Cosmetra larseni Aarvik, 2016, new species
Creators: name: Aarvik, Leif
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Tortricidae
Cosmetra
Cosmetra larseni

description: Cosmetra larseni, new species
(Figs. 2, 12, 20)
Type material. Holotype, ♂, KENYA: Rift Valley Province: Gilgil, 37M BV 0 668 4636, 2110 m, 27.xi.2010, L. Aarvik & T. Gilligan, genitalia slide NHMO 2840 (NHMO). Paratypes, 5♂, 1♀, same data as holotype, genitalia slide ♂ NHMO 2160, ♀ NHMO 2162 (NHMO); 1♂, Eastern: Lewa, 3 km W Junction A2/B6, 27 km S Isolo, 0o8’24.47”N, 37o27’23.77”E, 2060 m, 30.x–2.xi.2013, D. Agassiz, S. Beavan, R. Heckford & K. Larsen, genitalia slide L. Aarvik 2015.013 (KL); 1♂, Central: Naro Moru, 0o9’4.99”S, 37o0’37.57”E, 2060 m, 3–6.xi.2013, D. Agassiz, S. Beavan, R. Heckford, K. Larsen & M. Ngugi; 1♂, same locality, 2.xii.2008, D. Agassiz, L. Aarvik & A.J. Kingston (DA); 2♂, Rift Valley: Rumuruti 0o20’N, 36o15’E, 1800 m, 29.iv.2003, D.J.L. Agassiz (DA); 1♂, Rift Valley: Turi 8000 ft, 26.v.1999, D.J.L. Agassiz, genitalia slide L. Aarvik 2015.014 (DA), same locality, 1♀, 13.xi.1998, 1♂, 9.iii.1999, 1♀, 14.iii.1999, 1♀, 13.vi.1999, 1♀, 2.v.2000, D.J.L. Agassiz (DA). TANZANIA: 1♀, Morogoro Distr. & Town: Kigurunyembe 700–900 m, 10.i.1992, L. Aarvik, genitalia slide NHMO 2720 (NHMO); 1♂, Iringa Reg., Mufindi Distr.: Kigogo Forest 1900 m, 23–25.xi.2005, L. Aarvik, M. Fibiger & A. Kingston, genitalia slide NHMO 2159 (NHMO).
Diagnosis. Cosmetra larseni differs from C. spiculifera by its less conspicuously marked hindwing veins and from C. truncana by its brownish rather than reddish forewing colour. Cosmetra multidentana, C. usambarensis, and C. juu all have reduced markings on the dorsal margin of the forewing. Cosmetra tumulata and C. fibigeri can be separated from C. larseni only by the genitalia. The male genitalia C. larseni can be distinguished by the combination of the single uncus spine, the short and broad socii, and the semirectangular cucullus. In the female genitalia the unconstricted ductus bursae distinguishes it from C. spiculifera, and the shape of the corpus bursae separates it from the rest of the species.
Description. Male (Fig. 2). Head: Light ochreous, rough scaled, in most specimens dark brown on vertex. Antenna light ochreous. Labial palpus ca. 1.8 times diameter of eye, light ochreous; third segment nearly concealed by scaling of second segment, with brown suffusion on external side. Thorax: Light ochreous, fuscous in middle. Fore- and mid-leg brownish grey, with light rings, hind-leg cream, tarsi ringed with light grey. Wingspan 12.0–15.0 mm. Forewing upperside light ochreous, dotted with dark brown; costal strigulae indistinct, consisting of short and oblique grey streaks, brown and grey suffusion form a dorso-basal blotch and a similar tornal blotch; apical spot reddish brown; cilia line cream, cilia light ochreous, strongly mixed with dark grey from apex to middle of termen. Hindwing light greyish brown, veins with brown suffusion. Abdomen: Basally light ochreous, with increasing grey suffusion towards tip. Genitalia (Fig.12) with uncus consisting of one pointed process; socii medially angled; sacculus of valva ventrally nearly straight, slightly curved before neck; cucullus subrectangular, apically broad, with 4–5 strong spines along lower half of ventral margin.
Female. Head and Thorax: Similar to male, but on average larger, wingspan 13.0–16.0 mm. Genitalia (Fig. 20) with apophyses posteriores and anteriores about same length, nearly twice as long as 8th segment; lamella postvaginalis laterally rounded, with posterior median projection, lateral ridges joined with posterior median process; ductus bursae sclerotized except at entrance of corpus bursae where ribbed, straight, and parallel-sided in posterior half, slightly widened anteriorly; corpus bursae oval, narrowed anteriorly, denticles absent in area surrounding signa.
Variation. The forewing ground colour varies from light ochreous to pale brown and pale greyish brown. The maculae along the dorsal edge may be strongly or weakly expressed, and the amount of the dark dotting on the wing varies.
Distribution. Republic of South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania.
Biology. The food plant is unknown.
Etymology. The species is named after Knud Larsen, of Copenhagen, Denmark, who contributed a significant portion of the material used in this work, including many of the paratypes of this species.
Remarks. Todd Gilligan recently provided images of two genitalia slides (TMG 694 and TMG 695) of males of Cosmetra larseni collected in the Republic of South Africa. This greatly extends the known geographical range of the species. The specimens have the following data: (1) South Africa: Gauteng, Pretoria, Agricultural Research Council Inst. (ARC), Roodeplaat, 25.60473°S, 028.35489°E, 2 Feb 2015, el. 1,179 m, Gilligan, Brown, Timm, Krüger colls. and (2) South Africa: Gauteng, Magaliesburg Nature Reserve, Steynshoop Mountain Lodge, 25.84141°S, 027.57574°E, 8–11 Feb 2015, el. 1,526 m, T. M. Gilligan coll.
description: Published as part of Aarvik, Leif, 2016, Redefinition and revision of African Cosmetra Diakonoff, 1977 (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) with description of six new species, pp. 245-256 in Zootaxa 4088 (2) on pages 247-248, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4088.2.6, http://zenodo.org/record/257038