Ukamenia babeana Heppner & Bae, 2020

Heppner, John B. & Bae, Yang-Seop, 2020, A new species of Ukamenia from Vietnam (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae: Olethreutinae Gatesclarkeanini), Zootaxa 4743 (2), pp. 280-284 : 281-283

Ukamenia babeana Heppner & Bae , new species

( Fig. 1 -4)

Type locality: Vietnam (Ba Be Natl. Park, Bac Kan Province).

Diagnosis. This species is distinctive in the female genitalia, with a wide, massively sclerotized, tubular, sclerotized protrusion from the ostium in the female (compared to a narrow protrusion in U. sapporensis ). The black-brown forewings with numerous blue-metallic spots are otherwise distinctive for both species of Ukamenia , as also the dull tan-brown head and thorax.

Description. Wing expanse: 15.4 mm female (n = 1).

Female ( Fig. 1 ). Head ( Fig. 2‒3 ): Vertex and frons brown with scales tan-tipped; labial palpi similar but with bands of brown on second and distal segments; antenna and scape tan, with scattered dark brown scales dorsally, venter light tan. Thorax: Brown with scales tan-tipped, and with blue spots on patagia, blue medial line and at posterior ends of tegulae; venter white-tan with golden iridescence. Legs with coxae tan and golden; tibiae and femorae dark brown, mesally golden (ventrally pale tan); tarsi dark brown, with segmental ends margined with white-tan. Forewing ( Fig. 1 ) overall FIG. 4. Ukamenia babeana n. sp., female genitalia, with details. A. Sterigma and ostium. B. signum at posterior end of bursa (gen. slide JBH 3131).

black-brown, with numerous blue-iridescent spots, scattered and subequidistant on basal half of forewing, with the distal margin of this blue-spotted field being angeled toward tornus, and with the distal 1/3 of forewing with the blue posts more densely arranged in a rough subterminal band and leaving the apical 1/4 with only a few blus spots on a dark orange field; a terminal fine black line; fringe silvery gray; venter gray (with copper-golden iridescence), with pale white on dorsal margin. Hindwing dark gray-brown, paler on basal half; fringe brown, distally dull white; venter gray, with copper-golden iridescence. Abdomen: Lustrous gray-brown; venter silver-white and gradually to dark gray on posterior segments; genital tufts dark gray. Female genitalia (Fig. 4) with ovipositor relatively short (length subequal to last abdominal segment); pa- pilla anales nearly flattened, setose with ragged emarginations; sterigma circular with weak basal band around the ostium and with a greatly extended and heavily sclerotized tubular projection (as long as ovipositor); ductus bursae posteriorly as narrow colliculum-like sclerotized tube, then gradually broadening towards the bursa as a single coil before entering bursa; ductus seminalis emergent from posterior area of widened ductus bursae just anterior to sclerotized tubular sec- tion and narrow until ovate bulla seminalis; corpus bursae ovate and overall scobinate, with single ventral circular and centrally 4-pointed, star-like signum and surrounded by denser scobinations.

Male unknown.

Holotype. ♀, Ba Be Natl. Pk. (elev. 255 m), Bac Kan Prov., Vietnam, 20‒23 Sep 2013, J. B. Heppner (gen. slide JBH 3131; photo 11830) (deposited at McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, MGCL).

Etymology. The species is named after Ba Be National Park, Bac Kan Province, Vietnam.

Biology. Unknown. Ukamenia sapporensis is known to feed on Castanea and Quercus (Fagaceae) , Hamamelis (Hamamelidaceae) , and Vaccinium (Ericaceae) , thus the hostplant for the new species may also be among these plant families.

Distribution. Known only from northern Vietnam. Whereas U. sapporensis occurs from northern China to the Russian Far East and Korea to Japan, the new species may range beyond northern Vietnam since the border with China (Yunnan) is nearby.

Discussion. The new species is a surprising addition to the genus Ukamenia , being so distant from the known range of U. sapporensis , as well as not having been discovered previously in Vietnam after many years of intensive collecting of micro-moths. Since the male of the new species remains unknown, the male genitalia of U. sapporensis ( Fig. 5 ) are shown herein for future comparison for what may be similar morphology of male U. babeana . Likewise, the female genital characters are shown for U. sapporensis ( Fig. 6 ) for comparisons: note the colliculum-like (narrow and with an external protrusion much longer in the new species), and the similar star-shaped signa (4-pointed in the new species, 5- or 6-pointed in U. sapporensis ).

We have two additional new species of blue-spotted olethreutines from northern Vietnam, both also known thus far from only single females, yet notwithstanding their similar wing maculation, these clearly represent species of the tribe Grapholitini based on their genitalia and other morphological features.

Figures

FIG. 1. Ukamenia babeana, n. sp., female holotype (15.4 mm wingspan) (MGCL).

FIGS 2‒3. Head of Ukamenia babeana, n. sp., female. 2. Lateral view. 3. Dorsal view.

FIGS 5‒6. Ukamenia sapporensis (Japan). 5. Male genitalia (after Oku 1981; drawn by J. Wassendorf, for A. Diakonoff). 6. Female genitalia (after Oku 1981).