Dragmatucha gracilinea Park & Karisch, 2025

Karisch, Timm, Dutton, Amy-Jayne, Yu, Tae-Uk & Park, Kyu-Tek, 2025, Lecithoceridae (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea) from Nimba Mts. bordering Liberia and Guinea, Part I: The subfamily Torodorinae, with descriptions of 15 new species, Zootaxa 5728 (2), pp. 247-286 : 255-257

2. Dragmatucha gracilinea Park & Karisch , sp. nov.

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:

( Fig. 4 )

Type specimens. Holotype: Male, Liberia, Nimba Mountains, alt. 1060 m, 4.4 km SE Yekepa, 0.2 km SSW camp secondary-forest near Parinari-forest 7°32’27.3’’N 8°31’24.3’’W, 28 viii 2022 LF (125 W HQL), leg. T. Karisch & A.-J. Dutton, gen. slide no. 4165/ Karisch, barcoding SDEI300013 , in SDEI.

Paratypes: 2♂, Liberia, Nimba County, 750 m, ENNR , Cellcom Road, 7°33’3.8”N 8°31’46.49”W, 16.-28 xii 2018, Cold Cathode , UV Light Trap (W), leg. Sáfián, Sz., Simonics, G., and 1♂, gen slide no. 4222/ Karisch , barcoding SDEI-TK-R, in ANHRT .

Diagnosis. The new species is similar to D. curvalis sp. nov. in the forewing markings but distinguished from the latter by the antemedian fascia more broadened at costa, the postmedian fascia not so sharply angled in lower quarter, and the termen less concave beyond the apex. The cucullus of the male genitalia is modified, forming an “ankle”.

Description. Male ( Figs 4A, B ). Wingspan 14.0–15.0 mm.

Head: Shiny pale yellowish dorsally, with a triangular brown-patch occipitally. Antenna filiform; basal segment dark brown, slightly broadened apically; flagellum pale yellowish throughout. Labial palpus arched upwards; second palpomere slightly thickened, dark brown dorsally, yellowish white intermixed with yellowish-brown scales laterally, and pale yellowish medially; third palpomere blackish brown, pale yellowish basally and apically.

Thorax: Dark brown dorsally, with a row of whitish or whitish brown scales along anterior edges. Hind tibia pale yellowish, with very long fuscous or black scales from base to middle dorsally, with a white tip. Forewing ground dark brown; costa slightly convex around basal 1/4 and beyond 2/3; apex slightly produced; costal patch pale yellowish white at about 1/3 and 3/4; antemedian fascia oblique, slightly angulate, arising from the first triangular costal patch extending by a narrow line from cell to dorsum; postmedian fascia narrow, arising from the second triangular costal patch, strongly convex between M 1 and M 2. Termen slightly concave medially; fringes with pale yellowish basal line, yellowish brown medially, and pale yellowish pale apically. Hindwing greyish brown; postmedian line narrow, pale yellowish, running from costa to near tornus; fringes similar to those of forewing.

Abdomen ( Fig. 4D ): Dark brown dorsally, pale yellowish ventrally; dorsal spinous zones broadly occupied with spines rarely.

Male genitalia ( Figs 4C, C 1 ): Uncus narrow, heavily sclerotized, gently arched downward, exceeding gnathos basal plate. Basal plate of gnathos expanded into quadrate distally; median process strongly arched downward beyond middle. Valva with weakly sclerotized expansion on costa basally; cucullus shortened, broadly developed forming an ankle; outer margin slightly convex, densely setose; sacculus broadly developed, but very short, about 1/5 the length of valva. Juxta rather small, weakly sclerotized, with a long, whip-like median process arising from middle, about 2/3 the length of valva; caudal margin slightly concave. Vinculum narrowly banded, heavily sclerotized. Aedeagus stout, as long as valva nearly parallel-sided, slightly bent medially; cornuti consisting of a row of stripe bearing spines and a cluster of minute spinules.

Female unknown.

Distribution. Liberia ( Nimba Mts.)

Etymology. From the Latin, gracilis (= thin), referring to the slender median process of the juxta in the male genitalia. An adjective in the nominative singular.

Figures

FIGURE 1. A, Topographic map of the Guinea Highlands (Wikipedia.org./wiki/Guinea_Highlands/, Tom Radulovich, CC BY- SA 4.0, colours adapted); B, Blue itabirit at Blue Lake in laminar formation with other minerals (photo: A.-J Dutton, 2022); C, View from the NW-SE-exposed mountain ridge to the main ridge of Nimba Mountains in Liberia, in the middle with the excavations for iron ore. (photo: A.-J. Dutton, 2022); D, Blue Lake and its surroundings showing the extent of iron ore mining in the southern part of the Nimba Mountains (photo: T. Karisch, 2022); E, Cloud covered main ridge of the southern part of the Nimba Mountains (photo: A.-J Dutton).

FIGURE 4. Dragmatucha gracilinea Park & Karisch, sp. nov.: A, male (holotype); B, head with labial palpus; C, male genitalia (holotype, gen. slide no. 4165/Karisch); C1, ditto, aedeagus; D, abdomen.