Coelopoeta aprica Kaila, 2024

Kaila, Lauri, 2024, A review of Coelopoetinae (Lepidoptera, Gelechioidea, Pterolonchidae), a moth subfamily confined to western North America, with descriptions of seven new species, Zootaxa 5458 (3), pp. 361-384 : 370-371

Coelopoeta aprica Kaila , sp. nov.

Figs. 11, 12 , 30 , 40

Holotype ♂: U.S.A., California, San Diego Co., Laguna Mts., 1800 m, Pinus / Quercus / meadow, 18.vii.1998, black light, L. Kaila & S. Timonen leg.; L. Kaila prep. 6366; DNA voucher FinBol 2019 http://id.luomus.fi/KZ.7710) ( MZH) . Paratypes: 3 ♀ with the same collecting data as in the holotype, except collecting dates 15.–18.vii.1998; females L. Kaila prep. 6025, 6029 (MZH); U.S.A. California, Kern Co., 5 km SW Tehachapi, 1900 m, Tehachapi Mountain Park, 11.vi.1997 1 ♂ 1 ♀ H. van der Wolf leg. Male genitalia preserved in glycerol vial on the pin, female genitalia mounted on slide, L. Kaila prep. 6161 (MZH).

Diagnosis. Forewings of C. aprica are silky white, sparsely scattered with yellowish ochre scales especially in the distal part and forming a yellowish patch in the middle of wing at costal side of fold. Unlike other species apart from C. alboflava the flagellum is only weakly annulated with pale grey scales. In the male the fringe scales at the apex of the forewing are narrowly grey. The male genitalia of C. aprica are readily distinguishable from other Coelopoeta species by the significantly longer phallus and saccus (see the key). The female genitalia of C. aprica are distinguishable from other Coelopoeta species by the colliculum being longer in relation to antrum than in other species except C. phaceliae , in which the ratio is similar. However, in C. phaceliae ostium + antrum is markedly shorter than in C. aprica . In C. aprica there are distinctive setose lobes ventrolaterally in sternum 8. The known males of C. aprica are similarly coloured as females, thus much paler and shinier than the males of C. phaceliae .

Description. Forewing length 5 – 6.5 mm. Labial palpus slightly upcurved, length half the diameter of head; labial palpus, head, neck tuft, tegula, thorax, scape of antenna and pecten white. Flagellum of male slightly serrate, off-white, weakly annulated by pale grey rings; female antenna not serrate, unicolourous off-white. Fore- and midleg inwardly off-white, outwardly grey, tarsal articles distally narrowly white; hindleg white. Forewing silky white, sparsely scattered with yellowish ochre scales especially in distal part of wing, and forming patch in the middle of wing length at costal side of fold; fringe white, in males apically narrowly grey. Hindwing grey with concolorous fringe. Underside of forewing grey to dark grey, distally sometimes with irregular white scales, fringe white; hindwing grey, fringe varying from white to pale grey.

Male genitalia. Uncus undivided, hook-shaped, evenly tapered and bent ventrad, as long as tegumen. Gnathos as long as uncus, evenly tapered. Tegumen in lateral view not as high as width of valva. Valva nearly parallel-sided, half as wide as long, in ventral view weakly bent inwardly in distal third, termen not swollen. Juxta distally slightly concave, broadest in the middle, evenly tapered to convex anterior margin. Saccus slightly bent dorsad, almost 5 x as long as its width at its narrowest point in middle, apex broadly rounded. Phallus 1.7 times as long as valva, basal opening dorsally directed, without carina near apex.

Female genitalia. Apophyses slender, apophysis anterioris as long as apophysis posterioris; as long as papilla analis + sternum 8. Sternum 8 ventrolaterally with setose areas formed as lobes; plate dorsad of ostium bursae square; ostium bursae about 1/3 as wide as wide as sternum 8, ventral margin concave, antrum funnel-shaped, laterally distinctly sclerotized, abruptly separated from elongate, sclerotized and granulose colliculum, length of which is 1.5 x that of antrum, ductus bursae otherwise almost nonexistent, abruptly joining corpus bursae. Ductus seminalis incepted at posterior margin of corpus bursae. Corpus bursae membranous, without internal spines, with one distinct and another very faint small, round and dentate signa.

Variation. Not known.

Remarks. The barcode is within the small range of variation seen in the morphologically distinct C. glutinosi , suggesting recent speciation.

Figures

FIGURES 11–16. Habitus of Coelopoeta spp. All images at the same scale as the first image. Figure 11: C. aprica sp. nov, ♂, holotype; Figure 12: C. aprica sp. nov., ♀, paratype, California, San Diego County; Figure 13: C. phaceliae Kaila, ♂, California, Plumas County; Figure 14: C. phaceliae, ♂, California, Solano County; Figure 15: C. phaceliae, ♂, paratype, California, San Mateo County; Figure 16: C. phaceliae, ♂, paratype, California, Siskiyou County.

FIGURES 29–38. Male genitalia of Coelopoeta spp. Above lateral view with juxta and one valva excluded; below ventral view, with phallus excluded. Figure 29. C. glutinosi Walsingham. Figure 30: C. aprica sp. nov., holotype; Figure 31: C. phaceliae Kaila, California, Nevada Co.; Figure 32: C. aurora sp. nov., holotype; Figure 33: C. fulminea sp. nov., holotype; Figure 34: C. alboflava sp. nov., holotype; Figure 35: C. sariae sp. nov., holotype; Figure 36: C. maiadella sp. nov., holotype; Figure 37: C. fissurina sp. nov., holotype; 38: C. valalbui sp. nov., holotype.

FIGURES 39–42. Female genitalia of Coelopoeta spp., in ventral view. Figure 39: C. glutinosi Walsingham, Los Angeles County, L. Kaila prep. 6027; Figure 40: C. aprica sp. nov., paratype, California, San Diego County, L. Kaila prep. 6029; Figure 41: C. phaceliae Kaila, paratype, California, San Mateo County, L. Kaila prep. 6026; Figure 42: C. aurora sp. nov., paratype, Colorado, Gilpin County, L. Kaila prep. 6734.