Barsine podbolotskayae, Spitsyn, Vitaly M. & Bolotov, Ivan N., 2018

Spitsyn, Vitaly M. & Bolotov, Ivan N., 2018, Barsinepodbolotskayae sp. n. from Flores Island, Lesser Sunda Archipelago, Indonesia (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae), ZooKeys 768, pp. 105-111 : 105-107

Barsine podbolotskayae sp. n. Figs 1, 2, 3

Type material.

Holotype: ♂, INDONESIA, Lesser Sundas, East Nusa Tenggara, Flores Island: Sano Ngoang Lake, camp site, secondary mountain forest with old nutmeg trees on a hill slope, 8°42'33.50"S, 119°59'51"E, 21-22 January 2015, Bolotov leg., in RMBH (voucher no. Sph0682). Paratypes: 3♂♂, 2♀♀, same data as holotype, all in RMBH (vouchers nos. Sph0683, Sph0731, Sph0732, Sph0733 and Sph0734).

Diagnosis.

The new species externally resembles Barsine exclusa Butler, 1877, similarly patterned on forewing, both showing the outer boundary of the discal patch of ground color lined by W-shaped postmedial line. However, the new species differs by the lack of a discal spot within that patch (vs presence of a gray discal spot), its bright crimson-colored hindwing (vs pinkish-yellow or pinkish-white), and stronger developed gray markings on forewing, with broad dark shading beyond the postmedial line (vs weaker developed gray markings and lack of broad dark terminal shading). The male of B. podbolotskayae sp. n. can be distinguished from those of all other known species of Barsine , including B. exclusa , by a dorsally directed, robust, spine-like central costal process of the valve and a bundle of dorsally directed, long setae proximal to it (vs lack of such features). It differs from B. exclusa also by the narrower neck of cucullus, this rounded and apically setose (vs wider neck of acutely pointed cucullus).

Description.

Male. Wingspan 22-24 mm, forewing length 11-12 mm (N = 4). Eye black; antenna red dorsally and gray ventrally; frons red-orange, vertex orange with black spot in the middle; labial palpus stout, straight and short (equal to eye diameter), brick red. Thorax dorsally orange-red; patagium and tegula brick-red with black spot in the middle; underside and legs crimson. Forewing upperside brick red, with a few indistinct gray dots in basal area, angled antemedial and medial wide gray lines joined at middle in shape of ‘X’ mark (Fig. 1A). Outer boundary of discal patch of ground color W-shaped due to inwardly projected jags from postmedial line, this gray too; distal field with extended dark gray suffusion and some indistinct gray dots. Hindwing upperside uniformly bright crimson. Underside of both wings crimson-red, with brownish shading near apex (Fig. 1B). Abdomen light crimson.

Female. Wingspan 27-28 mm, forewing length 13-14 mm (N = 2). Patterned as in male (Fig. 1 C–D).

Male genitalia. Tegumen comparatively long and broad; saccus broad, short, V-shaped (Fig. 2A). Valva narrow, elongated; costa with single robust, straight spine-like central process, approximately perpendicular, and subbasal bundle of stiff, dorsally directed long setae; neck of cucullus narrower than cucullus, this membranous, rounded and distally setose; sacculus weakly developed, consisting of a fold on the inner surface of the valva. Uncus long and thin, laterally compressed, broadened subapically and slightly curved, with spine-like apex. Scaphium narrow. Juxta broad, U-shaped, weakly sclerotized. Aedeagus short and broad; vesica broad, with two sclerotised plates bearing numerous teeth, and two granulose fields (Fig. 2B).

Female genitalia. Ostium bursae broad, funnel-shaped, sclerotized, fused with the seventh sternite; antrum not traced; ductus bursae very short, sclerotized (Fig. 2C). Bursa copulatrix elliptical, thickly covered with long spinules in medial and posterior sections, with strongly sclerotized cervix. Apophyses anteriores and posteriores of similar length, long and thin. Papillae anales (ovipositor lobes) broad, with rounded edges, covered densely with long fine setae.

Etymology.

This new species is named in memory of Dr. Marina V. Podbolotskaya (1956-2014), a well-known Russian entomologist.

Distribution.

Flores Island, Lesser Sunda Archipelago; only known from the type locality (Fig. 3).

Conservation status.

The new species appears to be Critically Endangered (CR B1a) because it is known to exist at only a single location.

Remarks.

Here we placed B. podbolotskayae sp. n. within the genus Barsine but its placement is in need of further investigation. Features of the costal margin of valva have so far not been found in any other known members of the genus (cf. Černý and Pinratana 2009; Holloway 2001; Bucsek 2012; Volynkin and Černý 2017a, b, c, 2018), so that solely on these grounds B. podbolotskayae sp. n. might represent another genus. Nonetheless, we hesitate to erect a new genus for this species pending upon a thorough review of Barsine , Cyme and other closely related genera, whose systematic relationships are still largely unclear and need to be phylogenetically assessed ( Holloway 2001; Volynkin and Černý 2017c).