Teleiodes kaitilai Junnilainen

Junnilainen, Jari & Nupponen, Kari, 2010, The gelechiid fauna of the southern Ural Mountains, part I: descriptions of seventeen new species (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), Zootaxa 2366, pp. 1-34 : 19-21

Teleiodes kaitilai Junnilainen sp. n.

Figs. 38–42

Type material. Holotype: Ƥ (Fig. 38): Russia, S-Ural, Cheliabinsk district, 55°01’N 60°06’E, 350 m, Miass, Ilmen reserve, 19.VI.1998, J. Junnilainen leg. ( JJ, to be deposited in ZMH). Paratypes (87 3, 59 ƤƤ): Same locality as holotype: 26.VI.1996 (2 3, 6 ƤƤ), 27.VI.1996 (1 3, 7 ƤƤ), 28.VI.1996 (2 ƤƤ), K. Nupponen, J.-P. Kaitila, J. Junnilainen & M. Ahola leg. ( JJ, JPK, TKN, ZMH); 26.VI.1997 (10 3, 16 ƤƤ), 27.VI.1997 (3 3, 8 ƤƤ), 28.VI.1997 (1 Ƥ), K. Nupponen & J. Junnilainen leg. ( JJ, TKN, ZMH); 19.VI.1998 (6 3, 3 ƤƤ), J. Junnilainen leg. ( JJ); 19.VI.1998 (8 3, 10 ƤƤ), 28.VI.1999 (3 3), T. & K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN); 30.V–17.VI.2001 (1 3), 24.VI.2001 (38 3, 4 ƤƤ), 14.VII.2003 (1 3), 15.VII.2003 (1 Ƥ), K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN). Russia: S Buryatia: 51º11–13’N 106º10–12’E, 700 m, Hamar Daban mnts, Murtoy river, Gusinoe Ozero village 6 km NW, forest steppe/taiga forest, 19.VI.2002 (1 3), 21.VI.2002 (1 3), K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN); S-Ural, Cheliabinsk district: 54°31–35’N 58°49–54’E, 900–1000 m, Iremel Mountain reserve, 25.VI.1996 (16 3), K. Nupponen, J.-P. Kaitila, J. Junnilainen & M. Ahola leg. ( JJ, JPK, TKN); 17.VII.2007 (1 3), K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN); M-Ural: Sverdlovsk district: 56°37’N 61°05’E, 230–250 m, Ekaterinburg 50 km S near Dvurechensk village 20–21.VI.1998 (1 3), J. Junnilainen leg. ( JJ); 20.VI.1998 (1 3), T. & K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN); 56°49’N 60°36’E, 260 m, Ekaterinburg city, 26.VI.2001 (1 3), 17.VII.2003 (1 Ƥ), K. Nupponen leg. ( TKN). Genitalia slides: J. Junnilainen prep. no. 0 0 0 21701, 0 0 0 22401, 0 0 0 22402, 03011301; K. Nupponen prep. no. 1/ 06.IV.2008.

Diagnosis. Teleiodes kaitilai sp. n. most resembles Teleiodes saltuum (Zeller, 1878) . T. kaitilai is on average smaller and somewhat darker brownish-grey than always paler grey T. saltuum , and the forewing pattern is more prominent. Otherwise the habitus of the two taxa is very similar, except the tip of female abdomen (see below). Abdominal segment VIII is relatively wider in T. kaitilai . The male genitalia of T. kaitilai resemble to a great extent those of T. saltuum , but digitate distal part of the valva is basally not so strongly bent, lateral humps at the posterior margin of the vinculum are broader and the aedeagus is slightly longer with a pointier apex. In the female genitalia lateral patches are larger and relative length of apophyses is different. The best diagnostic character of T. kaitilai is in the ostium: there is a pair of long spun-shaped structures ventrally exceeding the posterior margin of segment VIII, which are visible at the end of the female abdomen without dissection.

PLATE 8. Figures 38–42. Teleiodes kaitilai Junnilainen sp. n.. 38. Imago (female, holotype); 39. Male genitalia (paratype, Ural; slide KN 1/ 06.IV.2008); 40. Abdominal segment VIII (right: sternum; left: tergum; paratype; slide JJ 00021701). 41. Female genitalia, ventral view (paratype; slide JJ 00022402); 42. Female genitalia, lateral view (paratype; slide JJ 03011301).

Description. Wingspan 14.5–16.5 mm. Head, thorax and tegulae covered by whitish brown-tipped scales. Antenna dark brown, weakly ringed paler with short whitish cilia in male. Labial palp: segment II dark brown, inner surface and distal area covered by white scales; segment III white with two broad dark brown rings, one at 2/7 and another more or less indistinct subapically. Abdomen fuscous. Legs suffused with dark brown and whitish scales, except hind leg inwardly pale ochreous. Forewing fuscous, densely mottled with dark brown scales. Forewing markings are more or less distinct blackish-brown spots: three along costa, most prominent at base, indistinct at middle and triangular or rectangular subapically; plical and discal elongate spots; subapical at middle of wing; streak in apical area indistinct or absent. Fringe grey with paler fringe line. Hindwing fuscous.

Male genitalia (Figs. 39–40). Uncus broad and rounded with small apical knot. Gnathos moderately short and stout, strongly sclerotized, apex curved upwards. Basal part of valva large and bulbous, long and thin, medial 0.7 gradually curved, slightly variable in shape. Posterior margin of vinculum with relatively low and broad lateral humps. Aedeagus basally thick, slightly bent at middle, tapering towards more or less pointed apex. Tergum VIII subtrapezoid; anterior margin widely concave; anterior corners elongated. Sternum VIII very broad subrectangular plate; lateral margins convex, posterior margin with wide V-shaped medial notch, anterior margin almost straight.

Female genitalia (Fig. 41–42). Length of segment VIII 0.55 mm; lateral patches sub-rhomboid, strongly sclerotized. Ostium bursae dorsolaterally with a pair of long and strongly sclerotized, parallel, spun-shaped structures distinctly exceeding posterior margin of segment VIII. Apophyses anteriores rod-like and 0.7 mm long. Apophyses posteriores thin and 2.6 mm long. Ductus bursae long and membranous. Corpus bursae roundish, signum sub-rhombic and distinctly serrate with a pair of lateral lobes.

Bionomy. The specimens were collected by artificial light from mid-June to Mid-July from taiga forests. Immature stages remain unknown, but they might feed on Larix sibirica .

Distribution. Russia (S Ural, S Buryatia).

Etymology. This species is dedicated to Mr. Jari-Pekka Kaitila, who was the first to recognize that these specimens were not conspecific with T. saltuum .

Remarks. The new species has been compared with a long series of T. saltuum specimens collected from the French Alps and Denmark. Recently published literature was also used ( Huemer & Karsholt (1999); Elsner et al. (1999)). It appears that there is no remarkable variation between specimens of T. saltuum collected from different parts of Western Europe, except that the digitate distal part of valva in the male genitalia seems to be variable even within populations and hence cannot be used as a diagnostic character. The other differences between the new species and T. saltuum are stable. Systematically Teleiodes kaitilai should be placed near Teleiodes saltuum .