Callambulyx piepersii (Snellen, 1880)

Synonymized with Callambulyx rubricosa as a subspecies by Rothschild & Jordan, 1903, Novit. zool. 9 (suppl.): 309. Reinstated as a species by Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2012, Atalanta 43: 349, who diagnosed it by the following characters: Forewing more compact, with the proximal angle or bend in the lower third of the outer edge especially pronounced; anal band of the hindwing upperside formed of more-or-less parallel lines so no white spot is visible [as in the three Callambulyx palawana]; harpe significantly shorter and wider; distal spine field with only the upper part present, the lower part almost free of spines; saccus significantly different in being in general relatively small and the distal [anterior] side flattened; and the significantly shorter overall length of the female genitalia. Most of these features are highly individually variable in Callambulyx amanda (e.g. forewing shape, hindwing anal patch coloration, saccus shape) and provide no justification for treating Callambulyx piepersii as a species. The female genitalia (Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2012: fig. 17) are indeed smaller but then so is the moth (11.75cm wingspan, compared to 13.16-14.0cm for three Callambulyx amanda). However, the saccus (Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2012: figs. 137 & 138) is different in shape, being anteriorly broadly squared off, while the harpe (Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2012: figs. 68 & 69) does seem to have a broader base and the distal hair field on the valve is reduced ventrally in the two illustrated specimens (Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2012: figs 42 & 43). Furthermore, there another feature that distinguishes Callambulyx piepersii from Callambulyx amanda that was overlooked by Eitschberger & Nguyen (2012): the antrum in the female genitalia is extremely narrow (unmated female?) compared to the broad rectangular or ovoid shape found in Callambulyx rubricosa and Callambulyx amanda. Given these features, albeit based on a small number of specimens, there would appear to be sufficient evidence at present provisionally to justify species status for Callambulyx piepersii. There are no sequenced samples of Callambulyx piepersii currently visible in BOLD, and so DNA barcodes are currently silent on the status of this taxon.