Scythris caimancitoensis Nupponen, 2022

Nupponen 1, Kari & Sihvonen, Pasi, 2022, Revision of Neotropical Scythrididae moths and descriptions of 22 new species from Argentina, Chile, and Peru (Lepidoptera, Gelechioidea), ZooKeys 1087, pp. 19-104 : 19

publication ID

https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1087.64382

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:94F2384E-640E-4A58-B8B4-D9D06675D2C2

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/BC28429D-6162-4356-865E-6C5DA7B1F9E9

taxon LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:act:BC28429D-6162-4356-865E-6C5DA7B1F9E9

treatment provided by

ZooKeys by Pensoft

scientific name

Scythris caimancitoensis Nupponen
status

sp. nov.

Scythris caimancitoensis Nupponen sp. nov.

Figs 18 View Figures 18–24A , 49 View Figures 49–50

Type material.

Holotype. Argentina • ♂; prov. Jujuy, Rio San Francisco, by Caimancito village; 23°43.8'S, 64°36.3'W, 400 m a.s.l.; 18 Sep. 2017; K. Nupponen & R. Haverinen leg.; [BOLD sample ID] KN01037; [genitalia slide] K. Nupponen prep. no. 3/9 Dec. 2019; coll. NUPP (MZH).

Diagnosis.

Externally somewhat resembling S. tibicina , but distinguished by the more contrasty pattern and cream colour of the forewings. In the male genitalia, the strikingly long and blade-like valvae (which sticks out from the abdomen, see Fig. 18 View Figures 18–24A ) and an elongate sternum VIII are diagnostic.

Description.

Wingspan 13.5 mm. Head brown, laterally paler. Collar and neck tuft mixed with various shades of brown and dirty white, tegula pale brown. Haustellum dirty white. Thorax dark brown. Scape dorsally dark brown, ventrally dirty cream; pecten dirty cream and longer than diameter of scape. Flagellum dark brown, 0.7 × length of forewing, ciliate, sensillae ~ 1/2 as long as diameter of flagellum. Labial palps white, except lower surface of palpomeres II and III dark brown. Legs dirty white, except tibia and tarsus of foreleg brown, and upper surface of hindleg tarsus with pale brown hair. Abdomen dorsally dark fuscous, ventrally white. Forewing dark brown, blackish at basal 1/2 of wing at costal and widely at dorsal areas; fold broadly cream, connected to dash of same colour at cell end, the latter extended to subapical area. Hindwing dark fuscous.

Male genitalia. Uncus small and labiate. Gnathos reduced to small transverse flap. Tegumen hood-shaped. Phallus short, basally indented, distal 1/2 tapered, tip extended, bent and pointed. Valva very long, straight and of constant width, apically tapered and bent inwards, tip pointed; costal and dorsal margins sclerotised and setose. Saccus U-shaped, ca. as long as tegumen. Sternum VIII subrectangular, strongly elongated and narrow, deeply indented both postero- and anteromedially; anterior margin with two parallel triangular lobes; at anterior 1/3 of plate two longitudinal setose ridges. Tergum VIII small, rectangular, posterior margin widely concave, anterior corners extended.

Etymology.

Latinised adjective in the nominative singular. The species is named after the type locality, the village of Caimancito.

Distribution.

NW Argentina.

Habitat.

The collecting site is a dry river bed surrounded by forests and plantations. Plants of the family Amaranthaceae were common along the river banks (Fig. 79 View Figure 79 ).

Genetic data.

Not obtained (specimen submitted to barcode analysis but the sample failed).

Remarks.

Female unknown. The male genitalia do not show affinities to other described American Scythrididae . The very large male genitalia is diagnostic for Arotrura Walsingham 1888, but Scythris caimancitoensis does not have the other diagnostic characters of that genus ( Landry 1991). We classify Scythris caimancitoensis in Scythris , but the genus combination needs more research.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Scythrididae

Genus

Scythris