Torodora, Meyrick, 1894

Park, Kyu-Tek, Koo, Jun-Mo & Minet, Joël, 2020, Review of the Malagasy lecithocerid species described by Pierre Viette and deposited in MNHN (Paris), with new generic combinations and descriptions of a new subfamily and genus of Momphidae (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea), Zootaxa 4845 (2), pp. 151-190 : 160

TORODORA Meyrick, 1894

Type species: Torodora characteris Meyrick, 1894 .

The Lecithocera species described by Viette (1955 – 1988) definitely do not belong to the subfamily Lecithocerinae (hence are not members of the genus Lecithocera Herrich-Schäffer ); actually they all belong to the subfamily Torodorinae since they have spinose zones on the abdominal segments (dorsally), and male genitalia possessing an elongate uncus but lacking the well developed costal bar occurring in Lecithocerinae (i.e. a bar connecting tegumen and valva). The 12 “ Lecithocera ” species assigned to Torodora may show considerable variations in the venation of both wings: CuA 1 and CuA 2 stalked or coincident in the forewing; M 3 stalked with CuA 1 or M 3 entirely merged with CuA 1 in the hind wing. Although such differences in the wing venation can be easily observed, there are no marked differences in the male genitalia and in the abdominal segments VII–VIII (not specifically modified). Accordingly, all the species are tentatively placed together in a single genus, Torodora Meyrick , also on account of other similarities, notably in antennae, labial palpi, and wing pattern. The interrelationships of these species will probably be solved by the further analysis of DNA sequences when fresh material can be obtained. All the species assigned to Torodora in Madagascar are here tentatively divided into two species-groups, based on differences in the hind wing venation (M 3 stalked with CuA 1 or M 3 merged with CuA 1).

On the other hand, it should be noted that two of these species had already been transferred to the genus Torodora by Park (2018), namely T. kambanella ( Viette, 1986) and T. masoalella ( Viette, 1955) .