Nymphicula fionae, 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 : 413-414

Nymphicula fionae sp. n.

Description of imago (fig. 21). Wingspan 12.5mm. Head brownish ochreous; labial palpus terminal segment ochreous, longer than second; second segment clothed with brown scales; antenna fulvous; thorax mixed brown and ochreous.

Forewing base brown; costa brown from base to first strigula; antemedian fascia straw, edged dark brown; median zone evenly suffused brown; first strigula yellowish near costa, inwardly white; second strigula white, yellowish on costa, lower third leaden; terminal area straw, deep orange between strigulae; tornal spot silver-grey, crescent-shaped; terminal cilia with fuscous scales, white above tornus.

Hindwing base brown; subbasal fascia white; tornal spot long, silver-grey, followed by deep orange streak from dorsum halfway across wing; a further elongate silver-grey spot between this streak and eye-spot 1; antemedian fascia brown enclosing yellow lunule; median zone thickly scaled dark brown with strong straight dorsal edge; a broad fuscous submarginal line; five eye-spots separated by silver-grey spots, surrounded by an area of pale straw. Legs ochreous.

Tympanal organs (fig. 47): venulae secundae almost parallel, curved outwards at each end; venula media about half length of venulae secundae.

Male genitalia: unknown.

Female genitalia (fig. 89): ostial chamber very narrow, ductus bursae half length of corpus bursae, narrow; corpus bursae "sock"-shaped, signum a broad spinose patch extending from anterior end along two-thirds length of corpus bursae.

Material examined. Holotype ♀ Mt Rossel, 2100ft.| Rossel Isl.| Nov. 1915 | W.F. Eichhorn. BMNH Pyralidae slide No. 17826.

Diagnosis. Distinguished by the S-shaped outer margin of the medial area of the forewing, together with the dark leaden colour of the dense scaling and subterminal line of the hindwing.

Derivation. after my former wife Fiona who endured my studies.

Distribution. Mt. Rossel, Rossel Is.

Nymphicula insulalis sp. n.

Description of imago (fig. 22). Wingspan 15mm. Head whitish; labial palpus whitish, terminal segment longer than second; second with long brownish scales; antennae, thorax and abdomen whitish mixed pale brown.

Forewing with costa brown to first strigula; base to antemedian fascia mixed brownish and whitish; median zone thinly scaled brown; first strigula yellowish in costal third, white dorsally; second strigula whitish costally, leaden grey beneath; terminal area yellowish, heavily suffused brown; tornal spot leaden, connected to brown marking bordering median zone.

Hindwing base brown; subbasal fascia white, outwardly yellow toward dorsum; small silver grey tornal spot; antemedian fascia brown, irregular; lunule whitish; median zone irregularly scaled dark brown, clearly edged dorsally; a clear parallel subdorsal line; white between subdorsal line and eye-spots with occasional dark brown scales; four eye-spots, 1 and 4 enlarged, each with a shining metallic grey stud on inner side, 4 containing two; orange between eye-spots and termen.

Posterior edge of thorax of male with hair pencils, whitish at base becoming dark grey.

Tympanal organs (fig. 48): Venulae secundae long, almost parallel except divergent near tympanal organs; venula media almost as long as venulae secundae. Tympanum bluntly angled at anterior end.

Male genitalia (fig. 68): Abdomen with hair pencil half its length; a further pair of scent organs on eighth segment half the length of the segment. Valva simple, termen rounded; length 3.5x width; gnathos half length of uncus. Aedeagus with cornutus a long thorn with a shorter thorn appressed to it at about half its length.

Female genitalia (fig. 90): Ostial chamber long and narrow; ductus bursae slightly swollen, slightly longer than corpus bursae; corpus bursae "sock-shaped" with a dentate patch running along its length.

Material examined. Holotype ♀ N. New Caledonia: | Puebo coast, 1500ft. | x.1949 | L.E. Cheesman | B.M. 1950.1 BMNH Pyralidae slide No. 17752. 7 paratypes, 5 same data as holotype including BMNH Pyralidae slides No. 17857; 1♂ New Caledonia |Dothio, 400m site 19 | 06133/76135 | J.D. Holloway | 9.vi.71; 1♀: New Caledonia | Petit Gouli | 30m site 28 | J.D.Holloway | | 20.vi.71 |B.M. 1971-507.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species in the genus by the basal area of both forewing and hindwing, which is white before and after the fuscous subbasal fascia.

Derivation. from the Island location of the species.

Distribution. New Caledonia. Not known elsewhere.