Cameraria varii De Prins, 2012

Prins, Jurate De & Kawahara, Akito Y., 2012, Systematics, revisionary taxonomy, and biodiversity of Afrotropical Lithocolletinae (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), Zootaxa 3594 (1), pp. 1-283 : 46-48

8. Cameraria varii De Prins , new species

( Figs 31, 32 , 125 , 157–161 , 300, 301 , 362 )

Diagnosis. The forewing pattern of C. varii with interchanging three white/black oblique fasciae is a fairly common occurrence within Cameraria , it resembles that of C. landryi , C. fara and the oriental species C. pongamiae Kumata, 1993 , C. virgulata Kumata, 1993 , C. magnisignata Kumata, 1993 , C. borneensis Kumata, 1993 , and C. milletiae Kumata, 1993 . Male genitalia also fall into the general pattern of Afrotropical and oriental Cameraria , but the diagnostic characters such as narrow spiculose valva, vinculum with short round lateroproximal appendages, and aedoeagus bearing a hook on vesica easily separates C. varii from the other Cameraria species. Female genitalia retain only a pair of apophyses, and bear a highly specific and unique antrum as described below. The combination of those characters facilitates to easily distinguish this species from the other Afrotropical Cameraria .

Holotype: ♂, [ South Africa]: [1] ‘ Pretoria / 30.x.1968 / L. Vári’; [2] ‘Gen. Prep. 3698♂ / De Prins’; [3] ‘MRAC/KMMA / 00400’, specimen ID: [4] ‘ RMCA ENT 000004276 ’; [5] ‘Holotype ♂ / Cameraria / varii / De Prins, 2012 ’, in RMCA.

Paratypes: 1♂, 3♀, [South Africa]: Pretoria, 7.xi.1968, leg. L. Vári, gen. prep. De Prins 3699♀ (MRAC/ KMMA 00401), 1♀ specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000004277, in RMCA; 1♂, 2♀ gen. prep. De Prins 3453♀, 3454♂, 3510♀, in TMSA.

Description. Adult ( Figs 31, 32 , 125 ). Forewing length: 2.5 mm (♂ holotype), 2.3 mm (♀ paratype).

Head: Vertex tufted with whitish scales with a light suffusion of a few dark brown and light ochreous scales (dark brown laterally and ochreous medially); several dirty white with dark brown-tipped piliform scales present antero-laterally between antennae, projecting anteriorly, and much shorter pure white piliform scales on occiput projecting posteriorly; a bunch of short light ochreous with golden shine and small dark brown tips piliform scales on occiput, behind eyes; frons smooth, shiny white with a slight yellow shading between antennas. Maxillary palpus small, porrect, white. Labial palpus white, ca. as long as diameter of compound eye, drooping, directed downwards, with a row of dark brown scales along all palpomeres on lateral exterior margin. Haustellum pale beige. Antenna slightly shorter than forewing (ca. 2.4 mm in holotype), flagellomeres mainly pale fuscous at apical 3/4 and light ochreous at basal 1/4, attaining a slightly ringed general view; ventrally flagellomeres pale ochreous; scape ground colour ochreous with 4–5 dark brown tipped scales infused randomly and white patches at apical anterior and apical posterior margins, scape white ventrally with 8–10 white pecten ca. half as long diameter of compound eye; pedicel white with blackish basal band dorsally.

Thorax: White anteriorly, light ochreous medially and posteriorly and white at posterior lateral sector; with three forked dark brown lines, consisting of one row of dark brown round scales, running radially from anterior margin; tegulae ochreous with dark brown tipped scales infused randomly and whitish pale ochreous lateral apical margins. Forewing ground colour ochreous; white and blackish brown markings gently interchanging as shorter/longer black/white fasciae/strigulae; first costal strigula close to base of forewing, small consisting of 15–20 blackish scales, having a shape of irregular patch; first dorsal strigula close to base of forewing, long, exceeding middle of forewing, narrow, curved irregularly as a slender line consisting of mixture of blackish and white round scales; first fascia interrupted at subcosta, shaped at costal margin as a white short rod edged on both sides by black scales, shaped as a broad white patch separated by a row of black scales in middle, and sharply curved, narrowed toward apex at midline of forewing, densely edged by conglomeration of black scales apically; second fascia white, narrow, gently curved at midline of forewing, at dorsal part to subcosta edged apically by broad and irregular long band irrorated with blackish brown scales, at subcosta edging band forks into two: one branch crossing white fascia and edging costal part of fascia basally, other branch extending towards apex and fusing with costal patch edging second costal strigula apically; second costal strigula at 3/4, a small semi-round white patch edged by one row of blackish scales basally and by elongate large blackish brown patch apically; third fascia is oblique, narrow white band, running across forewing from 3/4 at dorsal margin to subapex at costal margin, densely edged with several rows of blackish scales apically; dark brown tiped scales marking edge of termen and tornus; fringeline at tornus with blackish-tipped scales; fringe short whitish along tornus, long whitish with slight golen shine along dorsal margin. Hindwings whitish with silver shine, with long whitish pale grey fringe slightly darker shaded than hindwing. Fore femur light fuscous beige dorsally with dirty white subbasal and subapical patches ventrally, fore tibia beige fuscous with an irroration of dark brown scales and with dark brown subapex and white apex, tarsomere I dirty white at basal half and blackish brown at apical half; tarsomere II blackish brown at basal half and dirty white at apical half, tarsomere III dirty white with blackish brown apex, tarsomere IV dark fuscous, tarsomere V light fuscous; mid-femur dirty white with a few small dark brown fuscous patches, mid-tibia dirty white with three transverse dark brown bands encircling midtibia, basal band narrow, median and apical bands broad, tibial spurs white with dark brown subapices, tarsomere I white with dark brown median patch and apex, tarsomere II white with dark brown base and brown apex, tarsomere III dark brown, tarsomeres IV–V dirty white with light ochreous shade; hind femur dirty white irrorated with a few dark brown scales, hind tibia white with brown basal patch irrorated with dark brown scales and large dark ochreous patch irrorated with dark brown tipped scales extending from middle of tibia to apex, tibial spurs white with dark brown median patches, hind tarsus white with a blackish small spot basally and three blackish rings of median width, tarsomere I white with small median and large apical dark brown patches, tarsomeres II–III white with dark brown apices, tarsomeres IV–V white.

Abdomen: Dark grey dorsally, except genital terga which are lighter and have silvery shine. Ground colour of sterna exept terminal ones are lighter of terga but sterna are densely irrorated with dark brow scales forming large median and subanterior patches. Posterior margin of sterna is without dark brown irroration. Sternum VIII of male middle size broad, trapezoid shaped.

Male genitalia ( Figs 157–161 ). Tegumen very long, ca. 770 µm, as long as valva, narrow, with broad sclerotized arms having strongly sclerotized lateral margins which join transversally at basal 1/3 of tegumen forming a large cavity; from midden to apex tegumen is shaped as conus with slightly thicker lateral folds; second transversal junction at apical 1/3 of tegumen without forming a cavity but with two lateral small folds; apical 1/3 of tegumen is flexible, soft, forming several lateral folds, apex of tegumen setose bearing a sector of short stiff microtrichiae inserted in round deep tubercules (visible at 400× enlargement) and a pair of larger stiff short (could be broken in holotype) setae at latero-apical sector of tegumen (clearly visible at 100–200× enlargement). Valvae symmetrical, long, ca. 750 µm; narrow, almost straight, slightly narrowed medially with cucullus area gently enlarged and terminating with rounded apex; sharp, pointed, short, thick microspinules seldom distributed on apical and median surface to subbase mostly along ventral margin; narrow suture extending longitudinally along median surface of valva. Vinculum strongly sclerotized, rather broad, H-shaped, with two lateroapical broad and short appendages rounded distally, projecting cephalad; saccus strongly sclerotized long, ca. 400 µm, narrow to distal sector, caudally bulbous. Transtilla sclerotized, rather narrow, flexible, somewhat trapezoidal-rounded. Aedoeagus long, slightly shorter than valva, ca. 615 µm, broad at coecum, tapering towards vesica; vesica with two soft overlapping folds, longer 90 µm at basal part of vesica and shorter 55 µm towards apex; sharp, strongly sclerotized, semicircal hook on apex of vesica.

Female genitalia ( Figs 300, 301 ). Papillae anales, compressed with a setose caudal end; basal part densely setose by disorderly distributed setae. Posterior apophyses long (ca. 330 µm), slender, straight, slightly tapering at apices, reaching anterior margin of segment VII, apices blunt. Anterior apophyses not perceptable. Segment VII more or less rectangular-shaped with strongly sclerotized ring encircling anterior margin. Ostium bursae located at posterior margin of segment VII, antrum broad and long, shaped as elongate sac, slightly shorter than length of segment VII, well sclerotized, especially anterior part of antrum which is densely covered with numerous tiny pectinate microspicules. Ductus bursae long, weakly sclerotized (abrupted in paratype preparation) narrow along most of length but enlarging anteriorly at junction with corpus bursae; crossed by sclerotized triangular plate near anterior margin of antrum. Corpus bursae nearly round, medium sized, ca. 220 × 175 µm, with a smooth rounded signum ca. 77 µm in diameter with more heavily sclerotized posterior margin. Bulla spermathecae oval, rather large, ca. 100 µm, located in segment VI, ductus spermathecae ca. 390 µm long formed of 43 coils of almost equal diameter, terminating in subanterior sector of segment VII; anterior part of ductus spermathecae broad uncoiled, as broad as half of diameter of bulla spermathecae.

Etymology. The specific name honours the late Dr. Lajos Vári, an outstanding lepidopterist and a prominent figure of African Gracillariidae at the Transvaal Museum, Pretoria who collected and kindly donated the type series to the first author indicating the novelty of this species.

Variation. A slight variation in intensity of blackish scales on the markings of forewing was observed in type series. Forewing along termen of female is slightly more irrorated with blackish scales than forwing along termen of male.

Habitat. Urban area of Pretoria city (South Africa).

Host plant(s). Unknown.

Flight period. Adults have been collected from late October to early November.

Distribution ( Fig. 362 ). Currently known only from the type locality in South Africa.

Figures

FIGURES 27–32. Adults. Scale bar 1 mm. 27, Cameraria hexalobina, ♀, DRC, Bas-Congo, Luki-Mayumbe NR, 05.iv.2006, leg. J. De Prins, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000003295. 28, Cameraria fara, holotype ♀, Cameroon, Faro riverside, 27.xi.2003, leg. J. De Prins, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000003284. 29, Cameraria landryi, holotype ♂, DRC, Bas-Congo, Luki-Mayumbe NR, 23.v.2007, leg. J. & W. De Prins, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000004448. 30, Cameraria landryi, paratype ♂, DRC, Bas- Congo, Luki-Mayumbe NR, 16.v.2007, leg. J. & W. De Prins, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000004450. 31, Cameraria varii, holotype ♂, South Africa, Pretoria, 30.x.1968, leg. L. Vári, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000004276. 32, Cameraria varii, paratype ♀, South Africa, Pretoria, 07.xi.1968, leg. L. Vári, specimen ID: RMCA ENT 000004277.

FIGURES 123–131. Diagnostic characters in hind legs between congeneric Afrotropical Lithocolletinae species. 123, Cameraria fara, hind tarsus white with a brownish spot subbasally and two blackish rings: narrow medially and broad subapically, tarsomere V white. 124, Cameraria landryi, hind tarsus white with two blackish small spots basally and two blackish rings: narrow medially and broad subapically, tarsomere V white with dark fuscous tip. 125, Cameraria varii, hind tarsus white with a blackish small spot basally and three blackish rings of median width, tarsomere V white. 126, Phyllonorycter encaeria, hind tarsomeres I–III with faint fuscous subapical patches. 127, Phyllonorycter lantanae, hind tarsomere I with subbasal and subapical dark fuscous patches, tarsomere II with dark fuscous apical half, tarsomere III with a dark fuscous basal half. 128, Phyllonorycter anchistea, hind tarsomere I dotted. 129, Phyllonorycter melanosparta, hind tarsomere I not dotted. 130, Phyllonorycter hibiscina, hind tarsomere I white with a dark fuscous apex. 131, Phyllonorycter pavoniae, hind tarsomere I with a faint subapical ochreous patch.

FIGURES 157–161. Male genitalia. Scale bar 100 µm. 157–161, Cameraria varii. 157–159, holotype, genitalia prep. MRAC/ KMMA 00400, in RMCA. 157, ventral view. 158, sternum VIII. 159, aedoeagus. 160–161, paratype, genitalia prep. De Prins 3494. 160, valva. 161, aedoeagus.

FIGURES 300–302. Female genitalia. Scale bar 200 µm. 300–301, Cameraria varii, paratype, genitalia prep. De Prins 3453, in TMSA. 300, segments VII–X, ventral view. 301, corpus bursae. 302, Cameraria perodeaui, holotype, genitalia prep. MRAC/ KMMA 00451, in RMCA.

FIGURES 356–366. Distribution of Afrotropical Lithocolletinae species. 356, Hyloconis luki. 357, Neolithocolletis mayumbe. 358, Neolithocolletis nsengai. 359, Cameraria hexalobina. 360, Cameraria fara. 361, Cameraria landryi. 362, Cameraria varii. 363, Cameraria perodeaui. 364, Cameraria sokoke. 365, Cameraria zaira. 366, Cameraria torridella.