Rhotana unca Zelazny, 2011

Zelazny, B. & Webb, M. D., 2011, 3071, Zootaxa 3071, pp. 1-307 : 94-95

Rhotana unca Zelazny , sp. nov.

( Fig. 236)

Description. Forewings 1.8 times longer than wide, length: male 4.5–5.9 mm (mean = 5.1, n= 3), female about 5.0 mm. Colour stramineous to light brown, fore and middle tibiae darker. Forewings with six large and two small round marks near hind margin, arranged in pairs and separated by a red band and some white spots; area in front of marks and a central section of Ms2 covered with white powder; rest of wing glassy and yellow-brown; hyaline areas between claval vein and first subcostal cell, in second subcostal cell, and before and after anterior apical cross-veins; last subcostal sector, middle sections of Ms1a (except for one paratype) and Ms2 red and narrowly lined with red; 2nd subcostal sector, parts of Sc and R, some anterior apical crossveins and parts of costal and apical margins tinted with red. Hindwings colourless, very faintly infuscated near apical margin. Facial carinae contiguous up to lower level of eyes; rostrum surpassing hind coxae; subantennal processes and lateral carinae of pronotum well developed. Forewings with costal margin and Sc nearly straight; Sc+R fork just before middle of wing; Ms1 branched near apex of basal median cell, both branches nearly parallel, apical section of Ms1b connected by a short cross-vein to Cu1, a triangle at base of Ms1. Male genitalia with pygofer narrow. Apical part of aedeagus elongated, on the dorsal side with a central depression, a small hook-like process at the tip, directed to the left.

Etymology. The species name is a Latin adjective (uncus, -a, -um = hook-like).

Type material. Holotype ♂ (forewing 4.5 mm), PAPUA NEW GUINEA; labels: 1) NEW GUINEA: NE/ Kar Kar I. / 0–100m. VIII. 68 2) N.L.H. Krauss / BISHOP MUSEUM ( BPBM) . Paratypes. PAPUA NEW GUINEA: PAPUA, NE: Wau Mt. , Missim, 1300–1800 m, 9. V.1967, 1 ♂ (fw. 5.9), J.L. Gressitt; Sepik, Angoram, 20–30m, 16.VIII.1969, 1 ♂ (fw. 4.8), J.L. Gressitt; Kassam, 1350m, 48 km E. of Kainantu , 7.XI.1959, 1 ♂ , T. C. Maa; Busu R., E. of Lae , 100 m, 14.IX.1955, 1 ♀ (fw. 5.0), J.L. Gressitt (all BPBM).

Distribution. New Guinea (Papua).

Diagnosis. Rhotana unca is characterized by the black marks on the forewings being separated by mediumwide red bands, by the red middle of Ms2, and by the male aedeagus bearing a small terminal hook.