Poecilocampa deqina Saldaitis & Pekarsky

Saldaitis, Aidas & Pekarsky, Oleg, 2015, A new species, Poecilocampa deqina (Lepidoptera: Lasiocampidae), from China, Zootaxa 3925 (4), pp. 597-599 : 598-599

Poecilocampa deqina Saldaitis & Pekarsky sp. n.

( Figs 1, 2 , 5 )

Type material. Holotype: male ( Fig. 1 ), China, NW Yunnan, Zhongdian Mt., 3350 m, N27°24' 800'', E99°40' 500'', 16–20.X.2011, leg. A. Floriani, (Slide No. OP 2741m) in ASV collection.

Paratypes: 2 males ( Fig. 2 ) China, NW Yunnan, road from Zhongdian to Deqin, Balma Xue Shan, 4100–4200 m, N28°19' 900'', E99°05' 400'', 17–19.X.2011, leg. A. Floriani, 11 males China, NW Yunnan, road from Zhongdian to Deqin, Balma Xue Shan, 3900 m, N28°24' 900'', E98°59' 800'', 19.X.2011, leg. A. Floriani (Slide No. OP 2740m) in the AFM, ASV, OPB, MWM and WIGJ collections.

Diagnosis. P. deqina is a sister species of P. morandinii and is distinguished from it by external, genital and DNA characters. P. deqina averages a bigger wingspan (40–44 mm) (n–14), than P. morandinii (wingspan (37–41 mm) (n–7)). The less contrasted wing pattern of P. deqina has a black-brown base color compared to the translucent blackish-grey of P. morandinii ( Figs 3, 4 ). P. deqina has a very indistinct antemedial line and its hindwing has a rounded medial line compared to P. morandinii which has sharply defined crosslines and a straight hindwing medial line. Unlike P. deqina , P. morandinii has distinctive dark and light checked wing fringes. Male genitalia of the new species differs from P. morandinii ( Fig. 6 ) by having somewhat wider valvae, a remarkably larger and wider saccular lobe and a less curved aedeagus.

Description. Wingspan of holotype 43 mm; wingspan of paratypes 40–44 mm. Head and frons brown; collar light brown; thorax, tegulae and abdomen black with some light brown hear-like scales; forewing ground color brownish grey with light postmedial area; antemedial line vague, hardly traceable; postmedial line distinct with light fascia; discal spot dark brown. Hindwing brown; discal spot present; medial line distinct, roundish with light fascia; cilia as ground color. Male genitalia ( Fig. 5 ) Uncus and gnathos well developed, uncus flattened with bilobate top; juxta shield-like with cleft on posterior margin; valvae short and wide; saccular lobe large, wide. Aedeagus thick, short, slightly curved; carinal plate with few sclerotized dents; vesica tubular with basal swelling, as long as aedeagus. Female unknown.

Molecular analysis. DNA barcoding also supports the existence of a new species of Poecilocampa . Full length 658 base pair 'barcodes' of the Cytochrome Oxidase Subunit 5' Region (CO1-5P) gene were prepared by the University of Guelph's barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) by methods described in Hebert et al. (2003). Molecular distance based on the Kimura two-parameter model for COI DNA barcodes between two specimens of P. deqina sp. n. and three specimens of P. morandinii were 2.99%. Both P. deqina specimens sampled had the same sequence for COI 5' positions.

Biology and distribution. All fourteen males were collected at ultraviolet light on 16-20 October 2012 in northwest China's Yunnan province in a remote area, located near Yak La pass of the Baima Xue mountain range. P. deqina was collected at altitudes ranging from 3400 to 4200 meters in mountain mixed forests dominated by various conifer trees, bushes and rhododendron. Other late autumn species collected there at that time include several Noctuidae species: Dasypolia carlotta Floriani, Benedek, Behounek & Saldaitis , D. irene Floriani, Benedek & Saldaitis , D. sigute Saldaitis & Benedek.

Etymology. The name is toponimical to Deqin, China.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 4. Poecilocampa ssp. adults. 1. P. deqina sp. n., male, holotype, China, Yunnan (ASV); 2. P. deqina sp. n., male, paratype, China, Yunnan (OPB); 3. P. morandinii, male, holotype, China, Sichuan (MWM); 4. P. morandinii, male, paratype, China, Sichuan (OPB).

FIGURES 5 – 6. Poecilocampa ssp. male genitalia. 5. P. deqina sp. n., holotype, prep. OP 2741 m; 6. P. morandinii sp. n., paratype, prep. OP 2742 m.