Glaucotunica tamila, Sohn, 2014

Sohn, Jae-Cheon, 2014, A taxonomic review of the Neotropical genus Anchimacheta (Lepidoptera: Urodidae) with descriptions of a new congener and an allied, new genus and species from Sri Lanka, Journal of Natural History 48 (43 - 44), pp. 2617-2631 : 2627-2628

Glaucotunica tamila n. sp.

( Figures 1B and D , 2B , 3F , 4E and F )

Type

Holotype – 1 ♂, ‘ SRI LANKA: N. E. Dist [rict] | Nuwara Eliya , | Lake Gregory | 16- III-1973, 6000ft. | Baumann & Cross’, ‘Collected | at black | light’, ‘RESTRICTIONS APPLY | NMNH– Sri Lanka | Agreement #6’ [on a purple label bordered with asterisks], ‘ Genitalia slide ♂ | By JC Sohn | USNM 96411 ’ [on a green label], deposited in USNM.

Diagnosis

Glaucotunica tamila is similar to Anchimacheta iodes and A. costaricae in the forewing patterns but differs from the latter two in having the grey forewings (yellowish brown in Anchimacheta ) and the discontinuous gnathos in the male genitalia.

Description

Head. Vertex brownish white, with scales near frons terminally tinged with brown; frons brown; clypeus brownish white. Antennae filiform, 1/2 as long as forewing; scape dark brown, tinged with brownish white basally, pecten dark brown in distal half, pale brown in basal half; flagellomeres brownish grey, narrowly tinged with pale grey dorsally on first two flagellomeres. Labial palpi slightly ascending; 1st segment dark brown in distal 2/3, white in basal 1/3, 1/2 as long as 2nd; 2nd segment dark brown dorsally, white on inner surface, as long as 3rd, scale tufts ventrally, dark brown in distal 2/3, white in basal 1/3, more dense distad; 3rd segment dark brown, tapered to apex.

Thorax. Patagium dark brown, tinged with pale greyish yellow along distal margin; tegula dark brown; mesonotum dark greyish brown, intermixed with brownish grey near middle. Foreleg with coxa pale yellowish grey, speckled with dark brown scales; femur dark brown on outer surface, pale yellowish grey on inner surface; tibia and tarsi dark brown, each segment with a white patch ventrodistally. Mid leg with coxa pale yellowish grey, intermixed with dark brown medially; femur pale yellowish grey, densely peppered with dark brown scales on outer surface; tibia dark brown in basal 1/2, white, sparsely peppered with dark brown scales in distal 1/2, with a white band subbasally; tarsomeres dark brown, each with a narrow pale yellowish grey band distally. Hind leg with coxa pale greyish brown, intermixed with dark brown scales; femur pale yellowish grey, lustrous, narrowly tinged with dark brown ventrally; tibia and tarsi yellowish grey dorsally, brownish white ventrally; tibia with dense, brownish white hairs ventrally, sparse, greyish hairs dorsally. Forewing length 9.1 mm (n = 1), elongate, costal and dorsal margin almost parallel in basal 2/3, apex narrowly round, pale grey, peppered with dark brown and sparsely reddish brown, suffused with dark brownish grey in basal 1/5 and distal 1/5; subbasal line dark brown only in costal area; antemedian line dark brown, arched outwardly, gradually widening and paler to postmedian line; subbasal line with large dark brown patch along costa and with two small dark brown patches, each at middle and near tornus; fringe pale brownish grey. Hind wings dark brownish grey; fringe dark yellowish brown.

Abdomen. Tergites brownish grey; sternites pale yellowish grey. Male genitalia ( Figure 4E and F ) with uncus subtriangular, confluent with tegumen, with a few long setae, apex deeply bifid, forming two narrow, digitate apical processes. Tegumen subtrapezoidal; gnathal arms ( Figure 4E e ) band-like, curved. Valvae 1.3× broader than juxta, elongate, subrectangular; terminal area medially cleaved forming two portions; cleavage as deep as 1/4 of valva; costa broadly rounded on distal 1/2, densely setose along marginal area; sacculus slightly swollen along basal 1/2, setose along upper and lower marginal area; upper apical portion, lobate narrowly rounded apically; lower apical portion slightly shorter than upper portion, subquadrate, densely setose. Vinculum narrowly V-shaped. Juxta ( Figure 4E f ) quadrate, upper margin cleaved medially as deep as a half of its height; lower margin shallow, trapezoidal. Saccus linguiform. Phallus ( Figure 4F ) stout, as long as valva, terminal area concave mediolaterally; ductus ejaculatoris formed dorsobasally; vesica ( Figure 4F g ) with dense, minute pleats; cornutus absent.

Distribution

Sri Lanka (North Eastern Prov.).

Etymology

The species is named after ‘Tamil’, an ethnic group predominant at the type locality.

Figures

Figure 1. (A) Head of Anchimacheta iodes, male, paralectotype; (B) head of Glaucotunica tamila, male, holotype; (C) hind legs of Anchimacheta iodes, male, paralectotype; (D) hind legs of Glaucotunica tamila, male, holotype; (E) abdominal segment I–III of Anchimacheta iodes, male, paralectotype.

Figure 2. (A) Wing venation of Anchimacheta iodes, male, paralectotype; (B) wing venation of Glaucotunica tamila, male, holotype.

Figure 3. Type specimens. (A) Lectotype of Anchimacheta iodes, male; (B) Lectotype of A. capnodes (= A. iodes), male; (C) holotype of A. tolmetes (= A. iodes), male; (D) paratype of A. costaricae, male; (E) holotype of A. costaricae, female; (F) holotype of Glaucotunica tamila, male.

Figure 4. Male genitalia. (A) Genital capsule of Anchimacheta capnodes (= A. iodes), paralectotype (insets: a, b – right valva; c – medial band of gnathos; d – juxta); (B) right valva of A. costaricae, holotype; (C) phallus of A. capnodes (= A. iodes), paralectotype; (D) phallus of A. costaricae, holotype; (E) genital capsule of Glaucotunica tamila, holotype (insets: e – gnathal arms; f – juxta); (F) phallus of G. tamila, holotype (inset: g – enlarged distal third, transmitted light phase contrast image).