Galethalea machadoi, Pinheiro, Lívia R., 2016

Pinheiro, Lívia R., 2016, Description of three new species of Galethalea Butler, 1876 (Lepidoptera: Erebidae), with comments on the genus, Zootaxa 4078 (1), pp. 354-365 : 362-364

Galethalea machadoi sp. nov.

( Figures. 4 , 20–23 )

Holotype male, ECUADOR, Zamora-Chinchipe, Rio San Francisco, Estación Científica San Francisco T1-11(18), 3°58'S, 79°04'W, 2675 m, 23.x.2000, LF II 19:00–19:30 (G. Brehm); SMNS - Lep 2001-06. Dissection number 3417 (L. Pinheiro), kept in vial ( SMNS). Five paratypes. ECUADOR: Zamora-Chinchipe, Rio San Francisco, Estación Científica San Francisco, SW1(7), 3°58'S, 79°04'W, 1920 m, 3.xi.2002, LF I 18:45–19:15 (N. Hilt & C. Schulze) ( SMNS), 1 male; same, SW2(9), 1900 m, 13.iv.2002, LF VI 21:15–21:45 (N. Hilt & D. Fetting) ( SMNS), 1 male; same, SG1(8), 1912 m, 23.x.2003, LF I 18:45–19:15 (N. Hilt & C. Ramenda) ( SMNS), 1 male; same, SW2(9), 1900 m, 13.iv.2002, LF II 19:15–19:45 (N. Hilt & D. Fetting) ( SMNS), 1 male; same, GL1(11), 1863 m, 3.ix.2003, LF VI 21:15–21:45 (N. Hilt & C. Ramenda) ( SMNS), 1 male.

Diagnosis ♂. Antennae black, except for the anterior and inner surface of the scape, white. Frontoclypeus almost entirely black. Mesoscutellum with one white area. Metascutellum black. FW predominantly black, with various white spots. HW with a very small hyaline area. T8 black.

Description ♂. Head. Proboscis light brown. Palpi three segmented, reaching vertex. First two segments black. Third segment twice as long as wide, black, except for the apical surface, white. Antennae black, except for the scape and pedicel, with few white scales anteriorly. Pectination starting in the second flagellomere. Frontoclypeus almost as wide as long, black. Vertex black with few white scales at its anterior margin. Occiput and ocular ring black. Cervical scales orange. Thorax. Mesothorax predominantly black, with a white medial area. Metascutellum black. Patagia black, with a white spot near the external margin. Tegulae predominantly black, with white scales at the anterior margin and medially. Epimera and episterna with long black scales. Ventral surface of the forecoxae black proximally and white distally. Lateral surface black. Forefemora black with a white midventral spot and white proximal margin. Foretibiae and tarsi black with white distal ends. Midcoxae white anteriorly and laterally. Midfemora black, except for the proximal and distal margins, and for a small mid-ventral spot, white. Midtibiae black with white proximal and distal margins, spurs either black or white. Midtarsi black with white distal ends, sometimes with the second segment also white at the distal end. Hindlegs as midlegs. FW. Entirely scaled. Axillary scales white. Dorsal surface predominantly covered by black scales. Pattern of the dorsal surface of the forewings consisting of various white spots. Fringe of the external margin with black scales, except for the area corresponding to cell CuA2-CuP and for the apex, with white scales. Pattern of the ventral surface simpler than that of the dorsal surface, composed of black scales and fewer white areas than the dorsal surface. Venation as in G. wolfei sp. nov. HW. Margins and veins with black scales, part of the central portion hyaline, with the hyaline portion bearing very small setae. Discal cell predominantly hyaline, a small area at the distal portion of the posterior half with sparsely distributed scales. Proximal portions of cells M2-M3, M3-CuA1, and CuA2-CuP also with sparsely distributed scales. Proximal half of cell CuP-1A hyaline. Cell 1A-2A densely scaled, except for the region adjacent to vein 1A, sparsely scaled. Venation also as in G. wolfei sp. nov. Abdomen. T1–2 and T8 black. T3–7 predominantly black, with two latero-posterior orange spots. Hair-like scales on T1–4. S2–7 whitish ventrally and black laterally; S8 black. Coremata present on ventral intersegmental membrane 7–8. Anterior margin of T8 with two small sacular projections. Male genitalia. Ejaculatory duct longer than aedoeagus, inserted dorsally. Coecum rounded. Aedoeagus straight, approximately the same width throughout. Vesica slightly shorter than aedoeagus when fully everted, mostly membranous. Posterior region of vesica with a small sclerotized area and tiny cornuti. Saccus developed, slightly asymmetrical; posterior margin somewhat pointed. Tegumen composed of two oblique plates connected by the posterior margin. Two dorsal, glabrous, heavily sclerotized projections arising near the base of the uncus, with pointed apex and situated between the lobe of the uncus in ventral view. Base of the uncus sclerotized, with few setae, much wider than its lobe, which is short and turned ventrally. Valvae bilobed, asymmetrical, the right valve exceeding uncus, and the left valve reaching it. In both valvae, ventral lobe more sclerotized and longer than the dorsal lobe. Inner surface of each valve with a filiform projection. Ventral surface of both valvae densely covered by setae, dorsal suface with much less setae. Transtilla approximately as sclerotized as the juxta.

Etymology. This species is dedicated to Dr. Angelo B. M. Machado on the occasion of his 80th birthday.

Remarks. Galethalea machadoi sp. nov. is similar to G. d a v i d i Dognin, 1889, which also has Ecuador as its type locality. The main external differences between G. machadoi sp. nov. and G. davidi are the proximal brown markings in the forewings, more extensive in G. machadoi sp. nov. than in G. d a v i d i, and the hindwings, more brown in the former around the edges of the wings. The genitalia of both species are quite distinct, the most remarkable differences being the densely setose dorsal projections in G. d a v i d i and the asymmetrical valvae in G. machadoi sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 4. Habitus of Galethalea species, dorsal views. 1. syntype of Galethalea davidi; 2. holotype of G. portoricensis sp. nov.; 3. holotype of G. wolfei sp. nov.; 4. holotype of G. machadoi sp. nov. Scale bars = 10 mm.

FIGURES 20 – 23. Abdominal pelt and genitalia of G. machadoi sp. nov. (male from Zamora, Ecuador). 20. abdomen; 21. aedoeagus, lateral view; 22. genital capsule, dorsal view; 23. same, ventral view. Scale bars = 1 mm, except for the abdomen, = 5 mm.