Acalyptris limoniastri, Van, Erik J., 2007

Van, Erik J., 2007, Acalyptris Meyrick: revision of the platani and staticis groups in Europe and the Mediterranean (Lepidoptera: Nepticulidae), Zootaxa 1436, pp. 1-48 : 23-24

Acalyptris limoniastri sp. n.

( Figs. 10 , 33–35 , 51, 52 , 60 , 66 , 76–78 , 99 , 126 )

Trifurcula sp.; Walsingham 1904: 216.

Acalyptris sp. n.; van Nieukerken 1986b: 141 [listed]

Type material. Holotype ɗ: ALGERIA: Biskra, 24.ii.1903, Wlsm. 96906; Walsingham Collection, B.M. 1910–427; Genitalia slide 22597 ( BMNH). — Paratypes 26 ɗ, 2 Ψ. ALGERIA: 17ɗ, 2Ψ same data as holotype, genitalia slides: BM22613–22615 ( BMNH, 4 in RMNH); 1ɗ: Biskra, 19.iii.1894, Eaton ( BMNH); 2ɗ: Biskra, 1.v.1894, Eaton ( BMNH); 5ɗ: Hammam-es-Salahin, 1.iii. (3ɗ), 26.iii., 13.iv.1904, Walsingham, genitalia slide BM22616 ( BMNH). TUNISIA: 1ɗ: Nefta, 14–16.iii.1986, Zool. Mus. Copenhagen Exp., genitalia slide EvN 3127 ( ZMUC).

Diagnosis. A. limoniastri is recognised by a uniform white collar, irrorate with light brown, and absence of special scales, which separates it from Trifurcula species; other Acalyptris species are darker and/or have a distinct colour pattern. A. limoniastri is distinctly larger than the other species of its group. The male genitalia resemble those of the Limonium- feeders, but the species may be recognised by the more parallel-sided valva, the pointed pseuduncus (not to be confused with the uncus!) and band-shaped uncus (pointed in the other species); the female terminalia resemble those of A. limonii and A. lesbia , but A. limoniastri has more setae on T9 (more than 150), and the setae on T7 are absent.

Description. Male ( Fig. 10 ). Forewing length 2.5–3.0 mm, wingspan 5.5–6.6 mm. Head: frontal tuft and collar white, occasionally with few ochreous scales; scape white with few ochreous scales, flagellum ochreous. Antenna with 43–46 segments. Thorax and forewing white, irrorate with light brown-tipped scales; cilia white, no distinct cilia line. Hindwing white, with costal bristles. Underside of forewing ochreous, hindwing white. Abdomen yellowish white, with long ochreous anal tufts.

Female. Forewing length 2.96 mm, wingspan 6.4 mm. Antenna with 38 segments.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 33–35 , 66 , 76–78 ). Measurements: see Table 3 . Vinculum anteriorly narrowed, truncate; lateral arms expanded ventrally. Tegumen pointed, curved ventrad. Uncus ribbon-like, without central element, with prominent seta (or two) on both sides laterally. Gnathos with long narrow central element. Valva approximately parallel sided, inner margin serrate; tip not demarcated, with many spine-like setae; transtilla with distinct straight transverse bar and long sublateral processes. Aedeagus widening posteriorly, with ventral bilobed carina, tightly fused to ventral process of vinculum; and pair of lateral carinae, tips pointed, curved dorsad. Vesica without cornuti.

Female genitalia ( Figs. 51, 52 ). T8 narrow, band-like, with 15–17 long setae and scales on each half. T9 cushion-shaped, with large group of more than 150 setae in total. S7 medially with dense group of spine-like setae near tip. Anterior apophyses reaching beyond posterior apophyses. Vestibulum not very distinct, without sclerotisations. Bursa flimsy, hardly visible, without sclerotisations, hardly reaching beyond segment 7. Ductus spermathecae with 2–2½ narrow convolutions.

Biology. Immature stages unknown. The species was collected by Walsingham (1904) from bushes of Limoniastrum guyonianum on which he later found some mines, very likely to belong to this species. A few mined leaves on a pin were placed in the same drawer as the type series. The mine can be described as follows: a narrow gallery following leaf margin upwards and down again along other side; frass in narrow midline. Limoniastrum guyonianum is a common bush in open desert shrub near Biskra. The author searched in vain for mines or adults of this species on the hostplant near Biskra in May 1980.

Distribution ( Fig. 126 ). Northern fringes of Sahara in Algeria and Tunisia.

Etymology. A noun in genitive case, named after the supposed host genus Limoniastrum .

Acalyptris pyrenaica A. & Z. Lašt ů vka ( Figs. 15 , 41 , 50 , 71, 126)

Acalyptris pyrenaica A. & Z. Laštůvka, 1993: 158. Holotype ♂ SPAIN: Cataluna, Lerida, Coll del Canto, (E Sort), 1650 m, 21.vi.1992, A. Laštůvka (AL) [examined]

Acalyptris pyrenaica ; van Nieukerken 1996: 24 [catalogued]; van Nieukerken & Biesenbaum 1997: 2 [redescription]; A. & Z. Laštůvka 1997: 120 [description]; van Nieukerken et al. 2004a: 227 [Iberian Peninsula].

Material examined. 4 ɗ, 1 Ψ. GERMANY: 1ɗ, Nordrhein-Westfalen: Nordeifel, Bad Münstereifel, NSG Hirnberg, 30.v.1996, W. Biesenbaum (WB); 1ɗ: Nordeifel, Ittersheim, Kuttenberg, 13.vi.1994, W. Biesenbaum (WB); 1ɗ: Nordeifel, Marmagen, Gillesbachtal, 29.vi.1995, W. Biesenbaum (WB); 1ɗ: Nordeifel, Nettersheim, Urftal, 17.vi.1994, W. Biesenbaum ( RMNH). SPAIN: 1Ψ, Cataluna, Lerida, Coll del Canto, (E Sort), 1650 m, 21.vi.1992, A. Laštůvka ( AL).

Diagnosis. A. pyrenaica is characterised by the complete black colour, which separates it from most other European Nepticulidae ; it only slightly resembles some Parafomoria species, but these usually with at least some white scaling. The male genitalia resemble other species in this group, but A. pyrenaica has a double uncus and simpler, narrow valva.

Description Male ( Fig. 15 ). Forewing length 2.0–2.5 mm, wingspan 4.0–5.6 mm. Head: frontal tuft and collar dark grey to anthracite black; scape black with some white scales along frontal edge, forming very small eyecap; flagellum grey, antenna with 36–39 segments. Thorax and forewing dark grey to anthracite black, at forewing tip paler bases of scales are more exposed, yielding speckled appearance. Underside dark grey. Hindwing completely grey on both surfaces, costal bristles present. Abdomen completely black, conspicuous long anal tufts mixed pale grey with black.

Female (from original description). Wingspan 5.l mm, antenna with 33 segments. Further as male.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 41 , 71). Measurements: see Table 3 . Vinculum with narrow ventral plate. Tegumen forming blunt pseuduncus. Uncus with several setae laterally and complex sclerotized tip: a posterio-dorsal bilobed element and more ventrad blunt element. Gnathos with narrow, relatively long central element. Valva slender, with almost parallel margins, with slight inner bulge at basis; near tip with many setae. Transtilla with distinct transverse bar and relatively short sublateral processes. Aedeagus distally widened, with pair of dorsolateral carinae, each split in 2–4 points; ventral carina with short distal points, wide apart. Vesica without any cornuti.

Female genitalia ( Fig. 50 ). Probably incomplete in slide. Short anal papillae. Apophyses anteriores and in particular posteriores long. Ductus spermathecae with 2 convolutions. Corpus bursae not seen.

Biology. Unknown, all adults were taken by sweeping grassland vegetation in May to July. The habitats were limestone grassland in the Eifel mountains and a mountain pasture in the Pyrenees. The hostplant cannot belong to the Plumbaginaceae ; although a species of Armeria is present in the type-locality, it does not occur in the German localities.

Distribution ( Fig. 126 ). Only known from Spain, Pyrenees and Germany, Eifel.

Figures

FIGURES 9 – 17. Acalyptris staticis group, adults. 9, A. staticis, Canary islands, Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz; 10, A. limoniastri, Algeria, Biskra, Paratype; 11, A. limonii, ♂ paratype, Greece, Salaora; 12, A. limonii, Ψ paratype, Greece, Salaora; 13, A. maritima, ♂, Greece, Skala; 14, A. lesbia, ♂ holotype, Greece, Lesvos; 15, A. pyrenaica, Germany, Eifel, Nettersheim; 16, 17, A. lesbia, ♂ live specimen, paratype; [material in RMNH, except Fig. 13, in ZMUC].

FIGURES 26 – 35. 26 – 28. Acalyptris platani group: male genitalia in ventral view, details. 26, 27, A. pistaciae, slide 1269, Holotype; 28, A. loranthella, slide 1261, Greece, Evvoia. 29 – 35. Acalyptris staticis group: male genitalia in ventral view. 29 – 32, A. staticis, slides 1430, Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz, BM 24095, Holotype; 33 – 35, A. limoniastri, slides 3127, Tunisia, Nefta, BM 22597, Holotype and BM 22616 (35), paratype, Algeria, Hammam-es-Salahin.

FIGURES 49 – 54. Acalyptris staticis group: terminal abdominal segments and female genitalia (as far as visible), in dorsal view and dorsally focussed (49, 51, 54), more ventrally focussed, showing sternite (50, 52, 53). 49, A. staticis, slide 1431, Canary islands, Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz; 50, A. pyrenaica, slide 3569 (only partly preserved), Spain, Coll del Canto, paratype; 51, 52, A. limoniastri, slide BM 22615, Algeria, Biskra, Paratype; 53, 54, A. limonii, slide 3529, Greece, Salaora, paratype.

FIGURES 55 – 61. 55 – 59. Acalyptris staticis group: terminal abdominal segments and female genitalia (as far as visible), in dorsal view and dorsally focussed, in 58 more ventrally focussed, showing sternite. 55, 56, A. maritima, slide 3530, Italy, Portogruaro; 57 – 59, A. lesbia, slide 3642, paratype, Greece, Lesvos. 60 – 61. Acalyptris species, female, second abdominal segment from ventral, showing shape of s 2 a. 60, A. limoniastri, slide BM 22615, Algeria, Biskra, Paratype; 61, A. minimella, slide 3415, Portugal (Algarve), Serra de Monte Figo.

FIGURES 62 – 70. Acalyptris species: male genitalia, valva dorsal side, drawn from right valva, through ventral side (some from left valva, mirrored); not all setae on valval tip and margins are drawn. 62, A. platani, slide 1257, Italy, Trento; 63, A. minimella, slide 1433, Corsica, Porticcio; 64, A. pistaciae, 1268, Cyprus, Limassol, paratype; 65, A. loranthella, slide 1261, Greece, Evvoia; 66 A. limoniastri, slide BM 22614, Algeria, Biskra, Paratype; 67, A. staticis, slide 1430, Canary islands, Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz; 68, A. limonii, slide 3488, Greece, Salaora, paratype; 69, A. maritima, slide 3709, Italy, Portogruaro, paratype; 70, A. lesbia, slide 3625, male holotype, Greece, Lesvos; 71, A. pyrenaica, slide 2886, Germany, Eifel, Marmagen [not on same scale, from Nieukerken & Biesenbaum (1997)].

FIGURES 72 – 83. Acalyptris species, male genitalia, capsules (72, 74, 76, 79) and aedeagus in ventral (73, 75, 77 80, 82) and lateral view (78, 81, 83). 72, 73, A. minimella, slide 1433, Corsica, Porticcio; 74, 75, A. pistaciae, slide 1268, Cyprus, Limassol, paratype; 76 – 78, A. limoniastri, slide BM 22616, Algeria, Hammam-es-Salahin and BM 22613 (77), Biskra, paratypes; 79 – 81, A. staticis, slide 1430, Canary islands, Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz; 82, 83, A. lesbia, Greece, Lesvos, slide 3625, holotype and slide 3552, paratype.

FIGURES 94 – 101. Acalyptris species, SEM micrographs, adult and larval structure. 94, 95, A. platani, male hindwing upperside with special scales and detail, Italy, Trento; 96, 97, A. pistaciae, male hindwing upperside with dispersed hairpencil; Greece, Dhelfoi; 98, 99, male flagellar segments with sensillum vesiculocladum: 98, A. platani, Italy, Trento; 99, A. limoniastri, Hammam-es-Salahin, paratype; 100, 101, A. minimella, larval headcapsule dorsal, detail of labrum and ventral, pictures taken at magnifications 950 and 760 ×, slightly reduced. Scales: 100 μm (94, 96), 10 μm (97 – 99) and 1 μm (95).

FIGURES 125 – 127. Distribution maps of Acalyptris. 125, A. loranthella, shaded area shows approximate distribution of host Loranthus europaeus; 126, A. staticis group in Western Mediterranean: A. pyrenaica (black dots), A. staticis (grey dots) and A. limoniastri (black squares); 127, A. staticis group in Eastern Mediterranean: A. maritima (black dots), A. limonii (grey diamonds) and A. lesbia (grey square).

FIGURES 36 – 44. Acalyptris staticis group: male genitalia in ventral or lateral view (aedeagus, 40, 43, 44). 36, 37, 42, A. maritima, slides 3709, Italy, Portogruaro and 3515, Greece, Salaora, both paratypes; 38, 44, A. lesbia, slides 3625, Holotype and 3552, paratype 2003; 39, 40, 43, A. limonii, slide 3488, Greece, Salaora, paratype; 41, A. pyrenaica, slide 2827, Germany, Eifel, Nettersheim.