Phyllocnistis ohshimai Brito & Lopez-Vaamonde, sp. nov.

Figs. 3N, 4N, 5, 6C, S 1; Tab. 2

Type material. French Guiana: Nouragues Natural Reserve, 4°2’16.8” N 52°40’22.8” W, 57 m elevation. Preserved dried and pinned. C. Lopez Vaamonde leg., 05.IX.2010. HOLOTYPE: #m (Sample ID: CLV1367; Process ID: LNOUC304–10), with genitalia on slide (GRPM 50–142), deposited at MNHN. Cluster number BOLD: AAV4629 .

Diagnosis. Dorsal forewing: lf short, without clear marked borders; tf2 short and faded, almost restricted to costal margin; tf3 and tf4 distinct from each other, crossing the wing entirely; absence of as; presence of a small group of pale yellow scales, forming an additional, weakly defined blotch close to inner margin in region I. This species is similar to P. meliacella, from which in addition to the above listed differences differs by having a longer aedeagus.

Description (Figs. 3N, S 1; Tab. 2). Forewing length: 2.02 mm (n=1). Head: covered with white silver scales; antennae with the same coloration, long and filiform. Thorax: forewing with ground color white silver and pale yellow fasciae. lf with no marked borders, emerging from the wing base and running straight to median (II) region, ending close to tf1. Small pale yellow blotch with no border found on the inner margin, at the proximal region of the wing (I). tf1 wide, c-shaped and with darkened border crossing the wing entirely; it bears a small dark brown blotch on the inner margin of the distal border. tf2 faded and short, almost restricted to the costal margin of middle (II) region. tf3 and tf4 distinct from each other, crossing the wing entirely in the distal (III) region. As absent. Costal strigulae (a–c) emerging from tf2 to tf4, respectively; two additional strigulae emerge from the tf3 and tf4 at the inner margin. Abdomen: covered by white silver scales.

Male genitalia (Fig. 6C): pair of coremata formed by long and flattened scales, located between the VIII and the IX abdominal segments, ~1/2 length of valva. Uncus absent. Tegumen membranous, wrinkled, slightly narrower on the basal region, not longer than valva; one set of median size spines found on the basal region of the tegumen. Saccus u-shaped, ~0.6 x the size of valva. Valva narrow and digitiform, with a small spine at the apex, surrounded by a set of small setae; along the valva, median sized spines randomly arranged. Aedeagus long, ~1.5 x the length of valva, cylindrical, membranous, wrinkled and with a slightly convex apex.

Female genitalia: unknown.

Geographical distribution (Fig. 5). P. ohshimai is known only from Nouragues Natural Reserve, French Guiana.

Natural history. The only adult was collected at light, by the species co-author (C.L.–V.).

Host plant(s). Unknown.

Etymology. The species name is a patronym in honor of Dr. Issei Ohshima for his outstanding contribution to evolutionary ecology and systematics of Gracillariidae .