Microleon simingensis, Liang, Wang & Solovyev, 2022

Liang, Jiamin, Solovyev, Alexey V. & Wang, Houshuai, 2022, Two new species of the genus Microleon (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae) from China, Zootaxa 5175 (1), pp. 137-145 : 142-143

Microleon simingensis, Liang, Wang & Solovyev sp. nov.

( Figs 4–5 , 9–11 , 13 )

Diagnosis. The new species is very similar to the congeners, but can be distinguished from other species of the genus Microleon by the following combination of characters: wider saccular processes, juxta without a pair of spines dorsally, aedeagus simple, without a sclerotized band apically.

Description. Adult ( Figs 4 , 13 ). Male and female. Forewing length 5–7 mm. Antennae filiform, with brownbeige scales. Vertex covered densely with cream-brown hairs. Labial palpus pale yellow, about 2–3 times as long as diameter of eyes, upward curved. Thorax with an intermixture of orange-brown scales. Ground colour of thorax orange brown. Forewing pattern not distinct, the species can be recognized by the presence of pale, orange fields near apex, tornus and base. Wing venation: forewing with R 2, R 3 and R 4 stalked, R 3 +R 4 branching from near the base of R 2, R 5 arising from apical angle of discal cell, M 1 originate from middle of outer margin of discal cell. Hindwing grayish brown, Rs and M 1 stalked basally branching from Sc+R 1, veins M 3 and CuA 1 rising from lower angle of the cell.

Male genitalia ( Figs 9, 10 ). Uncus long tongue-shaped, with long hairs. Gnathos well-developed, T-shaped apically. Valvae elongated, costal margin strongly sclerotized, outer margin oblique. Saccular processes long and wide, each with two apically acute arms, the right dorsal arm distinctly longer than the left one. Juxta sclerotized. Aedeagus simple, slightly curved at base.

Female genitalia ( Fig. 11 ). Ovipositor lobes flattened, nearly oval. Apophysis anterioris approximately three times longer than apophysis posterioris. Ductus bursae extremely long, slender, somewhat coiled, sclerotized basally. Corpus bursae with a gourd-shaped signum.

Type materials. Holotype (in SCAU): ♂, Siming Mountain , Ningbo City, Zhengjiang Province, China, N27°27′33.61″ E121°08′55.95″, 02-VII-2016, leg. Houshuai Wang. Paratypes: 2♂ (in SCAU), Tianmu Mts. , Hangzhou City, Zhengjiang Province, China, N30°32′21.00″ E119°45′37.44″, 17-VI-2016, leg. Houshuai Wang ; 1♂ (in MWM / ZSM), Qingcheng Mts. , 60 km W Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, China, 1435 m, 11-VI-2004, leg. S. Murzin ; 1♀ (in SCAU), same data as holotype .

Distribution. China (Zhejiang and Sichuan Provinces).

Etymology. The specific name is given after its type locality, Siming Mountain.

Figures

FIGURE 13. Venation of Microleon simingensis sp. nov. male, holotype.

FIGURES 1–6. Adults. 1–3. Microleon dianensis sp. nov. 1, male, holotype; 2–3, males, paratypes. 4–5. M. simingensis sp. nov. 4, male, holotype; 5, female, paratype. 6, M. longipalpis, female. Scale bars = 10 mm.

FIGURES 7–11. Genitalia of Microleon spp. 7, Microleon dianensis sp. nov., male, holotype; 8, M. longipaplis, male; 9, M. simingensis sp. nov., male, holotype; 10, ditto, male, paratype; 11, ditto, female, paratype.