Megacraspedus libycus, Huemer, Peter & Karsholt, Ole, 2018

Huemer, Peter & Karsholt, Ole, 2018, Revision of the genus Megacraspedus Zeller, 1839, a challenging taxonomic tightrope of species delimitation (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae), ZooKeys 800, pp. 1-278 : 98-100

Megacraspedus libycus sp. n.

Examined material.

Holotype ♂, "[northern] LIBYA, Gharian Wadi el Hira, 7.iv.1983 Uffe Seneca" "GU 16/1435 ♂ P. Huemer" (ZMUC). Paratypes. Libya. 1 ♀, Gharian, Wadi el Hira, 25.iii.1983, leg. U. Seneca; 2 ♂, 1 ♀, same data, but 7.iv.1983, genitalia slides 6514 Hendriksen; 1 ♂, 2 ♀, same data, but 12.iv.1983, GU 17/1477 ♀ Huemer; 1 ♀, same data, but 15.iv.1984; 2 ♀, same data, but 22.iv.1983; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, same data, but 30.iv.1983 (all ZMUC). Morocco. 1 ♂, 2 ♀, Middle Atlas, Ifrane, 25.vi.1972, leg. F. Hahn, GU 18/1504 ♀ Huemer (SMNK); 2 ♀, same data, but 30.vi.1972, genitalia slide GEL 1266 ♀ Huemer (TLMF, ZSM).

Description.

Adult. Male (Figure 77). Wingspan 23-26 mm. Labial palpus long, porrect, dark brown mottled with white, especially on upper and lower surface; segment 3 reduced. Antennal pecten consisting of 1-3 hairs; flagellum greyish brown, indistinctly ringed with white. Head, thorax and tegula light greyish brown, thorax with dark streak in middle. Forewing brown; veins and narrow streak along costa and dorsum white; fringes grey. Hindwing grey with grey fringes.

Female (Figure 78). Wingspan 19-25 mm. Similar to male.

Variation. The examined specimens exhibit only slight variation. The dark streak on the thorax is often obsolete because specimens tend to be greasy. Worn specimens become lighter. Specimens from Morocco are generally lighter both on the forewings and hindwings.

Male genitalia (Figure 209). Uncus moderately broad, sub-rectangular, about two times longer than wide, apical corners rounded, apicomedially nearly pointed; gnathos hook stout, slightly shorter than uncus, evenly curved with pointed apex; anterior margin of tegumen with moderately broad and deep V-shaped excavation, medially with longitudinal sclerotised ridge from anterior edge to about middle; pedunculi large, suboval, with additional rounded sclerite; valva moderately stout, extending to posterior third of uncus, apex slightly swollen, weakly rounded, setose; saccular area covered with setae, without separated sacculus; posterior margin of vinculum with shallow medial emargination, weak lateral humps, elongated suboval vincular sclerite with strongly sclerotised posteriomedial edge; saccus long, irregularly V-shaped, basally broad, abruptly tapered to pointed apex at one-third, ratio maximum width to length approximately 0.6, posterior margin arched, without medial emargination, medial part smooth, without sclerotised ridge, lateral sclerites long and slender, about maximum width of saccus; phallus straight, with bulbous coecum, distal two-thirds slender, rod-like, sclerotised ridge with few minute subapical thorns.

Female genitalia (Figure 282). Papilla analis medium-sized, apically weakly pointed; apophysis posterior slender rod-like, approximately 2 mm long, bordered by large sclerotised field posteriorly, weak curvation at about one-third; segment VIII approximately 0.7 mm long, membranous; subgenital plate with band-like subostial sclerotisation, with broadly V-shaped projection anteriorly, posteriorly extended into very long, pointed sub-medial sclerites, delimiting oblong ostium bursae, anterior margin with rod-like edge connected with apophysis anterior; apophysis anterior slender, rod-like, almost length of segment VIII, posteriorly becoming rod-like venula of segment VIII, distinctly widening to oblong sclerotised zone, extending to posterior margin of segment VIII; antrum partially sclerotised, approximately 0.6 mm length; ductus bursae gradually widening to weakly delimited suboval corpus bursae, entire length of ductus and corpus bursae about 3 mm; signum moderately small, suboval spiny plate.

Diagnosis.

Megacraspedus libycus sp. n. is characterised by its large size, and by its contrasting brownish and white forewings. Externally it is hardly separable from M. ribbeella (Figs 75-76). The male genitalia are overall similar to other species of the M. fallax species group, particularly M. ribbeella (Figure 208), but differ in particular in the elongated saccus and the peculiar shape of the uncus. The female genitalia largely resemble those of M. gallicus sp. n. (Figure 280) but differ e.g., by the apically weakly pointed papilla analis. They are separable from M. ribbeella (Figure 281) by several characters such as the rod-like medial part of the apophysis anterior and the rod-like anterior edge of segment VIII as well as the distinctly smaller signum.

Molecular data.

Not available, barcoding failed.

Distribution.

Libya, Morocco (Middle Atlas).

Biology.

Host plant and early stages are unknown. The adults have been collected from late March to the end of April at light, at higher altitudes in late June.

Etymology.

This species is named after its place of occurrence, Libya. The name is an adjective.

Remarks.

Females from Morocco fully agree with material from Libya in the genitalia, whereas one male is slightly different in having a shorter saccus.