Thubdora biocoica Park & Karisch, 2021

Park, Kyu-Tek & Karisch, Timm, 2021, The family Lecithoceridae (Lepidoptera, Gelechioidea) from Bioko Island (Equatorial Guinea), with descriptions of five new species, Zootaxa 4995 (3), pp. 581-593 : 583-585

Thubdora biocoica Park & Karisch , sp. nov.

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:FA969149-4920-4D42-8994-7D0BCC45C506

( Figs. 3A–G )

Type specimen. – Holotype: ♂, Equatorial Guinea, Island of Bioko (former Fernando Póo), Gran Caldera Volcanica de Luba u Ose, outer NNE slope about 4 km SSW Ruiche, 5 km S of Luba, higher altitude primary rain forest, 1200 m, 3°22’30” N 8°32’30” E, 20.viii.1994, at light, leg. T. Karisch, gen. slide no. 3823/Karisch, deposited in the MNVD.

Paratypes: 2♂, same data as the holotype ; 1♂, 18.viii.1994, gen. slide no. 3826/Karisch and the other 1♂, 20.viii.1994, gen. slide no. 3819/ Karisch, in coll. Karisch in SDEI .

Diagnosis. The new species is superficially similar to T. ghesquierei Park & De Prins, 2019 by having a similar wing pattern with a small yellowish-white costal patch prior to the apex. The male genitalia are also close to those of T. ghesquierei , but it can be distinguished from the latter by the juxta with a long, sharply produced median plate apically, about equal the length of the tegumen, and the aedeagus slender, as long as valva, narrowed toward apex, with a short apical spine, whereas in the latter, the aedeagus is shorter than the valva, nearly parallel-sided, lacking apical spine.

Description. Male ( Figs. 3 A–B ). Forewing length 8.5–9.0 mm.

Head: Dark brown dorsally, with pale-orange erect scales laterally; frons yellowish white. Antenna as long as forewing, with scape elongated; flagellum slightly ciliate-fasciculate, yellowish from the middle to tip, with dark annulations. Labial palpus with short 1 st segment; second segment falcate, curved upwards, pale ochreous; 3 rd segment slightly curved, slender, fuscous ventrally, pale ochreous dorsally, as long as 2 nd segment.

Thorax: Notum, tegula, and collar dark brown with iridescent coppery. Median legs with femur fuscous proximally, pale ochreous distally; tibia fuscous laterally, with two long spurs apically, the inner one about 3 times the length of the outer one. Hind legs with femur pale ochreous medially, fuscous laterally; tibia densely covered with yellowish hair-like scales, intermixed with brown, more brownish proximally, with a pair of spurs at middle and end, the inner one longer than the outer one; tarsi yellow, intermixed with brown ventrally. Forewing slightly dilated distally; ground color dark brown with iridescent copper red; costa slightly arched outward in basal 1/3, with a small yellowish costal patch at about 4/5; apex obtuse; termen nearly straight, with narrow pale-yellow marginal line; fringes concolorous with ground color. Hind wing broader than forewing, pale grayish brown; apex obtusely produced; termen oblique, with pale-yellow marginal line; fringes pale grayish brown.

Abdomen ( Fig. 3G ): Dark brown dorsally, often more grayish brown. Spinose zones on dorsal surface welldeveloped, with narrowly elongated zone on segment VII; with a pair of long hair-pencils between segment VII and VIII; sternite VIII with long, Y-shaped sclerite dorsally, and tergite modified into T-shaped sclerite along anterior margin.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 3D–F ): Uncus bifurcate, with thumb-like caudal lobes, deeply emarginated into U-shape medially. Gnathos small, with small median process, strongly bent downward with a nearly right angle beyond 3/5, sharply acute. Tegumen incised into inverted V-shape on anterior margin. Valva nearly parallel-sided from base, more or less truncated on apical margin. Juxta with a long, sharply produced median plate apically, as long as tegumen. Aedeagus slender, as long as valva, with short apical spine; cornutus with heavily sclerotized spine apically.

Female unknown.

Distribution. So far only known from the SW part of Bioko island.

Etymology. The species name is derived from the type locality, Bioko.

Figures

FIGURE 3. Thubdora biocoica Park & Karisch, sp. nov.: A, adult, holotype; B, labial palpi in lateral view; C, label; D, male genitalia, gen. slide no. 3823/Karisch; E, aedeagus; F, close-up uncus+juxta; G, abdominal segment VII-VIII. Scale bar for the genitalia and aedeagus: 1.0 mm.