Thalpomena dernensis ( Werner, 1908 )

Dey, Lara-Sophie, Hochkirch, Axel, Moussi, Abdelhamid, Seidel, Matthias & Husemann, Martin, 2022, Taxonomic review of the genus Thalpomena Saussure, 1884 with new synonyms, Zootaxa 5100 (1), pp. 129-136 : 133

Thalpomena dernensis ( Werner, 1908) —valid species

Sphingonotus dernensis Werner, 1908: 715 [original combination]

Thalpomena dernensis: Salfi, 1927: 247 [new combination]

Thalpomena libyana Ramme, 1951: 403 [synonym; in Massa, 1998: 302]

Remarks: This species is the only one found in Libya and currently can be considered endemic to the country. A morphometric analyses showed no clear separation of the species towards the other members of the genus (for details see Dey et al. accepted). Morphologically the species is somehow similar to the species from the Atlas Mountains, but differs in the strong pubescence of the body, the comparably slender hind femora and the orangered base of the hind wings, as well as the hind wing band not reaching the upper margins of the wing ( Figure 2 D ). Interestingly, molecular data of Thalpomena dernensis show a clear clustering with Thalpomena viridipennis ( Dey et al., 2022) . Further sampling is needed to clarify the status of the species.

Type locality: Libya, Derna .

Type depository: T. dernensis : according to OSF the type depository is BMNH London, but the authors were not able to find the type material; T. libyana : Holotype, male, MfN ; Paratype, female, MfN .

Distribution: Libyan Highlands ( Libya).

Figures

FIGURE 2: Variation in wing morphology of male and female individuals of the valid members of the genus Thalpomena: A—Thalpomena algeriana; B—Thalpomena azureipennis; C—Thalpomena coerulescens; D—Thalpomena dernensis and E—Thalpomena viridipennis.