Thiotricha albida Lee & Li 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Lee, Ga-Eun
name: Li, Houhun
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Gelechiidae
Thiotricha
Thiotricha albida

description: Thiotricha albida sp. nov.   
(Figs 7A, 23H, 30B, 48A)  
 Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Mt. Daming, 1250 m, 24.v.2011, leg. Linlin Yang and Yinghui Mou, genitalia slide no. LGE18104. Paratypes. CHINA: Sichuan Province: 1 ♂, Caoping Village (30.95°N, 103.32°E), 1557 m, Sanjiang Town, Wenchuan County, 9.vii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Wei Guan, Weichun Li and Shurong Liu; Yunnan Province: 1 ♀, Mt. Weibao (25.18°N, 100.34°E), 2200 m, Weishan County, 20.vii.2001, leg. Houhun Li and Xinpu Wang, genitalia slide no. ZJL05247; 2 ♂♂, Mt. Weibao (24.52°N, 98.84°E), 2244 m, Weishan County, Dali City, 22, 23.vii.2013, leg. Shurong Liu, Yuqi Wang and Kaijian Teng, genitalia slide no. LGE18094; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, Mt. Weibao (25.18°N, 100.34°E), 2205 m, Weishan County, Dali City, 2, 3.viii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Wei Guan, Xiuchun Wang and Shurong Liu, genitalia slide nos. LGE18095f, LGE 18112m.   
 Diagnosis. This species can be diagnosed by the simply marked shining white forewing, the slender valva with distal 1/2 outwardly curved, a sharply pointed apex of the aedeagus, the short ductus bursae and the enlarged corpus bursae.   
 Description. Adult (Fig. 7A). Wingspan 10.5−12.0 mm. Head white. Labial palpus creamy white, ventral surface suffused with fuscous, segment III as long as II, pointed at apex. Antenna with scape white; flagellum brown except basal 1/3 of dorsal surface white, male cilia as long diameter. Thorax and tegula white. Forewing shining white, anterior edge of costa fuscous in basal 1/2 or 1/4; from distal 1/4 of costa a slender, outwardly oblique dark brown streak; beyond and parallel to this, a slender black streak followed by a dark brown triangle; apical spot elongated, bordered inwardly and outwardly by white scales; a black longitudinal median line in distal 1/3 of wing, slightly curved toward dorsum proximally, sometimes interrupted at 1/3 or at middle; dorsum sometimes shaded with fuscous; fringe of apical area white with subterminal and terminal fuscous bands; remaining fringe white, mixed with grey in basal half of dorsum. Hindwing dark grey, black at apex; fringe grey. Legs whitish ochre, slightly suffused with fuscous; fore leg fuscous on outer surface, mid and hind tibiae fuscous, each tarsomere white at apex.   
 Male sternum VIII (Fig. 23H). 1/5 length of abdomen, gradually narrowed to posterior 2/5, bifurcate from posterior 1/4, each tine slender and serrate apically.   
 Male genitalia (Fig. 30B). Uncus spatulate, with a row of stiff setae along lateral margins in distal 1/2. Gnathos hook long, simple. Tegumen approximately 2.5 times as long as uncus, anterior margin indented in pentagon-shape. Valva slender, basal 1/2 slightly curved inward, gradually broadening from base to middle; distal 1/2 setose, slightly curved outward, uniformly elongate, rounded at apex. Anellus lobe approximately 1/2 length of valva, slightly constricted medially, blunt at apex; apical bristle 1/3 length of anellus lobe, hooked. Juxta with a sparsely setose, hummock-like process. Vinculum simple, with posterior margin rounded. Saccus subtriangular, slightly exceeding tegumen pedunculus, blunt at apex. Aedeagus with basal 2/5 dilated, slender distally, apex sharply pointed and curved downward.   
 Female genitalia (Fig. 48A). Papillae anales moderately sclerotized, posterior 1/2 covered with minute spines. Apophyses anteriores 2/3 length of apophyses posteriores. Tergum VIII shorter than sternum VIII, divided into two sclerites. Sternum VIII concave posteriorly, anterior margin strongly produced in U-shape; medial sclerotization with posterior margin emarginate at middle, fan-shaped in posterior 1/3, gradually narrowed from anterior 2/3 to 1/5, anterior 1/5 melanized and curved, reaching base of ductus bursae. Ductus bursae 1/2 length of corpus bursae, with ductus seminalis arising from posterior 1/3. Corpus bursae large elliptical; signum at middle, 1/4 length of corpus bursae, semielliptical with a central ridge.   
 Variations. The longitudinal median line can vary in length. It is thickened proximally in one specimen examined.   
 Distribution. China (Guangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan).   
 Etymology. The species name is from Latin, albidus (whitish), referring to the white forewing.
description: Published as part of Lee, Ga-Eun & Li, Houhun, 2024, A taxonomic review of Thiotricha Meyrick, 1886 (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae, Thiotrichinae) from China, with descriptions of 84 new species, pp. 1-222 in Zootaxa 5449 (1) on page 26, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5449.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/11233121