Scythris caimancitoensis Nupponen, 2022

Nupponen 1, Kari & Sihvonen, Pasi, 2022, Revision of Neotropical Scythrididae moths and descriptions of 22 new species from Argentina, Chile, and Peru (Lepidoptera, Gelechioidea), ZooKeys 1087, pp. 19-104 : 19

Scythris caimancitoensis Nupponen sp. nov.

Figs 18 , 49

Type material.

Holotype. Argentina • ♂; prov. Jujuy, Rio San Francisco, by Caimancito village; 23°43.8'S, 64°36.3'W, 400 m a.s.l.; 18 Sep. 2017; K. Nupponen & R. Haverinen leg.; [BOLD sample ID] KN01037; [genitalia slide] K. Nupponen prep. no. 3/9 Dec. 2019; coll. NUPP (MZH).

Diagnosis.

Externally somewhat resembling S. tibicina , but distinguished by the more contrasty pattern and cream colour of the forewings. In the male genitalia, the strikingly long and blade-like valvae (which sticks out from the abdomen, see Fig. 18 ) and an elongate sternum VIII are diagnostic.

Description.

Wingspan 13.5 mm. Head brown, laterally paler. Collar and neck tuft mixed with various shades of brown and dirty white, tegula pale brown. Haustellum dirty white. Thorax dark brown. Scape dorsally dark brown, ventrally dirty cream; pecten dirty cream and longer than diameter of scape. Flagellum dark brown, 0.7 × length of forewing, ciliate, sensillae ~ 1/2 as long as diameter of flagellum. Labial palps white, except lower surface of palpomeres II and III dark brown. Legs dirty white, except tibia and tarsus of foreleg brown, and upper surface of hindleg tarsus with pale brown hair. Abdomen dorsally dark fuscous, ventrally white. Forewing dark brown, blackish at basal 1/2 of wing at costal and widely at dorsal areas; fold broadly cream, connected to dash of same colour at cell end, the latter extended to subapical area. Hindwing dark fuscous.

Male genitalia. Uncus small and labiate. Gnathos reduced to small transverse flap. Tegumen hood-shaped. Phallus short, basally indented, distal 1/2 tapered, tip extended, bent and pointed. Valva very long, straight and of constant width, apically tapered and bent inwards, tip pointed; costal and dorsal margins sclerotised and setose. Saccus U-shaped, ca. as long as tegumen. Sternum VIII subrectangular, strongly elongated and narrow, deeply indented both postero- and anteromedially; anterior margin with two parallel triangular lobes; at anterior 1/3 of plate two longitudinal setose ridges. Tergum VIII small, rectangular, posterior margin widely concave, anterior corners extended.

Etymology.

Latinised adjective in the nominative singular. The species is named after the type locality, the village of Caimancito.

Distribution.

NW Argentina.

Habitat.

The collecting site is a dry river bed surrounded by forests and plantations. Plants of the family Amaranthaceae were common along the river banks (Fig. 79 ).

Genetic data.

Not obtained (specimen submitted to barcode analysis but the sample failed).

Remarks.

Female unknown. The male genitalia do not show affinities to other described American Scythrididae . The very large male genitalia is diagnostic for Arotrura Walsingham 1888, but Scythris caimancitoensis does not have the other diagnostic characters of that genus ( Landry 1991). We classify Scythris caimancitoensis in Scythris , but the genus combination needs more research.

Figures

Figure 79. Collecting site of Rhamphura angulisociella sp. nov., Scythris caimancitoensis sp. nov. and S. sanfranciscoi sp. nov.: Argentina, Rio San Francisco (397 m), 18 Sep. 2017.

Figures 18 - 24 A. Scythrididae adults, genus Scythris 18 S. caimancitoensis Nupponen, sp. nov., male, holotype 19 S. ejiciens Meyrick, 1928, male, holotype 20 S. fluvialis Meyrick, 1916, male, lectotype 21 S. inanima Meyrick, 1916, male, holotype 22 A S. lequetepequensis Nupponen sp. nov., male, holotype 22 B S. lequetepequensis Nupponen sp. nov., male, paratype 23 S. plocogastra Meyrick, 1931, female, holotype 24 A S. tibicina Meyrick, 1916, male, lectotype.

Figures 49 - 50. Male genitalia of Scythris 49 S. caimancitoensis Nupponen sp. nov., holotype, slide 3 / 9 Dec. 2019 KN 50 S. fluvialis Meyrick, 1916, lectotype, slide JFGC No. 8052 (genitalia shown in lateral view).