Acrolepiopsis falcata, Gaedike, 2016

Gaedike, Reinhard, 2016, New and poorly known Acrolepiinae from the Palaearctic, Afrotropical, Neotropical and Oriental regions (Lepidoptera: Glyphipterigidae), Beiträge Zur Entomologie = Contributions to Entomology 66 (2), pp. 257-264 : 258-259

Acrolepiopsis falcata spec. nov.

Holotype: ♂, “ TANZANIA, Tanga Region, Lushoto Distr., 1400 m, Mazumbai Forest Reserve , 30.xi.–7.xii. 1995, leg. S. Mckamey et al., coll. ZMUC, Denmark;” “Zool. Mus. Kobenhaven;” “Gen. präp. [ genitalia slide] Gaedike Nr. 8026;” “Holotypus Acrolepiopsis falcata sp. n. det. R. Gaedike 2016;” ZMUC.

Derivatio nominis: Named after the sickle-shaped valvae.

Diagnosis (Figs 2a–2b): Wingspan 9 mm. Head greybrown, above palpi somewhat lighter; labial palpus long, curved upwards, on outside grey-brown, on inside paler. Antenna with same colouration as the head; thorax and tegulae dark brown; forewing with dark brown ground colour. On dorsum before 1/2 a thin yellowish stripe, reaching cell, opposite the stripe on costa a shorter stripe; the fringe around apex and basally with some minute white dots.

Male genitalia ( Figs 11–13 ): Vinculum with very long narrow saccus, with rounded tip; valva sickle-shaped, narrow, with pointed tip, basally somewhat broader, apodeme long; phallus a little longer than saccus + vinculum, basally rounded, apically with very minute thorns.

Female genitalia: Unknown.

Remarks: Superficially distinguishable by dark brown forewings with only minute white dots, the genitalia characterized by the sickle-shaped valvae.

Figures

Figs 7–16: Digitivalva kenyacola (male: 7 – uncus-tegumen-vinculum-saccus; 8 – valva; 9 – phallus; 10 – female), Acrolepiopsis falcata (male:11 – uncus-tegumen-vinculum-saccus; 12 – valva; 13 – phallus), Acrolepiopsis lativalvata (male: 14 – uncus-tegumenvinculum-saccus; 15 – valva; 16 – phallus).