Megalota delphinosema (Walsingham) Brown, 2009

Brown, John W., 2009, The discovery of Megalota in the Neotropics, with a revision of the New World species (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae: Olethreutini), Zootaxa 2279 (1), pp. 1-50 : 20-21

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.2279.1.1
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/038E7928-FFD3-FF8B-FE1A-E75DFDA6FAD1
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Megalota delphinosema (Walsingham)
status	comb. nov.

Treatment

11. Megalota delphinosema (Walsingham) View in CoL , new combination Figs. 11 View FIGURES 1–12 , 35 View FIGURES 34–36 , 57 View FIGURES 56–59

Olethreutes delphinosema Walsingham, 1914: 250 View in CoL .

“ Olethreutes View in CoL ” delphinosema: Powell et al. 1995: 153 View in CoL .

“ Olethreutinae Unplaced Species ” delphinosema: Brown 2005: 447 View in CoL .

Diagnosis. Superficially, M. delphinosema is weakly distinguished from its congeners by the presence of an ill-defined semicircular patch of pale brown to pinkish brown just before mid-dorsum of the forewing, bordered basally by a short, dark brown, oblique narrow-triangular dash from the dorsum, and distally by the median fascia; the pale patch is frequently less defined in females. The male genitalia are very similar to those of M. ricana , M. bicolorana , M. longisetana , and M. jamaicana on the basis of the position of the patches of setae on the valva. However, M. delphinosema can be distinguished easily from those species by the phallus, which is bent at 120° at the middle where there is a single large dorsal thorn; the vesica has a single large cornutus from a distinctly ovoid plate.

Redescription. Head: Vertex copper and creamy white, frons creamy white; labial palpus creamy white on basal portion, copper brown in distal portion. Thorax: Dorsum mixed red-brown and pinkish cream-colored, metascutum with large copper tuft. Hind tibia in male with expanded gray-brown scaling concealing hairpencil. Forewing length 6.8–7.5 mm (mean = 7.3); vaguely two-toned, with paler basal 0.5 and darker distal 0.5, females sometimes less two-toned; ground color pale brown to pinkish brown in basal 0.5; short, dark brown, oblique narrow-triangular dash from dorsum ca. 0.1 distance from base; dark red-brown median fascia from mid-costa to dorsum, moderately well defined along basal margin, less defined along distal margin, usually with small pinkish cream-colored indentation in discal cell; an oblong blotch arching from mid-termen toward distal edge of median fascia. Fringe pale red-brown. Hindwing uniformly pale brown, anal margin in male with well-developed roll of sex scales. Fringe concolorous with wing. Abdomen: Brown. Male genitalia ( Fig. 35 View FIGURES 34–36 ; 9 View FIGURES 1–12 preparations examined) with tegumen subrectanglar, lateral portions slightly convex from base of valva to just before attachment of uncus; uncus broad, each lobe kidney bean-shaped, densely spined; socius ill-defined, membranous; valva somewhat parallel-sided, shallowly concave subbasally, slightly attenuate in distal 0.15; cluster of spiniform setae near venter 0.5 distance from base to apex; subbasal patch of elongate setae ill-defined, represented by few scattered setae between spiniform cluster and lower edge of basal concavity; basal process of valva relatively long, 4–5 times as long as wide, elbowed just before middle on inner side, tip with short spines. Phallus short, stout, bent at 120° at middle from which a large, erect, dorsal thorn arises; vesica with a single cornutus from an ovoid, disk-shaped plate. Female genitalia ( Fig. 57 View FIGURES 56–59 ; 9 View FIGURES 1–12 preparations examined) with papillae anales unmodified; sterigma a narrow band, with V-shaped elevation mesally, weakly attached to sclerotized perimeter of ostium; colliculum long, slightly more than 0.5 length of ductus bursae, moderately sclerotized, with pair of more strongly sclerotized, longitudinal struts; corpus bursae oblong, signum in the form of a parallel-sided, tonguelike sclerite from an irregularly semicircular, sclerotized base.

Holotype. Female, Guatemala, Solol, Volcan de Atitlan , 2500–3500', 1881, Champion ( BMNH).

Specimens Examined (60♂, 18♀). COSTA RICA: Alajuela: Finca Campana , 5 km NW Dos Rios, 750 m, 21 Mar 1985 (2♂), D. Janzen & W. Hallwachs ( INBio) . Cartago: Turrialba, 13–17 Mar (6♂), 1–6 Mar 1965 (1♂), 17–21 Feb 1965 (3♂), 22–28 Feb 1965 (2♂, 1♀), S. S. & W. D. Duckworth ( USNM) . CATIE, 3 km SE Turrialba , 600 m, 16 May 1985 (1♂), J. Powell ( EME) . Las Cruces, near San Vito , 19–20 Mar 1965 (1♂), S. S. & W. D. Duckworth ( USNM) . Guanacaste: Santa Rosa National Park , 16–18 Jul 1979 (1♀), 2–4 May 1980 (1♂), D. Janzen ( INBio) . 2 km W Santa Cecilia , 25 Dec 1984 (1♂), D. Janzen & W. Hallwachs ( INBio) . Est. Pitilla , 9 km S Santa Cecilia, 700 m, 4–13 Dec 1991 (1♂), Jun 1991 (1♂), Oct 1994 (1♀), C. Moraga ( INBio) . Finca Pasmompa, Est. Pitilla , 5 km SW Santa Cecilia, Dec 1990 (1♂), P. Rios & C. Moraga ( INBio) . Heredia: Est. Biologica La Selva , 50–150 m, 10°26'N, 84°01W, 16 Apr 1996 (1♂), 14 Apr 1998 (1♂), 24 Feb 1999 (1♂), 13 Apr 1999 (1♂), 22 Jul 1998 (1♂), 22–29 Jan 2000 (1♂, 1♀), INBio-OET-ALAS ( INBio) GoogleMaps , 24–31 Mar 2002 (1♂), A. Kawahara ( INBio) , 18 Feb 2003 (1♂), 7 Mar 2006 (1♂), D. Wagner ( INBio) . 10 km SE La Virgen , 10°20'N, 84°05'W, 450–550 m, 12 Feb 2003 (1♂), 22 Feb 2003 (1♂), 17–23 Mar 2003 (3♂), 11 Apr 2003 (1♂), INBio-OET-ALAS transect (all INBio) GoogleMaps . Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui, Finca La Selva ( OTS) , 6–9 Mar 1985 (1♂), D. H. Janzen & W. Hallwachs ( INBio) . Limón: Pococi, Finca INBio, 300 m, 26–29 Sep 2000 (1♂), E. Phillips ( INBio) . Puntarenas: Monteverde , 1400 m, 12 Jun 1988 (1♀), J. Brown & J. Powell ( EME) . VENEZUELA: Aragua: Rancho Grande , 1100 m, 16–23 Oct 1966 (17♂, 9♀), 1– 5 Nov 1966 (3♂), 24–31 Oct 1966 (1♂, 1♀), 11–15 Jan 1966 (1♂, 2♀), S. S. & W. D. Duckworth ( USNM) . Miranda, P.N. Guatopo, 24 km N Altagra , 640 m, 5–9 May 1975 (1♀), J. Salcedo & R. E. Dietz ( USNM) .

Distribution and Biology. Megalota delphinosema is recorded from Guatemala to Venezuela, and from sea level to about 1100 m (Rancho Grande). Although its distribution is relatively broad compared to that documented for other New World congeners, many Costa Rican tortricids exhibit similar patterns of distribution, ranging from Guatemala to Venezuela.