Pterophorus shevnini, 2020

Ustjuzhanin, P. Ya., Kovtunovich, V. N. & Streltzov, A. N., 2020, To the fauna of plume moths (Lepidoptera, Pterophoridae) of the Maluku islands with description of two new species of the genus Pterophorus Schдffer, 1766, Russian Entomological Journal 29 (3), pp. 285-288 : 287-288

Pterophorus shevnini

Ustjuzhanin et Kovtunovich sp.n.

Figs 3–4 .

TYPE MATERIAL: Holotype, ♂, ( BMNH gen.pr. 22800), [ Maluku Islands], Batian, Doherty, 1892. No. Walsingham Collection. B.M. 1910–427.

DESCRIPTION. External characters. Forehead with tightly clinging light-brown scales. Labial palpi straight, apically sharp, equal to longitudinal eye diameter. Antennae thin, brown. Thorax and tegulae light-brown. Wingspan 30 mm. Fore wings light-yellow, lobes deeply split. Small dark spot at cleft base. Four dark spots along costa of first lobe. Small black spot on second lobe medially, significantly larger spot distally. Fringe inside cleft white with portions of brownish hairs medially. White fringe along outer edge of second lobe. Hind wings unicolorous, light-yellow, distinct dark points only on second lobe medially, distally and apically. Fringe on hind wings white. Hind legs light-brown, with distinctively black tips.

Male genitalia. Valves symmetric, oval-elongated, slightly widened medially, noticeably narrowing distally, with claw-shaped harpes, the left process of which is thicker than right one. Saccus horseshoe-shaped, with round cut. Anellus arms short. Uncus thin, medially curved smoothly, apically sharp. Aedeagus short, almost straight, twice shorter than valve.

Female genitalia. Unknown.

DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS. In the distinctively blackened tips of the hind legs and in the position of the dark spots on the lobes of all wings, the new species is similar to Pterophorus melanopodus (Fletcher, 1907) , but it is absolutely different in its genital structure. In the symmetric genitalia, the shape of the aedeagus and harpes on the valves, the species is close to P. laocaiensis Ustjuzhanin et Kovtunovich, 2015 and P. lacteipennis (Walker, 1864) , but the new species differs from both of them in its claw-like harpes, while in P. laocaiensis the harpes are forked, consisting of two wide arms, and in P. lacteipennis the harpes are robust, wide, distally forming a short fork.

ETYMOLOGY. The species is named after Evgeniy Shevnin (Novosibirsk, Russia), biologist-naturalist who has been providing assistance in our work for many years.

Acknowledgements. The authors express their deep gratitude to Mr. Kevin Tuck, the former curator of the lepidopterological collection of BMNH, London, for the possibility to work with the collection of Pterophoridae . We are also grateful to Oleg Gorbunov (Moscow, Russia) for his collected material on plume moths of the Maluku Islands.

Competing interests. The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figs 3–4. Pterophorus shevnini, sp.n., male, holotype: 3 — habitus; 4 — male genitalia (BMNH gen.pr. 22800). Рис. 3–4. Pterophorus shevnini, sp.n., самец, голотип: 3 — внешний вид; 4 — гениталии самца (BMNH gen.pr. 22800).