Simplimorpha promissa ( Staudinger, 1870 )

van Nieukerken, Erik J., Laštůvka, Aleš & Laštůvka, Zdenĕk, 2006, The Nepticulidae and Opostegidae of mainland France and Corsica: an annotated catalogue (Lepidoptera: Nepticuloidea), Zootaxa 1216 (1216), pp. 1-114 : 18-19

Simplimorpha promissa ( Staudinger, 1870)

F: Nepticula promissa Staudinger 1870: 325 — 07 [types]; Millière 1876a: 373 — 06; Chrétien 1905b: 257 —‘Languedoc’[probably 34]; Lhomme 1934: 137— 46

Stigmella promissa ; Suire 1951: 75—30; Lhomme [1963]: 1203 — 04, 06, 07, 11, 46

CO: Nepticula promissa ; Skala 1938: 31— 2 A

Simplimorpha promissa ; van Nieukerken 1986b: 47— 2 A

Material. France: 06: 1♂, Domaine de Maure­Vieille, 20.v.2003, H. Hendriksen ( ZMUC); 13: VM, Aix­en­Provence, ca. 7 km E, D10, 12–16.x.1983, Rhus coriaria, J.W. Schoorl ( RMNH); adults, Aubagne, ix, Pistacia e.l. iv, RB (Buvat in litt.); adults, Marseille­Luminy, ix, Rhus coriaria , e.l. iv, RB (Buvat in litt.); 2 km W Vauvenargues, 12– 16.x.1983, Pistacia terebinthus, J.W. Schoorl ( RMNH); 26: TM, Châtillon­en­Diois, S slopes, 600–700 m, Cotinus coggygria , 4.vii.1983, EvN; VM, Foret de Saou, 500 m, 24.viii.2002, C. coggygria , EvN; VM, 1.5 km SE Luc­en­Diois, Les Claps, 600 m, 21.viii.2002, C. coggygria , EvN; 34: 2 VM, La Prade, 2.5 km N la Caunette, 335 m, 25.vi.2005, Pistacia terebinthus , EvN; VM, Montpellier, 21.vi.1992, P. terebinthus, AL & ZL ; 65: VM, Gèdre, Rochers d'Agos, 5.vii.1978, P. terebinthus, C. Baenitz (Leiden Herbarium no. 897.363–717); 66: VM, Amélie­les­Bains, along river Tech, 250 m, 2.viii.1982, P. terebinthus , EvN; 1 larva, VM, 3 km N Prades, 510, 22.vi.2005, P. terebinthus , EvN; VM, Villefranche­de­Conflent, N, Fort Liberia, 600 m, 9.viii.1982, P. terebinthus , EvN; 84: adults, Lourmarin, Carniol, ix, P. lentiscus and C. coggygria , e.l. iv, RB (Buvat in litt.).— Corsica: 2A: 3♂, 3♀, TM, Plage d'Agosta, 2 km S Porticcio, 10.v.1982, P. lentiscus , e.l. 28.v–4.vi.1982, EvN ( RMNH, ZMAN); VM, Porticcio, 14.v.1982, P. lentiscus , EvN.

Remarks. Simplimorpha promissa is common in the ‘Midi’, usually on Cotinus coggygria or Pistacia terebinthus , but also on Rhus coriaria . On Corsica it was reared from Pistacia lentiscus , on which Acalyptris minimella also can be found. Mines of these two species are rather similar, but those of A. minimella start with an very long, extremely thin gallery filled with frass, abruptly widening after more than half the total mine length; the mine of S. promissa has a shorter initial gallery, and this widens gradually and often has clear margins; it is not as long as that in minimella . Larvae of S. promissa are greenish, whereas those of A. minimella are yellow. Millière (1876a) and Buvat reported also P. lentiscus as a host; since it is not entirely clear if these records refer to reared adults, they may refer partly to misidentified mines of Acalyptris minimella .