Prionapteryx eberti Bassi & Mey, 2013

Bassi, Graziano, 2013, Notes on some Old World Prionapterygini Landry, 1995 (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea, Crambidae, Crambinae), with descriptions of new species, Revue suisse de Zoologie 120 (1), pp. 131-160 : 157-158

Prionapteryx eberti Bassi & Mey sp. n. Figs 8, 25, 39, 40

HOLOTYPE: 1- ‘3’; 2- [ NAMIBIA] Sandveld [Conservancy] | 60 Km. N. Gobabis | 22-26.I.2007 | LF | Mey & Ebert legit’; 3- ‘GS-5360-GB’; 4- ‘ HOLOTYPE | Prionapteryx | eberti Bassi’. Deposited in MFNB.

PARATYPES [all from NAMIBIA]. – MFNB; 3♀♀ ; same data as holotype. – MFNB; 1♀ ; Namibia-Exp [edition] ZMB 1992 , Bushmanland , Klein Dobe, 19°25’S 20°21’E, lux, 19-21.II.1992, W. Mey legit; GS 5389 GB. – CB; 1♀ ; Auas Mts , Krumhuk, 1850 m, 24.I.2009, LF, W. Mey legit; GS 5385 GB. – CB; 1♀ ; Popa Falls , 1000 m, lux, 24-25.XI.2010, Mahangu Campsite, G. Bassi legit, GS 5322 GB .

ETYMOLOGY: The new species is named in honour of Konrad Ebert of the MFNB, co-collector of large series of Lepidoptera during the MFNB expeditions in Southern Africa.

DIAGNOSIS: P. eberti (Fig. 8) differs from P. amathusia (Fig. 7) in having a welldefined yellow and greyish brown forewing coloration and short rami in male antennae. In male genitalia (Fig. 25) the uncus is more distinctly curved, with strong tip and broad lateral process, the phallus is shorter, and the juxta is well sclerotized, even dorsally. In female genitalia (Figs 39, 40) the ductus bursae is membranous and on the corpus bursae the proximal patch is rounded.

DESCRIPTION (Fig. 8): Wingspan: male 23 mm, females 24-28 mm. Labial and maxillary palpi 3 x as long as widest diameter of eye, greyish brown. Antennae bipectinate in males, simple in females; rami in males brown and moderately developed, costa bronze brown, silver bordered. Frons clearly produced, ending in corneous tooth, greyish brown. Ocelli small. Chaetosemata brown. Patagium medially white, brown laterally. Tegulae yellow with distal margins pale yellow. Thorax laterally brown, medially white. Abdomen dorsally brown on first four segments, then greyish yellow. Forewings ground color yellow to greyish brown; hook present but without tufty scales; costal line grey; costal area yellow, including cell; median and dorsal areas grey with dark brown scales except for a yellow stripe, distally bordered dark brown, reaching midwing below cell; subterminal area with inner side yellow and medial fascia white reaching apex, with 5 ill-defined black dots inside, and terminal line broad, grey; fringes with row of shorter scales grey till hook, then paler, with base white and row of longer scales greyish with paler bases, but tricolored around tornus, with pale greyish medially. Hindwings ivory yellow with greyish brown suffusion; fringes pure white with short scales ivory yellow. Sclerotizations of male abdominal segment VIII as shown in figure 25.

MALE GENITALIA (Fig. 25): Uncus 1.7 x length of gnathos, slightly downcurved proximally, then strongly curved dorsally and notched ventrally at 0.7; tip subcylindrical and hooked; patch of setae mid-ventrally placed; mid-lateral extensions broad and subtriangular. Gnathos short, well sclerotized and with up-curved tip. Tegumen subtriangular, with strong and pointed proximal pointed projection. Vinculum with lateral arms thin; sternal projection moderate and pointed. Pseudosaccus suboval, medium sized. Juxta subconical. Valva broad, proximally slightly concave, with costal margin more strongly sclerotized; basal costal process strongly sclerotized, with five pointed teeth; sacculus sclerotized except for membranous proximal edge; cucullus with ventral margin and apex broadly rounded. Phallus 0.75 x as long as valva, simple, with tip ventrally and dorsally moderately sclerotized and slightly bulged.

FEMALE GENITALIA (Fig. 39, 40): Papillae anales almost fused dorsally, ventrally membranous and with dorsal sclerite triangular; setae fine and of moderate lenght except for some short and strong. Apophyses posteriores long, basally with plate-like sclerite reaching sternum. Abdominal segment VIII strongly developed and sclerotized, with tergal proximal border straight. Apophyses anteriores as long as apophyses posteriores. Ostium bursae broad, suboval and membranous. Ductus bursae tubular, membranous, half as long as corpus bursae. Corpus bursae suboval, with broad sclerotized patch in proximal third. Ductus seminalis opening in extension of proximal third of corpus bursae, opposite sclerotized patch.

DISTRIBUTION: Namibia.