Nymphicula cheesmanae, Agassiz, David, 2014

Agassiz, David, 2014, A preliminary study of the genus Nymphicula Snellen from Australia, New Guinea and the south Pacific (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea: Crambidae: Acentropinae), Zootaxa 3774 (5), pp. 401-429 : 416

Nymphicula cheesmanae sp. n.

Description of imago (fig. 25). Wingspan 10–12mm. Head whitish; labial palpus terminal segment whitish, much longer than second; second segment brown; antenna brownish white; thorax and abdomen pale brown.

Forewing base brown; antemedian fascia whitish; median zone lightly scattered with brown scales; first strigula white, becoming ochreous towards costa; second strigula white in costal half, ochreous towards costa, leaden dorsally; terminal area orange, but heavily edged brown around all markings; tornal spot large, leaden, extended towards disc; terminal cilia fuscous, whitish above tornus.

Hindwing base brown; a white subbasal fascia; antemedian fascia brown with some yellow coloration near dorsum; medial zone irregularly scattered with brown scales, in the midst of it roughly forming a double line parallel to the dorsum, the inner line sharply angled back at apex parallel to costa; four eyespots separated by shining leaden studs; a further small leaden spot in the midst of eye-spot 4; orange between studs and termen; terminal cilia with a strong fuscous line.

Foreleg of male with first tarsus covered in brown scales; second tarsus white beneath, dark brown scales above; third tarsus brown scaled; fourth and fifth whitish. Legs of female pale straw. A blackish hair pencil on the thorax of male where it abuts the tympanal organs on the abdomen.

Tympanal organs (fig. 51): venulae secundae almost parallel, but suddenly divergent close to tympanal organs; venula media about half length of venulae secundae. Pons tympani narrow.

Male genitalia (fig. 71): abdomen with hair pencils half the length of the abdomen, and additional pair of scent organs arising the eighth abdominal segment. Valva simple, length = 4x width; gnathos half as long from as uncus. Aedagus as long as valva, a single slender cornutus.

Female genitalia (fig. 93): ductus bursae equal in length to corpus bursae; signum a broad dentate patch extending along the length of the corpus bursae.

Material examined. Holotype ♀ NEW HEBRIDES | Aneityum | Red Crest, 1200ft | 3m NE of Aneigauhat | 3 l or iv.1955 | L.E. Cheesman. + 52 paratypes with same data ( BMNH), including Pyralidae slide No. 17751 ♂, BMNH Pyralidae slide No. 17750 ♀. 25 further specimens from New Hebrides: Sarto, W.Sarto, Banks Is., Malekula, Efate, Tanna & Erromanga. 2 specimens in BMH.

Diagnosis. Distinguished by the broad separation of the subterminal lines of the hindwing from the terminal eye-spots.

Derivation. after the late Evelyn Cheesman who collected much valuable material from the South Pacific.

Distribution. Known only from the New Hebrides islands.