Jerbeia, Gorbunov, 2018

Gorbunov, Oleg G., 2018, A new genus and species of clearwing moth (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) from Ethiopia, Zootaxa 4497 (4), pp. 492-500 : 493

Jerbeia gen. nov.

Type species: Jerbeia darkovi sp. nov.

Description. Male. Small-sized clearwing moths with alar expanse about 16–17 mm.

Head with antenna long, reaching apical area of forewing, slightly serrated and ciliated; frons and vertex smooth-scaled; labial palpus long with a few hair-like scales ventrally; proboscis well-developed, long, functional.

Thorax smooth-scaled, with sparse and very short hair-like scales dorsally; both metepimeron and metameron with long hair-like scales posteriorly. Legs smooth-scaled, but posterior margin of all femora covered with long hair-like scales. Forewing ( Fig. 15 ) with well-developed transparent areas and broad discal spot; veins R1–R3 parallel, R4 and R5 stalked for about half of their length; distance between bases of veins R4+5, М1, М2 and М3 nearly equal; cross-vein reduced. Hindwing ( Fig. 15 ) transparent, discal spot broad, cuneiform, reaching the base of common М3–CuA1 stem; veins М3 and CuA1 with short common stalk.

Abdomen smooth-scaled, anal tuft well-developed.

Male genitalia. Tegumen-uncus complex broad; scopula androconialis well-developed ( Fig. 9 ); crista gnathi medialis and crista gnathi lateralis well-developed, semi-oval ( Fig. 9 ); valva ( Fig. 10 ) trapeziform-ovoid with a ventrally oblique tip, crista sacculi undeveloped, ventral crista armed with a group of strong pointed setae; saccus ( Fig. 11 ) relatively broad, gradually narrowed and rounded basally, long, about 2.5 times longer than vinculum; aedeagus ( Figs 12, 13 ) thin, straight, somewhat longer than valva, vesica with two flat and dentate cornuti ( Fig. 14 ).

Female. Unknown.

Differential diagnosis. Superficially, this new genus can be confused with Nesosphecia Bartsch, 2018 (type species: N. mystica Bartsch, 2018 ), but it clearly differs from Nesosphecia by the forewing venation (veins R1 and R2 fused distally, veins М2 and М3 from common point in Nesosphecia , vs. veins R1–R3 parallel, distance between bases of veins R4+5, М1, М2 and М3 nearly equal in Jerbeia gen. nov.; cp. Fig. 15 with fig. 29 in Bartsch 2018: 184) and the structure of the tegumen-uncus complex, valva and vesica in the male genitalia (see Figs 9–14 and fig. 27 in Bartsch 2018: 182). From all other genera of the Afrotropical Synanthedonini , Jerbeia gen. nov. is distinguishable by the structure of the male genitalia, namely, by the presence of a ventral crista of the valva ( Fig. 10 ) and two flat and dentate cornuti of the vesica ( Fig. 14 ). These two characters should be considered as synapomorphies. Jerbeia gen. nov. is somewhat similar to the Palaearctic genus Dipchasphecia Căpuşe, 1973 (type species: Dipsosphecia roseiventris Bartel, 1912 ) by the structure of the valva and by the presence of a ventral crista in the male genitalia, but differs by the presence of a crista gnathi medialis (it is absent in Dipchasphecia ; cf. Fig. 10 with figs 197–208 in Špatenka et al. 1999) and two flat and dentate cornuti (versus vesica with only a single small cornutus in Dipchasphecia ). Besides this, Jerbeia gen. nov. resembles the Palaearctic genus Chamaesphecia Spuler, 1910 (type species: Sphinx empiformis Esper, 1783), but Jerbeia gen. nov. is easily separable by the absence of a sclerotized crista of the valva and the shape of cornuti of the vesica in the male genitalia.

Biology. The larval host plant is unknown. Мoths on wings in October–November.

Composition. Мonotypic. Only the type species Jerbeia darkovi sp. nov. is included into this new genus.

Range. Currently known only from western Ethiopia, Afrotropical.

Etymology. The name of this new genus derives from first letters of the Joint Ethio-Russian Biological Expedition (JERBE), in the scope of which the author has had the honour to study the fauna of Lepidoptera of Ethiopia. The gender is feminine.

Figures

FIGURE 15. Wing venation of Jerbeia darkovi gen. et sp. nov. male, paratype.

FIGURES 9–14. Male genitalia of Jerbeia darkovi gen. et sp. nov. Paratypes. 9) tegumen-uncus complex, lateral view. Genital preparation № OG–001-2018; 10) right valva. Genital preparation № OG–001-2018; 11) saccus, ventral view. Genital preparation № OG–001-2018; 12) aedeagus, lateral view. Genital preparation № OG–001-2018; 13) aedeagus, lateral view. Genital preparation № OG–002-2018; 14) vesica, lateral view. Genital preparation № OG–002-2018. Scale bar: 0.5 mm for 9– 13, 0.2 mm for 14.