Brusqeulia araguensis, Santa-Rita, Jose V. Perez & Baixeras, Joaquin, 2018

Santa-Rita, Jose V. Perez & Baixeras, Joaquin, 2018, Two new species of Brusqeulia Razowski & Becker, 2000 from the Neotropics, with comments on the systematic position of the genus in relation to the Apolychrosis Amsel, 1962 group of genera (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae, Cochylini), ZooKeys 770, pp. 193-210 : 197-201

Brusqeulia araguensis sp. n. Figures 3, 4B, D

Type material.

Holotype: ♂, Venezuela, Aragua State, locality of Rancho Grande, 10°7'N; 67°20.63'W, 10-21 Feb 1969, D. Duckworth and E. Dietz (GS USNM 69274).

Paratypes: (4♀). Venezuela, Aragua State, locality of Rancho Grande, 1100 m, 10°7'N; 67°20.63'W, 24-31 Oct 1966 (1♀) (SEM stub JBA202); 22-31 Jul 1967 (3♀), R.W. Poole (GS USNM 85011).

Diagnosis.

The habitus of B. araguensis (Fig. 3A) has more extensive dark brown scaling in the wing pattern compared to B. yunkensis , resulting in a more diffuse and ill-defined pattern. A similar pattern is found in B. teneimorpha and B. caracagena . Species more closely related to B. yunkensis (e.g., B. baeza and B. uncicera ) have a more defined, contrasting pattern. The forewing costal crescent-shaped blotch allows clear discrimination between the two species (well defined in B. yunkensis and diffuse in B. araguensis ), but in the context of the genus, these differences could be assumed to represent variation. More diagnostic characters are associated with the male and female genitalia. Brusqeulia araguensis can be distinguished by the extremely narrow uncus, the narrowest in the genus, even compare to closely related species such as B. bonita and B. baeza . The transtilla and gnathos are well developed in B. araguensis , similar to most species in Brusqeulia , and it is not diagnostic. Teeth or lobes are developed in the distal part of the sacculus coincident with the ventral part of the cucullus in most, if not all, species of the genus. Among congeners, B. araguensis , B. costispina , and B. tripuncta all have several teeth, but their development in B. araguensis is moderate compared to the other two species. Finally, the phallus in B. araguensis is simpler than in most species of the genus. So far, morphological features of the females of Brusqeulia are limited by the paucity of material. The only females available are B. caracagena , B. yunkensis , and B. araguensis (the last two described in this paper). Both share a broad sterigma, but B. araguensis and B. yunkensis are definitely more closely related to each other than either is to B. caracagena , even though differences between them are conspicuous. Both B. caracagena and B. yunkensis lack the spiny cushion-like asymmetrical areas on the lamella antevaginalis found in B. araguensis . B. caracagena can be easily distinguished from B. araguensis and B. yunkensis by the ductus bursae, short in B. caracagena , long and convoluted in B. araguensis and B. yunkensis . The position of the ductus seminalis is clearly different in B. yunkensis (from cervix) and B. araguensis (from mid-corpus bursae); no information about the ductus seminalis in B. caracagena is available. The subpapillar spiny sclerite of the 8-9 intersegmental membrane is pointed in B. yunkensis and truncate in B. araguensis .

Description.

Head: Vertex with long whitish scales protruding anteriorly and dorsally, fan-shaped, between antennae. Frons slightly concave covered with a whitish scales. Antenna dark brown, length ca 0.4 as long as forewing costa, dorsally scaled, ventrally ciliated, two rows of scales per flagellomere. Labial palpus porrect, length (all three segments combined) ca. 1.3 times diameter of compound eye, uniformly scaled; first segment short, slightly upcurved with ochreous scales, second segment long, straight with ochreous scales, third segment short, slightly upcurved with a mixed of dominant ochreous scales and a few whitish scales only basally; opening of organ of vom Rath in apical position. Haustellum well developed. Ocelli and chaetosemata well developed.

Thorax: Dorsum whitish ochreous with a dorso-apical dark brownish band. Smooth scaled including tegulae, with no tufts. Legs whitish, unmodified, male foreleg hairpencil absent. Forewing length 5.7 mm (n = 1) in males, 5.7-6.2 mm (x̄ = 5.9; n = 4) in females. Forewing pattern (Fig. 3A) not sexually dimorphic. Forewing upperside general background colour whitish with scattered greyish-brown marks; marking ill defined; pairs of strigulae ill defined, concolourous with general background, vaguely detectable, with variable degree of suffusion; basal and subbasal fasciae poorly developed, median fascia as an irregular costal blotch projected tornally, with a small group of dark scales at the level of cubital cell; some coma-like marks on the costa as postmedian and preterminal fasciae; fringe concolourous with general background; forewing underside uniformly brownish ochreous with some pale strigulae on the costa; overlapping area whitish. Hindwing upperside and underside, including fringe, uniformly brownish-ochreous; male costal fold absent; cubital pecten not detected.

Abdomen: Dorsally greyish, pale ochreous cephalad. Segment 8 unmodified in males. Male genitalia (based on one preparation; Fig. 3C) with tegumen well developed, laterally straight; uncus slender, straight, basally confluent with top of tegumen to drastically slimmed distally; socii membranous, hairy, obvious, moderately developed; gnathos as two arms distally fused and projected in a short process distally spatulate; transtilla broad, naked; appreciable pulvinus, valva elongate, costa concave, moderately sclerotised, cucullus subrectangular, membranous ventrally, costal area slightly sclerotised, central area densely hairy, sacculus basally convex, distally concave, well sclerotised, transition area of sacculus to cucullus with several tooth like distal process, one of them larger and basal clearly associated to the sacculus, the distal one assignable to the cucullus, a variable number of smaller teeth in between; vinculum broad but rather weakly developed; juxta strongly sclerotised horseshoe shaped; phallus (Fig. 3D) (fragmented in three pieces in the slide) presumably straight with simple caecum, central part broken; no teeth detected on the external surface; vesica simple with two clusters of cornuti, one distal (vesica not evaginated) consisting of non-deciduous (not detected in female corpus bursae) cornuti arranged in a single longitudinal band, another proximal consisting in an irregular patch of microspinulate cornuti. Segment 7 in females without modified scaling (corethogyne) but with two inconspicuous laterodorsal pockets on the 7-8 intersegmental membrane. Female genitalia (based on two preparations; Fig. 3B) with sterigma broad, complex, slightly asymmetrical, ostium simple, slightly on the right; sterigma broad extended laterally in pockets ventrally covered by acanthae continuous laterally with two asymmetrical membranous cushion-shaped areas densely covered by acanthae (Fig. 4A); lamella antevaginalis with a moderately sclerotised convex plate; lamella postvaginalis moderately sclerotised, broad, with a distinct ventrally prominent but smooth dome like plate; ductus bursae rugose, sinuous, posterior half more sclerotised, internally covered by ctenidia continuous with internal vestiture of corpus bursae; corpus bursae subglobular, densely internally covered by ctenidia; no signum or any other sclerotised area detected; ductus seminalis from central area of corpus bursae; no bulla seminalis detected; no spermatophore found; anterior apophysis short projected internally; behind the sterigma the ventral area of segment 8 as a densely spiny lobe; 8-9 intersegmental membrane densely covered by acanthae; densely spiny crescent shape ventral sclerite on the 8-9 intersegmental membrane at the level of the ventral lobes of the anal papillae; posterior apophysis simple, approximately as long as anal papillae; presence of evident broad egg pore between anal papillae.

Biology and distribution.

The early stages are unknown. Adults have been collected in February (n = 1), July (n = 2), August (n = 1), and October (n = 1) at middle elevation (1100 m) in Aragua State, Venezuela.

Etymology.

The specific epithet refers to the state of Aragua in Venezuela.