Aspilanta voraginella (Braun, 1927), comb n.

Nieukerken, Erik J. van & Eiseman, Charles S., 2020, Splitting the leafmining shield-bearer moth genus Antispila Huebner (Lepidoptera, Heliozelidae): North American species with reduced venation placed in Aspilanta new genus, with a review of heliozelid morphology, ZooKeys 957, pp. 105-161 : 105

Aspilanta voraginella (Braun, 1927), comb n. Figs 5 , 12 , 24 , 33 , 80-83

Antispila voraginella Braun, 1927b: 191. Holotype ♂: USA: [Utah: Washington County] "B1206/Zion Canyon/Utah i.iv.9 [1926]- Antispila / voraginella / Type Braun.", Genitalia slide EJvN 3916 [reared from mines on Vitis arizonica ] (ANSP) [examined].

Antispila voraginella ; Needham et al. 1928: 290; McDunnough 1939: 91; Davis 1983b: 4; Powell and Opler 2009: 39; van Nieukerken et al. 2012: 54; Eiseman 2019: 732.

Differential diagnosis.

Wingspan ca. 4.7-5.4 mm, forewing length 2.3-2.6 mm. Externally separated from A. oinophylla and ampelopsifoliella by the darker brassy brown head scaling, the absence of a fringe line and the overall less shining metallic pattern. Relatively similar to A. argentifera , but unlikely to be sympatric with that species. Male genitalia with distinctly bilobed tegumen, fewer pecten sensilla (8-10) and phallotrema with smaller spines only.

Host plant.

Vitaceae : Vitis arizonica , unidentified Vitis .

Leafmines.

(Figs 80-83 ) Yellowish white blotches, without any linear part; greenish black frass irregularly in centre; mine usually formed from the confluence of several mines; as many as twenty or twenty-five pupal cases may be cut from a single leaf.

Larva.

Pale yellowish, head and prothorax hardly darker, mouthparts stand out as darker brown; a row of 5-7 brown spots on abdomen visible (Fig. 80 ). Larvae gregarious.

Life history.

Larvae found between 4 June and 9 August (Arizona); in all cases the adults emerged the next spring (April to June), suggesting that the species is univoltine.

Distribution.

USA: Arizona, Texas (west), Utah.

Barcode.

BIN: BOLD:AAU3733, average distance 0.92%, max. distance 1.38% (n = 3), distance to nearest neighbour 8.83% (BOLD: AAV5059, A. hydrangaeella ).

Parasitoids.

None known.

Material.

Adults: see van Nieukerken et al. (2012).

Observations.

USA - Arizona • Cochise Co., Portal; 31.90918N, 109.25228W; 03 Aug. 2019; Laura Gaudette leg.; Vitis ; https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/30135988, https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/32296900. - Utah • Washington Co., Zion National Park; 37.23N, 112.963W; 22 Jul. 2008; Charley Eiseman & Noah Charney leg.; Vitis ; https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/44822019.

Figures

Figures 1 - 8. Aspilanta species, mounted adult moths. 1 A. oinophylla, male, USA, VT, RMNH. INS. 24378 2 A. hydrangaeella, female, USA, NC, RMNH. INS. 25191 3 A. ampelopsifoliella, male, USA, CT, RMNH. INS. 24377 4 A argentifera, female, USA, MA, RMNH. INS. 25019 5 A. voraginella, male, USA, AZ, RMNH. INS. 23918 6 A. argentifera, female holotype 7 Undescribed species in unnamed genus 14 (" Neospila "), male, Chile, Osorno, 20 km W of Entre Lagos, 17. x. 1981, leg. Nielsen & Karsholt, genitalia slide EJvN 4632, ZMUC 8 A. viticordifoliella, female, Canada, Ottawa, from Parthenocissus, CNCLEP 00122404. Scale bars: 1 mm.

Figures 12 - 13. Aspilanta species, denuded wings, showing venation. 12 A. voraginella, male, RMNH. INS. 23917 13 A. argentifera, male, RMNH. INS. 23917. Scale bars: 500 μm.

Figures 21 - 28. Aspilanta species, male genitalia. 21 A. oinophylla, phallus separate, RMNH. INS. 23920 22 A. ampelopsifoliella, phallus in situ, RMNH. INS. 24376 23 A. hydrangaeella, phallus in situ, RMNH. INS. 25192 24 A. voraginella, phallus separate, holotype, slide EJvN 3916 25 ditto, detail of transtilla 26 A. oinophylla, detail valva (flattened), RMNH. INS. 15247 27, 28 A. hydrangaeella, RMNH. INS. 25190, details of resp. tegumen and valvae. Scale bars: 100 μm.

Figures 29 - 33. Aspilanta species, female genitalia. 29 A. argentifera, RMNH. INS. 25019 30 A. oinophylla, RMNH. INS. 24211. 31 - 33 Tip of oviscapt: 31 A. argentifera, RMNH. INS. 25019 32 A. oinophylla, RMNH. INS. 24211 33 A. ampelopsifoliella, RMNH. INS. 15220. Scale bars: 200 μm (29, 30); 50 μm (31 - 33).

Figures 80 - 87. Aspilanta from SW USA, leafmines, larvae and shields on Vitis arizonica. 80, 81 A. voraginella, AZ, Cochise Co., 3. viii. 2019, photographs by Laura Gaudette 82, 83 A. voraginella, US, Zion National Park (type locality), 22. vii. 2008, lighting from resp,. above and beneath mines, photographs by Noah Charney 84 - 87 Aspilanta " Vitis. arizonica _ USA ", AZ, Cochise Co., 11. xi. 2012, CSE-L 141.