Absensomina, Cartwright, David I., 2010

Cartwright, David I., 2010, Descriptions of 2 new genera and 13 new species of caddisflies from Australia (Trichoptera: Ecnomidae), Zootaxa 2415, pp. 1-21 : 3-4

Genus Absensomina gen. nov.

Type species. Absensomina weara , sp. nov., by original designation, from northeastern Queensland, Australia.

Diagnosis. Key characters of this monotypic genus are hind wing with fork 3 absent, forewing fork 2 with a long footstalk, footstalk about 4 times length of crossvein r -m, fork 3 with a long footstalk, head dorsally with posterior occipital warts positioned transversely and female genitalia with abdominal sternite VIII basally with a single, narrow mesal process; process not as obvious as for species of Ecnomina and Wellsomina .

Description. Relatively small adults, head dorsally with occipital warts aligned transversely; scutellum with oval scutal wart (Fig. 2). Wing venation: forewings relatively narrow, each with length about 4 times width; R1 divided distally, fork 2 nygma absent, forks 2, 3 and 4 present, all short with long footstalks; fork 2 footstalk relatively very long, length about 3.3–4.4 times length cross-vein r -m, length of fork 2 about 1.5–1.7 times length of fork 3; length of fork 3 about 0.6–0.7 times length of footstalk, footstalk fork 3 very long about 4.8–5.4 times length of cross-vein m, cross-veins r -m and m contiguous at fork 3; fork 4 slightly longer than fork 3; fork 5 about twice length of fork 4; discoidal cell closed, short, length about twice width. Hind wings relatively narrow, each with length about 5 times width, forks 2 and 5 present, short, fork 2 footstalk very long, length about 5.8–6.1 times length of cross-vein r -m, humeral lobe developed, discoidal cell narrow, length about 3 times width, 2 anal veins (Fig. 1). Male genitalia with superior appendages short with digitiform processes subapically; inferior appendages fused with mesodistal process. Female genitalia with abdominal sternite VIII relatively broad, basally with short, narrow mesal process, with several short hairs distolaterally, segment IX long, broad-based, tapered distally, segment X relatively short, slender with pair of small cerci (Fig. 6). Larva unknown.

Etymology. Absens - Latin word for missing (fork 3 absent in the hind wing), combined with part of the generic name Ecnomina .

Remarks. Absensomina is a monotypic genus endemic to northeastern Queensland and most similar to the genus Agmina from New Caledonia which also lacks fork 3 in each hind wing ( Ward and Schefter 2000). It differs in several characters including forewings with relatively long footstalks to both forks 2 and 3 (Fig. 1) and the head dorsally with posterior occipital warts aligned transversely (Fig. 2).