Strigivenifera smithi, Taberer, 2022

Taberer, Tabitha R., 2022, An updated review of the genus Strigivenifera Hering, 1937 (Lepidoptera Zygaenoidea: Chrysopolomidae) with the description of a new species, Zootaxa 5168 (1), pp. 51-62 : 54-58

Strigivenifera smithi sp. n.

Figs. 8–10 , 21–23

Holotype: Male , “ SIERRA LEONE 180m / Western Area Peninsula / Forest Reserve 17.x.15 / N08°20’57”; W13°10’42” / Light Trap R.Goff coll. / leg. Smith,R & Takano,H” // “ANHRTUK / 00164007” // “African Natural History / Research Trust / ANHRT:2018.18” // “ ANHRT / 01010 ” // “Gen. slide No. / TT 122 / prep. By T. R. Taberer ”. BOLD process id.: ANLMN8475-21.

Paratypes: Sierra Leone. 1 male, Western Area Peninsula Forest Reserve , 180 m, 08°20’57”N, 13°10’42”W, 21.ix.2015, Smith, R., Takano, H. leg., gen. slide No. TT 121 , BOLD process id.: ANLMN8474-21; 1 male, same site, 24.x.2015, Goff, R. leg., gen. slide No. TT 139 ( ANHRT) .

Description:

Adult morphology:

Male. Forewing length 21–23 mm. Head and palps ochreous-orange, clypeus beige, antenna black, bipectinate. Patagium beige. Thorax uniformly beige, dorsally with large central ochreous-orange ovoid patch with narrower, shorter ochreous-orange tegula patch. Legs ochreous-orange, tibia with beige hairs. Abdomen uniformly banded with beige and ochreous-orange hair scales. Upperside: forewing broad with rounded apex, ground colour beige but basal half strongly diffused with dark greyish-brown scales; veins strongly highlighted in brown along their entire length; discal spot pale beige, margin slightly diffuse; postmedial band pale brown, kinked at vein M1 curving inwardly; fringe long, brown. Hindwing ground colour identical to forewing except for a paler region along the costal margin; veins strongly highlighted in brown only beyond the postmedial band; postmedial band broader than that of forewing, brown, arcuate, terminating at vein M1; fringe long, brown. Underside: both wings uniform beige with reflective scales basally and along the veins; fringe pale brown. Forewing with small, brown discoidal marking; postmedial band weakly-defined, bolder towards costal margin. Hindwing postmedial band weakly-defined medially and boldest towards dorsum.

Female. Unknown.

Male genitalia. Uncus elongate, tapered, rounded and strongly sclerotised apically. Tegumen relatively narrow. Gnathos comprised of two slender, apically rounded distal processes and two thin, apically rounded proximo-lateral processes. Juxta with large, lobe-like base, and with two narrow, elongate, triangular, distally pointed and posteriorly heavily sclerotised caudal lobes accompanying aedeagus laterally. Vinculum broad, rounded. Valve triangular, wide at base, narrowing and rounded distally.Aedeagus slightly curved, thick, medium-long, proximally surrounded with heavily sclerotised manica fused ventrally to caudal lobes of juxta, distally weakly sclerotised, almost globular, with medial split, sometimes with a pair of very fine, thin cornuti. Vesica tubular, membranous.

Female genitalia. Unknown.

Diagnosis. The new species is identical in external appearance to S. eborea and cannot be readily distinguished. In the male genitalia, the species are again near-identical, except for the more intense sclerotisation along the posterior margin of the juxta caudal lobes in the new species; given the configuration of the aedeagus with the juxta, this is likely to be an important character directly linked to the copulation process. In addition, the juxta processes of S. smithi are slightly broader and shorter than in S. eborea . The largest distinction between the species can be seen in the barcoding data, but they can be easily distinguished geographically as S. smithi is likely to be restricted to the Western Area Peninsula of Sierra Leone.

When compared with the other West African Strigivenifera species, S. oris Kurshakov & Zolotuhin, 2013, the new species is generally slightly darker in appearance, and the hindwing postmedial band is much more curved and is darker in colour; in this case, the straight band of S. oris is very constant across specimens and is thus a good diagnostic character. In the male genitalia, the valve is markedly narrower and more rounded distally in the new species, and the caudal lobes of the juxta are much longer and more sclerotised posteriorly. Again, these species do not exist in sympatry and so specimens with good provenance cannot be confused.

Genetic information. The new species has been designated to the BIN BOLD:ABU6138 (n=3). The average intraspecific variation of this species is 0.2%. The nearest neighbour to S. smithi is the Central African sister species S. albidiscalis with an APWD of 5.9%, although it should be noted that the taxon sampling for this genus is incomplete.

Etymology. This new species is dedicated to Richard Smith, founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the African Natural History Research Trust, in grateful acknowledgment of my placement at the institution which has enabled me to study the family Chrysopolomidae .

Distribution. This species is presumably endemic to the Western Area Peninsula of Sierra Leone, a narrow chain of mountains comprised of mostly closed-canopy, evergreen forest, peaking at 900 m above sea level. It contains the only remaining patch of tropical rainforest in western Sierra Leone, and due to its isolation, several endemic species have been recorded from this range ( Okoni-Williams et al. 2001).

Figures

FIGURES 1–13. Adult male Strigivenifera (deposited at ANHRT unless otherwise stated). 1. S. albidiscalis, DRC (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8462-21/TT 118); 2. S. albidiscalis, Zambia (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8454- 21/TT 111); 3. S. albidiscalis, Zambia (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8460-21/TT 112); 4. S. eborea, Ivory Coast (BOLD process id./gen. slide No. ANLMN8471-21/TT 114); 5. S. eborea, Sierra Leone (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8472/TT 115); 6. S. eborea, Ivory Coast (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8466-21/TT 123); 7. S. eborea, Ivory Coast (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8465-21/TT 141); 8. S. smithi sp. n., HT, Sierra Leone (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8475-21/TT 122); 9. S. smithi sp. n., PT, Sierra Leone (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: AN- LMN8474/TT 121), 10. S. smithi sp. n., PT, Sierra Leone (gen. slide No.: TT 139); 11. S. bartschi (PT of S. tatooifera), DRC (gen. slide No.: CHRY-11-52) (RMCA); 12. S. bartschi, DRC (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN7892-21/TT 124); 13. S. bartschi, DRC (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN7890-21/TT 125).

FIGURES 21–26. Male genitalia of Strigivenifera (a. clasping apparatus; b. aedeagus). 21. S. smithi sp. n., HT, Sierra Leone (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.:ANLMN8475-21/TT 122); 22. S. smithi sp. n., PT, Sierra Leone (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN8474/TT 121), 23. S. smithi sp. n., PT, Sierra Leone (gen. slide No.: TT 139); 24. S. bartschi (PT of S. tatooifera), DRC (gen. slide No.: CHRY-11-52) (RMCA); 25. S. bartschi, DRC (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN7892-21/TT 124); 26. S. bartschi, DRC (BOLD process id./gen. slide No.: ANLMN7890-21/TT 125).