Nymphicula tariensis, Agassiz, David, 2014

Agassiz, David, 2014, A preliminary study of the genus Nymphicula Snellen from Australia, New Guinea and the south Pacific (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea: Crambidae: Acentropinae), Zootaxa 3774 (5), pp. 401-429 : 412-413

Nymphicula tariensis sp. n.

Description of imago (fig. 19). Wingspan 12–13mm. Head ochreous white; labial palpus terminal segment longer than second, ochreous mixed fuscous; second segment fuscous; antenna pale fuscous. Thorax pale straw.

Forewing base fuscous mixed ochreous; subbasal fascia broad, white, suffused ochreous towards outer edge; antemedian fascia narrow, irregular, brown outwardly edged whitish; median zone fairly evenly scaled dark brown, clearly bounded by a curved line, some dark brown scaling between this and costa; first strigula white, indistinct; second strigula clearly edged fuscous, especially on outside, lower third leaden; terminal area yellow; curved tornal spot leaden, narrowly separated from median zone; terminal line broken, fuscous cilia similarly interrupted, white above tornus.

Hindwing base fuscous; subbasal fascia broad, white; antemedian fascia fuscous joining silver metallic spot on dorsum and enclosing whitish discal spot; median zone with dark brown scales fairly evenly spread but tending to be arranged in radial streaks; subterminal line pale fuscous, often obsolete in terminal half of wing; five eye-spots joined by shining grey studs around which some yellow suffusion; terminal cilia fuscous. Abdomen and legs pale straw; forelegs with tibia and first tarsus fuscous above, tarsi of ♂ thickened with dense scales.

Tympanal organs (fig. 45): Venulae secundae evenly curved, divergent; venula media very short; tympanus with lobe extended anteriorly.

Male genitalia (fig. 66): Abdomen with hair pencils just over half length of abdomen. Valva simple, slender, parallel sided, length 5x width; gnathos les than half uncus.

Female genitalia (fig. 86): ductus bursae wide, half length of corpus bursae; corpus long and slender with signa scarcely distinguishable.

Diagnosis. Very similar to N. nigristrtata (Hampson) from which it differs by the presence of a partial submarginal line in the hindwing, also by the interrupted terminal line of the forewing which makes the terminal cilia appear almost chequered.

Derivation. from the type locality Tari.

Material examined. Holotype ♀ Papua New Guinea | Southern Highlands | Tari 5300ft | 17.i.1986 | D.J.L. Agassiz

& 9 paratypes, same locality including BMNH Pyralidae slides 23113♂, 23114 & 23115♀ and 23116♂.

Distribution. Known only from the type locality.