Gaeana
| Gaeana | |
|---|---|
| Gaeana maculata | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Auchenorrhyncha |
| Family: | Cicadidae |
| Tribe: | Gaeanini |
| Genus: | Gaeana Amyot & Serville, 1843 |
| Type species | |
| Cicada maculata Drury, 1773
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Gaena, Geaena (misspelling) | |
Gaeana (from Sanskrit: गायन, romanized: gāyana, lit. 'singer'[1]) is a genus of cicadas, most members of which have colourful marking on their forewings, found across tropical and temperate Asia. Their bright wing patterns have been hypothesized as being a case of Batesian mimicry where the toxic models may be day-flying moths of the subfamilies Zygaeninae and Arctiinae.[2][3] It was thought to be related to the genus Tosena but is differentiated by the exposed tympanum and lacks spines on the sides of the pronotum[4] and now in a separate tribe.
Some species like G. maculata have been found to show a great deal of patterning variability across geography.[5]
Species
Species included in the genus have varied over time. A molecular phylogeny study in 2025 retains only three species within the genus:[5]
- Gaeana atkinsoni Distant, 1892
- Gaeana maculata (Drury, 1773) - type species - with several former species synonymized - G. consors, G. hainanensis, G. cheni and G. nigra
- Gaeana chinensis Kato, 1940
References
- ^ Amyot CJB, Audinet-Serville, JG (1843) Homoptères. Homoptera Latr. [In] Histoire naturelle des Insectes. Hémiptères. Deuxième partie: 455-483. Librairie Encyclopédique de Roret, Paris, 676 pages.
- ^ Yen, Shen-Horn; Gaden S. Robinson; Donald L. J. Quicke (2005). "Phylogeny, systematics and evolution of mimetic wing patterns of Eterusia moths (Lepidoptera, Zygaenidae, Chalcosiinae)". Systematic Entomology. 30 (3): 358–397. Bibcode:2005SysEn..30..358Y. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3113.2004.00284.x.
- ^ Green, EE (1910). "Remarkable mimetic resemblance between a Cicadid and an Arctiid moth". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 10: 882–883.
- ^ Distant, W.L. (1892). A monograph of the Oriental Cicadidae. Calcutta: Indian Museum. p. 104.
- ^ a b Wang, Jiali; Zhou, Jinrui; Zhang, Wenzhe; Wei, Cong (2025). "Phylogeny, diversification and biogeography of charming moth‐like cicadas in the tribe Gaeanini Distant (Hemiptera, Cicadidae)". Systematic Entomology. 50 (4): 713–735. doi:10.1111/syen.12676. ISSN 0307-6970.