuscous, with a pale band from 2 nd segment to tip. Male genitalia (Fig. 69): uncus long, expanded to a nearly round head. Socii large, arms flat laterally, strongly curved at base; twice as long as wide. Valva with costa broadly expanded at base, with short, digital process dorsad; sacculus thin, as long as valva; a narrow bridge connecting costa to sacculus, next to apical margin. Aedoeagus (Fig. 70) short, thick, with a short blunt process laterally.
Remarks. Draudt presumably was misled by the larger size of the females when he described B. belua.
Distribution. Costa Rica, Guianas, throughout Brazil (Amazonas) as far south as Santa Catarina.
Remarks. Both taxa were described from an unspecified number of females. The original description of H. perses was presumably based on a single female in the NHMUK, here designated as lectotype (see above). According to the male genitalia, this species certainly does not belong in Bardaxima. The presence of a digit-shaped transtilla is shared, in the Nystaleinae, with the species currently included in Elasmia Möschler, 1886, the reason for the new combination.