Nemophora nielseni Kozlov, 2024

Kozlov, Mikhail V., 2024, Fairy moths of the genus Nemophora Hoffmannsegg, 1798 (Lepidoptera: Adelidae) from Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, Zootaxa 5423 (1), pp. 1-66 : 42-44

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5423.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:622D5264-DBE2-463B-9A8C-AD1C77C90254
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10806156
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/34F6CF79-E422-4687-93D5-C9FC70579108
taxon LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:act:34F6CF79-E422-4687-93D5-C9FC70579108
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Nemophora nielseni Kozlov
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Nemophora nielseni Kozlov , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:34F6CF79-E422-4687-93D5-C9FC70579108

( Fig. 48 View FIGURES 41–48 , 49 View FIGURES 49–56 , 83 View FIGURES 63–88 , 105 View FIGURES 100–105 )

Holotype ♂: Thailand , Chieng Mai Province, Doi Ithanon National Park (18° 32' 30" N, 98° 35' 57" E); labelled: 8 mm circle with red border, print GoogleMaps ‘ Holo- │ type’; 7 × 18 mm, print ‘ THAILAND: Chieng Mai Province │ Doi Ithanon Nat. Park │ 22.–24.x.1984 ca. 1600 m │ Karsholt, Lombolt & Nielsen leg. │ Zool. Mus., Copenhagen’; 7 × 13 mm, print ‘ HOLOTYPE ♂ │ Nemophora │ nielseni Kozlov’ ( ZMUC) [examined] . Paratypes. 2 ♂ 1 ♀, labelled: 8 mm circle with yellow border, print ‘ Para- │ type’; same label as in holotype; 7 × 13 mm, print ‘ PARATYPE ♂ [or ♀] │ Nemophora │ nielseni Kozlov’ ( ZMUC) [examined] . 1♂, labelled as previous, but the third line of geographical label is ‘ 22.–23.x.1984 2200–2500 m’ ( ZMUC) [examined] .

Diagnosis. Nemophora nielseni is similar to N. aurifera ( Figs. 44–47 View FIGURES 41–48 ) and N. pruinosa Hirowatari, 2005 , from which it differs by the presence of silver-grey bands on both sides of the yellow medial band in forewing fascia, uniformly bronze basal half of the forewing, longer vinculum with gently W-shaped distal margin, and short thick subapical process on the dorsal side of phallus in male genitalia.

Description. Male ( Fig. 48 View FIGURES 41–48 ). FWL 8.0– 9.3 mm, WLR 0.30–0.33. Vertex pale to ochreous yellow, with sparse dark brown scales; frons glossy golden. PLB 0.6–0.7 × vertical eye diameter (1.0–1.1 × length of scape), light brown, with sparse raised yellow and dark brown scales. Proboscis brown, base covered with bronze scales. Eyes enlarged; interocular index 0.9–1.1; occipital distance 0.6–0.7. Antenna 3.4–3.5 × FWL, with simple inwardly directed pegs. Scape and base of flagellum dark coppery brown, apical part of flagellum bronze. Tegulae and thorax glossy bronze. Forewing ( Fig. 83 View FIGURES 63–88 ) bronze; fascia moderately wide (0.16–0.21 × FWL), straight, consists of narrow medial yellow band and two silver-grey bands separated from yellow band by narrow (1–3 scales) dark brown lines; internal margin of yellow band at 0.49–0.50 × FWL.Apical part of forewing (comprising about 0.3 × FWL) almost entirely covered by dark brown scales with pale yellow scales scattered among them. Fringe dark brown, with bronze lustre around apex. Hindwing brown, apically with coppery tint; costal area light grey to grey; R and M1 stalked; fringe dark brown at apex to brownish grey at dorsum. Legs dark brown with coppery lustre, except for yellow apical parts of all tarsomeres (extending 0.2–0.3 × tarsomere length); fore and mid legs darker than hind legs; hind femora basally yellow to light brown, with sparse raised piliform scales. Epiphysis at 0.5, almost reaching apex of tibia. Abdomen brown with bronze lustre; distal parts of basal sternites with pale yellow scales.

Female ( Fig. 49 View FIGURES 49–56 ). Antenna 1.4 × FWL; basal part of flagellum (up to forewing fascia) slightly thickened by appressed coppery bronze scales; distal part of flagellum brown. Otherwise similar to male.

Male genitalia ( Fig. 105 View FIGURES 100–105 ). Tegumen onion-shaped, with small medial ridge. Socii elongate, 1.3 × diameter of phallus. Vinculum 3.1 × length of valva, V-shaped, with slightly concave lateral margins; distal margin gently Wshaped. Tip of tegumen extends beyond tips of valvae. Ventral margin of valva medially with small lobe; dorsal margin straight; tip of valva rounded. Valvae fused basally up to 0.35 × total length; internal valvar margins distinct. Anellus 0.4 × length of valva. Transtilla with relatively long (about 2 × length of socii) pointed medial process. Juxta 0.55 × length of phallus; arrow head moderately wide (WLR 0.5), with pointed tip and short pointed lateral arms. Phallus of about the same length as vinculum, almost straight, with short thick process on dorsal side at 0.8 × total length of phallus (counting from its base). Apex of phallus formed by gently curved thin ventral process and serrate lobe, tip of which reaches 0.65 of distance between base of finger-like dorsal process and tip of phallus; base of phallus narrowly funnel-shaped.

Distribution. Thailand (this study).

Etymology. The species is named after the late Ebbe Schmidt Nielsen (1950–2001), an Australian lepidopterologist of Danish origin, who greatly advanced the studies of archaic moths and participated in the expedition that collected the type material.