Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999

Adamski, David, 2013, Review of the Blastobasinae of Costa Rica (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea: Blastobasidae), Zootaxa 3618 (1), pp. 1-223 : 41-42

Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999

( Figs. 13 , 85–86 , 257 , 285 , 329 , Map 10)

Diagnosis.— Blastobasis graminea is similar to B. neniae but differs from the latter by having a pale forewing with dark-brown scales overlaid on the wing veins, forming a streaked pattern [in most specimens]; a wider uncus; a narrower pigmented part of the gnathos; and a shorter anellus.

Re-description.—Head: Vertex and frontoclypeus orange gray. Outer surface of labial palpus brown intermixed with few pale orange-gray scales along apical margins of segments 1–2, segment 3 pale orange gray intermixed with few brown scales; inner surface pale orange gray. Antennal scape brown intermixed with pale orange-gray scales along basal and apical margins, pecten pale orange gray, flagellum brownish gray on basal 1/2, pale brownish gray on apical 1/2; first flagellomere in male dilated, inner surface of dilated part with 38 palmate sex scales (n=1), ( Fig. 285 ). Proboscis pale orange gray.

Thorax: Tegula with basal 1/3 brown, apical 2/3 pale orange gray; mesonotum brown intermixed with darkbrown scales. Legs brown intermixed with pale-brown scales near midsegments and along apical margins of all segments and tarsomeres. Forewing ( Fig. 329 ): Length 8.9–9.0 mm (n = 3), pale orange brown intermixed with brown scales; costa and veins overlaid with dark-brown scales forming narrow streaks, or streaks faint or absent [in few specimens]; cell with three spots, one near middle, two on apical end along crossvein. Undersurface brown. Venation ( Fig. 13 ) with M3 and CuA1 arising from a common point on distoposterior part of cell; cubital veins divergent from bases, about as long as crossvein. Hindwing: Translucent pale brown. Venation ( Fig. 13 ) with cell closed, cubitus 4-branched with all veins arising submarginally from cubitus.

Abdomen: Male genitalia ( Figs. 85–86 ): Uncus gradually narrowing from widened base, abruptly widened subapically, forming slightly rounded and protuberant margin, gradually narrowed apically, forming broadly rounded apex, shorter than width of anal opening. Dorsal strut of tegumen absent. Gnathos wide, confluent with tegumen, posteroventral margin slightly protracted mesially, bidentate; midwidth of pigmented part of gnathos wider than midwidth of uncus. Sockets of tergal setae extending beyond midlength of tegumen. Valva divided; ventral part nearly parallelsided basally, narrowed apically, forming inwardly curved spinelike process; process setose on outer surface, planate on inner surface; ventral margin setose from beyond base, upturned slightly near 2/ 3, forming narrow fold to near a setose lobe at base of apical process; dorsal part with apical portion of costa extending dorsolaterally, forming setose digitate process; area beneath costa overlaid with microtrichiate membrane, extending above and below phallus to opposite side; basal ridge of digitate process protracted ventrally fusing with dorsolateral ridge of proximal flange; basal margin of proximal flange linear, extending to a rounded and protuberant ridge; proximal flange bearing many conical setae intermixed with short, sparse microtrichiae. Juxta bandlike. Vinculum semicircular. Phallus and sclerite of phallus longer than valva; sclerite of phallus subsigmoid-shaped; anellus wide basally, extending to broadly rounded apex, setose along apical 2/3. Female Genitalia ( Fig. 257 ): Apophyses posteriores nearly 3X longer than apophyses anteriores. Eighth tergum with a slightly elongate, darkly pigmented, median longitudinal streak throughout most of length. Ostium bursae within membrane, slightly posterior to seventh segment. Antrum, wide, shallow. Ductus bursae about as long as apophyses posteriores, with short, parallelsided duct connecting dilated part of ductus seminalis and inception of ductus seminalis from a shared point. Inception of ductus seminalis slightly anterior to posterior margin of seventh sternum; posterior margin of seventh sternum nearly straight. Ductus bursae nearly 2X length of apophyses posteriores; with two rows of imbricate platelets within anterior 1/4, gradually becoming sparser posteriorly. Corpus bursae ovoid, sparsely spinulate, with small bulla on posterior end; signum spinate, arising from small, rounded base near middle.

Type examined: Holotype, Ƥ, “ Colombia: Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario, Experiment Station “Palmira,” Cauca Valley, 1 March-15 March 1991, Ex. Sugar cane, Coll. Lucero Cárdenas Duque, Emerged 21 April-1 May 1991 ” [USNM].

Other Specimens Examined: (1 3, 2 ƤƤ): Costa Rica: Alajuela Province, Grecia: Reared specimens from sugar cane: 3 USNM Slide No. 83574; Ƥ USNM Slide No. 83573; Ƥ USNM Wing Slide No. 83226 [USNM].

Distribution (Map 10). Blastobasis graminea was described from Colombia and Venezuela Adamski (1999a) and has been recorded from Mexico (Autlan and Veracruz) and the southeastern United States (Jefferson and LaFourche Parishes in southern Louisiana). In Costa Rica it is known from one collecting site in the north-central part of the country along the Cordillera Central.

Remarks: This species is a stem borer feeding on Saccharum officinarum L., Sorghum aethiopicum Hackel Ruprecht ex Stapf. , Zea mays L., Coix lacryma-jobi L., Setaria paniculifera Fournier , and Spartina alterniflora Loisel. (Poaceae) . The biology of B. graminea is documented by Cárdenas et al., (1985) from Colombia, and Guagliumi (1962) recognized it in Venezuela. B. graminea was reported from Mexico by Villanueva-Jimenez et al., (2002), and from Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean by Adamski et al., (2002), and from the United States by White et al., (2005). In Costa Rica, B. graminea is known to feed only on sugar cane.

Figures

FIGURES 11 – 20. Wing venation of Blastobasinae. 11, Blastobasis erae (slide 7040). 12, Blastobasis iuanae (slide 7045). 13, Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999 (slide 83226). 14, Blastobasis neniae (slide 7055). 15, Blastobasis orithyia (slide 7053). 16, Blastobasis babae (slide 7049). 17, Blastobasis echus (slide 7036). 18, Blastobasis coffeaella (Busck, 1925) (USNM slide 83227). 19, Blastobasis rotullae (slide 7041). 20, Blastobasis deliciolarum (slide 7047).

FIGURES 81 – 86. Male genitalia of Blastobasinae. 81 – 82, Blastobasis iuanae (slide 3778). 83 – 84, Blastobasis xiphiae (slide 3599). 85 – 86, Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999 (slide 4223).

FIGURES 257 – 259. Female genitalia of Blastobasinae. 257, Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999 (Slide 83226). 258, Blastobasis coffeaella (Busck, 1925) (Slide 83227). 259, Blastobasis vesta (Slide 6016).

FIGURES 284 – 291. Male sex scales on first flagellomere of Blastobasis. 284, Blastobasis iuanae. 285, Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999. 286, Blastobasis xiphiae. 287, Blastobasis neniae. 288, Blastobasis achaea. 289, Blastobasis orithyia. 290, Blastobasis babae. 291, Blastobasis thyone.

FIGURES 328 – 335. Imagos of Blastobasinae. 328, Blastobasis xiphiae, holotype. 329, Blastobasis graminea Adamski, 1999. 330, Blastobasis neniae, holotype. 331, Blastobasis achaea, holotype. 332, Blastobasis orithyia, holotype. 333, Blastobasis babae, holotype. 334, Blastobasis thyone, holotype. 335, Blastobasis usurae, holotype.