Lecithocera fuscialaris Oku & Sakamaki & Hirowatari 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Oku, Johei
name: Sakamaki, Yositaka
name: Hirowatari, Toshiya
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Lecithoceridae
Lecithocera
Lecithocera fuscialaris

description: Lecithocera fuscialaris Oku sp. nov.   
[Japanese name: Osumi-higenaga-kibaga]  
(Figs 1g, 2e, 3e, 4e, 5c)  
 Diagnosis. The new species is similar to L. raphidica Gozmány, 1978 from China in the genital character, but is distinguished by the arched ventral side of the male cucullus and the short, thick aedeagus. It is also similar to L. nigrana (Duponchel, 1836) from Austria on superficial characteristics, but is distinguished by the following characters: in the male genitalia, the sacculus with some setae on distal part of cephalic side, the juxta is pentagonal with a stick-like process medially on the caudal side; in the female genitalia, the ductus bursae has many cone-like spinules.   
 Description. Wingspan, 12.0– 15.1 mm. Head: light brown; vertex concolorous. Frons reddish yellow. Antenna greyish yellow, same length as forewing; scape and flagellum greyish yellow. Labial palpus orange yellow on outer surface and greyish yellow on inner surface; 3rd palpomere slightly shorter than 2nd, brown on outer surface. Thorax: thorax and tegula brown. Legs reddish yellow dorsally and brown ventrally. Mid-tibia with reddish yellow spurs. Hind tibia greyish orange, with numerous long and greyish orange hairs, and with two pairs of reddish yellow spurs. Abdomen: greyish yellow dorsally and bronze ventrally.   
Wings (Fig. 1g): Forewing with oblique termen; ground color brown, indistinct dark brown spot near end of cell; fringe brown, darker toward apex. Hindwing light brown with slightly sinuate termen; fringe concolorous, light yellow in anal area.  
Wing venation (Fig. 2e). Forewing: Sc ending middle of costa; R1 arising from basal 1/2 of cell; R2 from distal 1/6 of cell; R3 from upper angle of cell; R4 and R5 stalked for distal 1/6 of wing; R5 to termen; M1 and M2 parallel; M3 free; CuA1 and CuA2 short-stalked; 1A + 2A forked basally; cell opened. Hindwing: Sc ending at distal 1/3 of costa. Rs running to near apex; Rs and M1 stalked at distal 1/3 of wing. M2 and M3 parallel; M3 and CuA1 shortstalked; CuA2 arising from distal 1/6 of cell. 1A to about 1/2 of dorsum; 2A to 1/3 of dorsum.  
Male genitalia (Figs 3e, 4e). Uncus bilobed, with some setae on surface. Median process of gnathos long, sickle-shaped, five times as long as uncus, 1/2 times as wide as uncus; basal plate of gnathos rectangular, slightly convex on caudal side. Valva with round apex, four times as long as costal bar, concaved on ventral side; cucullus, 1/2 times as wide as base, with numerous setae on inner surface, ventral side arched: costal bar slightly curved; sacculus thick, with some setae on distal part of cephalic side. Juxta pentagonal, with a stick-like process on caudal side medially, cephalic side swollen conically. Caudal side of vinculum concaved. Aedeagus 1.2 times as long as valva, 1/4 times as wide as long, slightly bent in proximal 1/4; apical part bifurcated and pointed; vesica with cornuti; one elliptical cornutus with some lobed processes on surface before apical part; numerous thorn-like cornuti arranged in irregular rows in middle; another band-like cornutus before middle. Seventh sternite trapezoidal, caudal side slightly concaved, both lateral sides concaved.  
Female genitalia (Fig. 5c). Papillae anales 4/5 times as wide as long, with many short and long setae; joint membrane between papillae anales and eighth segment 1.2 times as long as papillae anales. Ostium bursae occupying 1/2 width of eighth segment; membrane of caudal side of ostium bursae swollen hemispherically, with numerous thorn-like processes on surface, inner central margin with ellipsoidal process. Antrum trapezoidal, cup-shaped, 1.2 times as long as papillae anales. Apophysis anterioris 1/2 times as long as apophysis posterioris. Ductus bursae with many cone-like spinules, 3.5 times as long as papillae anales. Corpus bursae ovate, four times as long as papillae anales, four times as wide as papillae anales. Signum bilobed, with minute denticles on surface, 2/5 times as long as papillae anales, two times as wide as long.  
 Type materials. HOLOTYPE. JAPAN, [Kyushu]: ♂, Mt. Hoyoshi-dake, Kimotsuki Town, Kimotsuki Gun, Kagoshima Pref. 19.viii.2017, J. Oku leg. (1 ♂ Gen. sl. no. Lecithocera No. 40), in ELKU.   
 PARATYPES. JAPAN, [Kyushu]: 1 ♀, Ichiki, Tarumizu City, Kagoshima Pref., 6.ix.2017, J. Oku leg., in KGU; 2 ♂ 2 ♀, Mt. Hoyoshi-dake, Kimotsuki Town, Kimotsuki Gun, Kagoshima Pref., Japan, 19.viii.2017, J. Oku leg. (2 ♀ Gen. sl. no. Lecithocera No. 39 and 42, 1 ♂ Gen. sl. no. Lecithocera No. 41 and 42, wing sl. no. Lecithocera No. 41-1), in ELKU; 1 ♀, Mt. Hoyoshi-dake, Kimotsuki Town, Kimotsuki Gun, Kagoshima Pref., Japan, 19.viii.2017, J. Oku leg., in KGU.   
 Distribution. Japan; Kyushu (Kagoshima Prefecture).   
 Biology. Adults fly in August and September.   
 Etymology. The specific name is derived from the Latin “ fusca ” (=brown) and “ alaris ” (=of the wing), because the forewings are uniformly brown.   
 Remarks. The new species can be assigned to the genus Lecithocera by the characteristics of the venation. However, the forewing venation differs slightly from that of Lecithocera by having R3 not stalked and R5 to termen. Moreover, the shape of the genitalia is closer to the genus Homaloxestis Meyrick, 1910 especially to that of H. rotundisigna described by Yu & Wang (2020). Therefore, generic definitions in the Lecithoceridae traditionally based on wing venation require a revision taking into account genital and other morphological features and using a phylogenetic approach.
description: Published as part of Oku, Johei, Sakamaki, Yositaka & Hirowatari, Toshiya, 2021, Taxonomic revision of the genus Lecithocera (Lepidoptera, Lecithoceridae) from Japan, with descriptions of two new species, pp. 540-554 in Zootaxa 4996 (3) on pages 547-549, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4996.3.7, http://zenodo.org/record/5074869