Tricerophora Janse, 1958

Bidzilya, Oleksiy V. & Mey, Wolfram, 2018, Review of the genus Tricerophora Janse, 1958 (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae) with description of six new species, Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 65 (1), pp. 81-98 : 81-82

Tricerophora Janse, 1958

Telphusa commaculata Type species: Meyrick, 1921 Moths of South Africa 6 (1): 64

Leucophylla Janse, 1960, Moths of South Africa 6 (2): 202, syn. n.

Leucophylla nigribasis Type species: Janse, 1960

Diagnosis.

Most of Tricerophora species are defined by white forewings with black pattern along longitudinal axis without transverse fasciae and dark spots in cell and fold that are common in many other genera of Gelechiidae . Thiotrichinae genus Polyhymno Chamners, 1874 has somewhat similar wing pattern to Tricerophora , but species of Polyhymno are usually smaller in size and pattern along longitudinal axis is brown rather than black in Tricerophora .

The tegumen with a strongly sclerotized posterior belt and lateral processes as well as very narrow, long uncus are considered to be presumed autapomorphies of Tricerophora .

The female genitalia are characterized by laterally sclerotized segment VIII, well developed antrum, entirely sclerotized ductus bursae in most species, and usually long, serrated arms of the signum.

Species of Tricerophora shares the male abdominal segment VIII separated into free tergum and sternum and the presence of a sub-rhomboid or hexagonal signum in females with members of the subfamily Gelechiinae (Huemer & Karsholt 1998: 19). The diagnosis of Gelechiinae was recently improved and clarified on the basis of DNA sequence data for one mitochondrial gene and seven nuclear genes ( Karsholt et al 2013). It confirmed the subdivision of subfamily into three tribes - Litini , Gelechiini and Gnorimoschemini based on above mentioned construction of male abdominal segment VIII that is considered as the only synapomorphy of Gelechiinae . Tricerophora along with most of related genera has not been considered in the recent classification of Gelechiidae ( Karsholt et al. 2013). However, we suggest, that within this subfamily the male genitalia of Tricerophora display some similarity to those of the genus Trychnopalpa Janse, 1958 by the shape of the uncus ( Janse 1960: 203) and the posteriorely modified tegumen. The latter genus can be separated from Tricerophora by a quite different gnathos and the presence of well developed, paired process on the posterior margin of the vinculum. Both genera differ additionally in the shape of the phallus, which is shorter and devoid of cornuti in the vesica in Trychnopalpa . The genus Agnippe Chambers, 1872 shares with species of Tricerophora a long, flat gnathos, a long and narrow uncus, cornuti in the vesica but differs by the structure of the gnathos which is separated on dorsal and ventral parts, by the absence of posterior belt-shaped sclerite of tegumen and by the presence of a sclerotized plate in the vesica ( Bidzilya and Li 2010). The evenly sclerotized and unmodified sternum VIII and well developed antrum in the female genitalia indicate an affinity of Tricerophora with some genera of the tribe Gelechiini like Mirificarma Gozmány, 1955, Chionodes Hübner, [1825] and Aroga Busck, 1914. The female genitalia of Agnippe are similar to those of Tricerophora too, except for the corpus bursae with long accessory and spines inside that is characteristic for Agnippe . However, a somewhat similar but much shorter accessory is observed in T. nigrinervis which also points to a close relationship of both genera.

The tribal assignment of Tricerophora is rather questionable and difficult to determine. The tendency of forming an accessory bursae in the female genitalia is observed both in genera of Litini ( Parastenolechia Kanazwa, 1985; Parachronistis Meyrick, 1925) and Gelechiini ( Agnippe ). However, the long antrum, the well developed culcitula and the valva, divided into long cucullus and short sacculus are characteristic for Gelechiini (Ponomarenko 2005; Huemer and Karsholt 2010). So, we tentatively place Tricerophora into Gelechiini , until the systematic position of this genus will be clarified in future by using molecular methods.

The genus Leucophylla Janse, 1960 was established as monotypic for L. nigribasis Janse, 1960. Janse (1960) assumed a relationship of Leucophyla to Trychnopalpa by sharing the same form of the uncus in the male genitalia and a similar signum in the female genitalia. He mentioned that both genera differ in the scale cover of the labial palpi, wing venation and the shape of the phallus. The male genitalia of Leucophylla match well of those of T. commaculata , the type-species of the genus Tricerophora . Also, the female genitalia fit to T. commaculata except for the indistinctly formed ostium. However, the examination of the new species of Tricerophora shows that this character is rather variable: the ostium may be well developed or indistinct in species whose male genitalia undoubtedly match that of Tricerophora . Hence, the following synonymy is proposed here: Leucophylla Janse, 1960, syn. n. of Tricerophora Janse, 1958.

Description. Adult. Head smoothly scaled, ocelli absent, light, usually off-white or grey, labial palpus strongly up-curved, far protruding over the head, segment 2 with tuft of long scales at base, underside with short brush of scales; segment 3 about as long as segment 2, narrow, pointed. Scape without pecten, male flagellomeres finely ciliated underside.

Thorax white, often mottled with grey or brown, yellowish-white in T. minimorum ; tegulae the same color as thorax; forewing elongated, moderately narrow, wingspan 7.0-18.0 mm, ground color white to light grey with black pattern along veins, or forewing grey with basal touch at base of costal margin and diffuse black spots under costa ( T. nigribasis ); in T. minimorum the forewing is uniformly yellowish-white; hindwing grey, narrow with small subapical excavation, cilia grey.

Abdomen: Male tergum VIII longer than broad, tongue-shaped or triangular, with long haired coremata at base, sternum VIII broader than long, posterior margin broadly rounded. Female segment VII 1.5 times as long as rest of abdominal segments, trapezoidal, weakly narrowed posteriorly.

Male genitalia. Posterior margin of tegumen strongly sclerotized forming a belt-shaped sclerite terminated laterally in narrow short processes (reduced in T. rukinga ), medially with a stout, long, narrow uncus with a pointed tip; gnathos flat, weakly sclerotized, elongated; culcitula well developed, membranous; tegumen sub-rectangular, about twice as long as broad, anterior margin with deep, triangular emargination; valva elongated, narrow or moderately broad, straight, of even width or curved inwards at 1/3, densely covered with hairs after halfway; sacculus short and slender in most species, merged with valva in T. acutivalva or stout, broad, with inwardly curved tip in T. rukinga , displaced medially in T. commaculata , posterior margin with weakly sclerotized, medial lobe; saccus long and narrow, sub-triangular in T. rukinga and T. acutivalva ; phallus tubular, weakly swollen on base (except for T. rukinga ), with lateral sclerotized filaments, vesica with one or two ( T. nigrinervis ) cornuti.

Female genitalia. Segment VIII slightly longer than broad, weakly sclerotized; sternum VIII simple, evenly sclerotized, usually more or less covered with microtrichia, with narrow lateral sclerites extending from the base of apophysis anterioris to the posterior margin of sternum, anterior margin strongly sclerotized, projecting medially into well developed tubular or funnel-shaped antrum; ostium rounded, ovate or funnel-shaped, strongly edged with several transverse rings, placed near posterior margin of sternite VIII, or indistinct; apophysis anterioris narrow, straight, about as long as length of segment VIII or longer, apophysis posterioris three-five times as long as apophysis anterioris; ductus bursae varies considerably in length and width, with long sclerotized portion that is connected with antrum or separated ( T. nigribasis ), sometimes entirely sclerotized ( T. rukinga ), with numerous short teeth ( Tricerophora sp. A) or with serrated folds projecting into the corpus bursae ( T. nigrinervis ); corpus bursae rounded or sub-ovate, with posterolateral, partially sclerotized accessory in T. nigrinervis ; signum a sub-hexagonal plate with short lateral arms, deep medial ridge and long usually serrated laterally anterior and posterior arms.

Biology.

Host plant unknown. Adults have been collected from August to December, in February-March and in June in southern Africa up to 1740 m elevation (Brandberg Massive in Namibia), in November in Kenya, in August in DR Congo and in early June in South Iran.

Distribution.

Afrotropical Region (RSA, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Kenya, DR Congo) and Palaearctic Region (South Iran).