Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev

Stonis, Jonas R., Diškus, Arūnas, Rocienė, Agnė, Sruoga, Virginijus & Davis, Donald R., 2014, New and little known Coptotriche and Tischeria species (Lepidoptera: Tischeriidae) from Primorskiy Kray, Russian Far East, Zootaxa 3884 (2), pp. 141-155 : 151-153

Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev

( Figs 3, 4 , 36–47 )

Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev, 1986: 7 , 8.

Material examined. 1♂ Neotype, designated here, RUSSIAN FAR EAST, Primorskiy Kray (Primorskiy Territory), 20 km E Ussuriysk, Gornotayezhnoe, Biological Station, 43º41'38"N, 132 º09'07"E, mining larvae on Quercus mongolica Fisch. ex Turcz. , 26.vii.2011, ex pupa 30.vii.–02.viii.2011, field card no. AG7002, leg. A. Rocienė, genitalia slide no. AD580 ( ZIN); 1♀, same label data as the neotype, genitalia slide no. AD587 ( ZIN).

Diagnosis. The scale colour of Tischeria sichotensis has little or no diagnostic value. However, from all known Tischeria possessing an undivided valva, T. sichotensis differs in the combination of the broadly bifurcate phallus, the large triangular plate of the vinculum and the simple juxta comprising a pair of curved processes; from the most similar and probably closely related T. dodonaea Stainton , it differs in the broad vinculum and distally broad (broadly bifurcate) phallus.

Male ( Figs 36, 37 ). Forewing length: about 3.5 mm. Wingspan: about 7.5 mm. Head: palpi and face cream to yellowish cream; frontal tuft and collar comprised of cream to yellowish cream, slender, lamellar scales; antenna with long piliform sensillae, cream on upper side and greyish brown on underside, slightly shorter than half of forewing. Thorax yellowish cream; tegulae ochreous cream, sometimes with a few brownish scales. Forewing ochreous cream with many sparsely distributed brownish to brown scales along costa and in the apical third of forewing; some brown scales are cream-tipped. Underside of forewing uniformly greyish brown. Cilia ochreous cream. Hindwing narrow, greyish cream, without androconia; its cilia grey-cream. Legs ochreous cream, with greyish brown darkening on upper side (except hindlegs). Abdomen pale brownish to greyish brown on upper side and underside.

Female. Antenna half the length of forewing, whitish cream or greyish cream on upper side and underside, without long sensillae. Otherwise as in male.

Male genitalia ( Figs 38–41 ). Capsule 560 µm. Lateral lobes of uncus very large: as broad as valva and half the length of valva ( Fig. 38 ). Socii very large, membranous, densely covered with fine spines ( Fig. 39 ). Tegumen very broad but moderately short (shorter than length of uncus or vinculum). Valva 380 µm long, very narrow, without dorsal process; valva densely covered with short chaetae apically and on inner margin; sublateral process of valva very short; transtilla (transverse bar) absent, replaced with unusually reinforced, strongly chitinized and elaborate anterior margin of tegumen, which we refer to here as the pseudotranstilla ( Fig. 39 ). Ventral plate of vinculum large (265 µm broad, 175 µm long), almost triangular shaped but rounded anteriorly ( Fig. 38 ). Juxta comprising two 120 µm long bent lateral elements connected with membranous articulation ( Fig. 40 , right side/element). Phallus 310 µm long, strongly broadening (up to 110 µm in width) on caudal half, apically bifid, with very slender and inwardly bent arms; connected with juxta by membranous articulation and forming a complex structure ( Fig. 41 ).

Female genitalia ( Figs 42, 43 ) 1280 µm long. Antrum short, with two pointed, 125 µm long lateral lobes anteriorly ( Fig. 43 ). Ductus spermathecae membranous (chitinized coils either absent or probably lost in fig. 42). Corpus bursae about 1100 µm long, narrow, with short spine-like pectinations in caudal part of bursa.

Bionomics. Host-plant: Quercus mongolica Fisch. ex Turcz. (section Quercus , Fagaceae ). Larvae produce whitish, irregular blotch leaf-mines ( Figs 3, 4 ) with a round, bulging central spot (a firm, silk-lined nidus inside of the mine in which larva pupate); the leaf-mine contains no frass. The material obtained by V. P. Ermolaev in 1977 was reared in laboratory conditions during mid-winter ( Ermolaev 1986), then adults were attracted to a light trap in July; larvae mine leaves from July (our rearing data) to autumn ( Ermolaev 1986).

Distribution ( Fig. 45 ). Tischeria sichotensis occurs in deciduous, broadleaf ( Figs 46, 47 ) or mixed forest of the Primorskiy Kray (= Primorskiy Territory) and Khabarovskiy Kray (= Khabarovskiy Territory), along the Amur and Ussuri rivers (Russian Far East) at altitudes of 50– 300 m.

Remarks. The type series of Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev , comprising two male specimens (the holotype from Sarapul’skoe, Khabarovskiy Kray, and the paratype from Gornotayezhnoe, Primorskiy Kray) has been missing for almost the past three decades (S.V. Baryshnikova, S.Yu. Sinev, A.L. Lvovsky, V.G. Mironov, pers. comm.). Despite the fact that the type-series of T. sichotensis was described and illustrated by the author of the species ( Ermolaev 1986), we feel that it necessary to designate a neotype for two reasons: 1) the primary description and original drawings are not very precise or exhaustive so that there may be a problem with the identification of this species; 2) currently we expect ongoing investigations of the East Asiatic fauna of Tischeriidae to increase significantly in a relatively near future, particularly in China (Xiaohua Dai, pers. comm.), and prefer to avoid possible misidentifications, especially in the case of new species discoveries or descriptions from China or adjacent territories. Therefore, after discussions and consultations with Russian specialists from the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, we designated a neotype for T. sichotensis . The neotype specimen was collected precisely at the same locality as the missing paratype (Gornotayezhnoe). It also seems to match the drawing of the missing holotype published in the original description of the species ( Ermolaev 1986: fig. 2).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 4. Tischeriidae leaf-mines on Quercus. 1, 2, European Tischeria decidua decidua Wocke, Karadag Nature Reserve, the Crimea, Ukraine; 3, 4, East Asiatic Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev, Gornotyaezhnoe, Primorskiy Kray (= Primorskiy Territory), Russian Far East.

FIGURES 36 – 41. Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev. 36, male adult, dorsal view; 37, same, lateral view. Scale bar 1 mm; 38, male genitalia, capsule, genitalia slide no. AD 580 (ZIN); 39, same, focused to socii and pseudotranstilla. Scale bar 100 µm; 40, right element of juxta, genitalia slide no. AD 580 (ZIN) Scale bar 50 µm; 41, same, phallus with left element of juxta, genitalia slide no. AD 582 (ZIN). Scale bar 100 µm.

FIGURES 42, 43. Female genitalia of Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev, genitalia slide no. AD 587 (ZIN). 42, general view; 42, antrum and apophyses. Scale bar 100 µm.

FIGURES 44 – 47. Maps and habitat. 44, map of the region (courtesy of T. Patterson, USA), showing the collecting locality (red dot) in Primorskiy Kray (= Primorskiy Territory) in August 2011 (see Methods and material); 45, currently known distribution of Tischeria sichotensis Ermolaev (red dots); 46, 47, habitat of Coptotriche minuta Diškus & Stonis, sp. nov., Tischeria unca Diškus & Stonis, sp. nov., T. decidua siorkionla Kozlov and T. sichotensis Ermolaev—dense deciduous, predominantly broadleaf forest near Gornotayezhnoe Biological Station, 20 km E Ussuriysk, Primorskiy Kray (Primorskiy Territory, Russian Far East).