Chrysophyllis
Sign in to saveChrysophyllis is a genus of the grass moth family (Crambidae). It is monotypic, containing the single species Chrysophyllis lucivaga. This moth is very little known, having only been recorded once, before 1935. It belongs to the large grass moth subfamily Spilomelinae; at the time of its description, these were still included in subfamily Pyraustinae and the entire Crambidae was then merged with the snout moths (family Pyralidae). While its exact relationships are undetermined, it is believed to be a close relative of Talanga (but see below). Like these (and some other, unrelated, moths), the
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Chrysophyllis is a genus of the grass moth family (Crambidae). It is monotypic, containing the single species Chrysophyllis lucivaga. This moth is very little known, having only been recorded once, before 1935. It belongs to the large grass moth subfamily Spilomelinae; at the time of its description, these were still included in subfamily Pyraustinae and the entire Crambidae was then merged with the snout moths (family Pyralidae). While its exact relationships are undetermined, it is believed to be a close relative of Talanga (but see below). Like these (and some other, unrelated, moths), the male genitalia of C. lucivaga feature a remarkably elongated aedeagus shaped like a bullwhip.
This moth is presumed to be endemic to Hiva Oa, in the Marquesas Islands of Polynesia. The only known specimen, a male, was collected on Kaava Ridge, about 750 m (2460 ft) ASL; it is now in the Bernice P. Bishop Museum, but the genitals have been extracted for examination and are mounted on a microscopic slide in the National Museum of Natural History collection (specimen USNM 25242).