Agonopterix calavrisella La Cava, Zucco & Scalercio, 2025

Cava, Sara La, Zucco, Giada & Scalercio, Stefano, 2025, Agonopterix calavrisella sp. nov., a new Depressariinae from the impurella species subgroup from South Italian forests (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea, Depressariidae), Zootaxa 5717 (3), pp. 431-440 : 433-438

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5717.3.8
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:850C80C9-2B56-4E43-8AF9-004794CA3603
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/133A8788-FF1E-FF94-E3C6-FE4822B3FEB7
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Agonopterix calavrisella La Cava, Zucco & Scalercio
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Agonopterix calavrisella La Cava, Zucco & Scalercio , sp. nov.

Type material. Holotype ♂ [ ITALY] CALABRIA, Vibo Valentia, Polia, Vallone Milo ; 38.7561°N, 16.3036°E; 200 m; 5 Aug. 2024; G. Rijllo, D. Bonelli and S. Habermann leg.; Trap _2; BOLD sequence Page: BCLEP5637-24 ( COI); CREA-FL, LEP-SS-06198. GoogleMaps

Paratypes [ ITALY] CALABRIA, 1 ♂; same collection data as for holotype; BOLD GoogleMaps sequence Page : BCLEP5640- 24 ( COI) ; CREA-FL, LEP-SS-06201 • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; same locality as for holotype; 38.7554° N, 16.3074°E; 240 m; G. Rijllo, D. Bonelli and S. Habermann leg.; Trap _4; BOLD GoogleMaps sequence Pages : BCLEP5639-24 , BCLEP5638-24 ( COI) ; CREA-FL, LEP-SS-06200, LEP-SS-06199 • 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀; same locality as for holotype; 7 Oct. 2024; G. Rijllo, S. La Cava and S. Scalercio leg.; CREA-FL GoogleMaps • 5 ♂♂; same locality as for holotype; 38.7551° N, 16.3035°E; 240 m; 7 Oct. 2024; G. Rijllo, S. La Cava and S. Scalercio leg.; Trap _3; CREA-FL GoogleMaps • 4 ♂♂; same locality as for holotype; 38.7570° N, 16.3012°E; 240 m; 7 Oct. 2024; G. Rijllo, S. La Cava and S. Scalercio leg.; Trap _4; CREA-FL GoogleMaps • 2 ♂♂; same locality as for holotype; 38.7543° N, 16.3080°E; 280 m; 7 Oct. 2024; G. Rijllo, S. La Cava and S. Scalercio leg.; Trap _5; CREA-FL GoogleMaps • 2 ♂♂; same locality as for holotype; 38.7570° N, 16.3012°E; 190 m; 7 Oct. 2024; G. Rijllo, S. La Cava and S. Scalercio leg.; Trap _8; CREA-FL GoogleMaps • 1 ♀; Catanzaro, Badolato, Carfoni ; 38.5705° N, 16.4846°E; 585 m; 24 Oct. 2022; S. Scalercio, M. Lombardo and R GoogleMaps . Ferrari leg.; Trap _4; BOLD sequence Page : BCLEP950- 23 ( COI) ; CREA-FL, LEP-SS-01512 • 1 ♂; Catanzaro, Marcellinara, Contrada Licari ; 38.9188° N, 16.5035°E; 254 m; 10 Oct. 2018; S. Scalercio leg.; A1; BOLD GoogleMaps sequence Page : BCLEP982-23 ( COI) ; CREA-FL, LEP-SS-01544; Microscope slide: CREA-0272 • 1 ♀; Cosenza, Donnici , Fosso Cucolo ; 39.2369° N, 16.2972°E; 550 m; 12 Oct. 2014; S. Scalercio leg.; Microscope slide: CREA-0271; BOLD GoogleMaps sequence Page : BCLEP951-23 ( COI) ; CREA-FL, LEP-SS-01513.

Diagnosis

The forewing lacks the central crescent-shaped black marking present in A. liturosa ; instead, it features a ferruginous median strip, sometimes proximally black.

Male genitalia with costa of valva straight, becoming curved at two-thirds of the ventral margin; apex pointed. In A. liturosa the costa is uniformly concave, the ventral margin shows a distinct depression abruptly near base of cuiller showing intraspecific variability (Peter Buchner, pers.comm.), and the apex is slightly rounded. Socii large and rectangular-shaped, divergent, whereas in A. liturosa they are divergent but smaller; anellus with distal half nearly circular with a U-shaped notch (depth 1/7 of anellus width), V-shaped in A. liturosa (depth 1/4 of anellus width).

Ostial plate of female genitalia narrow in the anteroposterior direction, with a laterally pointed, U-shaped antrum; in contrast, in A. liturosa it is broader and V-shaped. The ductus bursae is narrow and straight, and the corpus bursae has a cylindrical signum, whereas in A. liturosa the ductus bursae appears broader and the corpus bursae carries a rhomboidal signum.

Description

External characters ( Figs. 1 View FIGURES 1–2 , 3–6 View FIGURES 3–6 ): wingspan 17–20 mm; Forewing elongate with subacute apex, ground colour reddish-brown with interspersed blackish scales basally more abundant, sometimes forming inconspicuous costal spots rarely alternated with creamy costal spots, central wing dots absent, markings limited to a ferruginous median strip sometimes proximally black; underside ( Fig. 3 View FIGURES 3–6 ) grey, darker on costa and near termen; fringe cilia grey. Hindwing light to medium grey, slightly darker along veins and towards apex, underside as upper side. Head ( Figs. 4–6 View FIGURES 3–6 ): face with appressed, elongated, light creamy scales, and vertex with erect, long and narrow scales of the same colour, laterally with brownish tinge. Labial palp segment 1 short, laterally covered by dark scales and ventrally by light creamy scales; labial palp segment 2 long, inner side light creamy, outer side of the same colour but with dark and light scales interspersed; segment 3 shorter and narrower than segment 2, with majority of pale scales at base and dark grey scales beyond middle followed by few light scales at tip. Antenna dark fuscous, filiform, thicker in males. Thorax pale ochreous buff and tegulae dark brown.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 7–9 View FIGURES 7–12 ): gnathos elliptical; socii large and rectangular-shaped, divergent; valva with costa straight, ventral margin curved at two-thirds, apex pointed; cuiller straight, about two-thirds of valva width, stout, apex rounded, outer margin papillose in distal third; anellus with distal half nearly circular with a U-shaped notch (depth 1/7 of anellus width); anellus lobes apparently absent; saccus flat; aedeagus with sheath nearly reaching middle, with a group of numerous small cornuti.

Female genitalia ( Figs. 13–15 View FIGURES 13–18 ): anterior apophysis about 60% of length of posterior apophysis; sternite VIII width-length ratio about 3:1, anterior margin straight; ostium at about half of VIII sternite, with a pair of sclerite near antrum region, these narrow in the anteroposterior direction, distally pointed, with a U-shaped median notch; ductus bursae narrow and straight, about twice as long as ovate corpus bursae; signum at one-third of proximal part of corpus bursae, narrow, about five times longer than it is wide, bearing conspicuous cornuti along its margins and in the middle.

Genetic data: seven specimens were barcoded, recovering 658bp for four specimens, 654bp for two specimens, and 655bp for one specimen. Sequences of Agonopterix calavrisella sp. nov. are assigned to BIN BOLD:AFR9579. It showed a genetic distance of 4.46% from its nearest neighbour Agonopterix liturosa (BOLD: AAE7191). Agonopterix calavrisella sp. nov. showed a very low genetic variability in the barcode fragment. The reason could be that this population has only recently established itself here, starting from a few, genetically uniform progenitors. ( Fig. 19 View FIGURE 19 ).

Biology: unknown; according to the host plants of the impurella species group and to the habitat where it was collected, it likely feeds on Salicaceae (see Remarks).

Distribution: despite field efforts carried out in the northern part of Calabria, its distribution currently seems limited to the central part of the region at low and medium altitudes.

Habitat: it was found in forested habitats at low and medium altitude. Sampling sites are characterized by relatively high humidity and a dense mixed forest cover mostly composed of evergreen shrubs and mesophilous deciduous trees. It was particularly abundant at the type locality, a mixed forest with a high humidity rate growing along the Vallone Milo, a steep and deep valley inhabited by one of the most abundant known populations of the rare and protected Jurassic fern Woodwardia radicans (L.) Sm.

Phenology: adults were collected from the first week of August to the end of October, likely representing one prolonged generation. Only rare individuals were found in the earlier period being much more abundant at the beginning of October. To date, no overwintering individuals have been observed.

Derivatio nominis: as a new species discovered from the Calabria region, it has been named using the dialectal word for a young Calabrian girl.

Remarks: the external morphology, genitalia, and genetic data suggest that Agonopterix calavrisella sp. nov. belongs to the impurella species subgroup sensu Buchner & Corley (2025) including four species so far, feeding on Clusiaceae or Salicaceae . The nearest species is Agonopterix liturosa ( Fig. 2 View FIGURES 1–2 ) which showed the lowest genetic distance and very similar male genitalia. However, the female genitalia of these two species are clearly different in shape of ostium, bursa and signum. Furthermore, in the investigated area A. liturosa inhabits the mountains, whereas A. calavrisella sp. nov. inhabits medium and low altitudes ( Fig. 20 View FIGURE 20 ). In the presence of ferruginous scales in the middle of the forewing, A. calavrisella sp. nov. is similar to A. oinochroa (Turati, 1879) , but it does not have the creamy basal area present on the forewing of the latter, and the genitalia are substantially different between the two.